Byron wins Daytona 500, giving Hendrick Motorsports 1st win since 2014
Daytona 500: Here's how big trucks dry the track in hours
Former NASCAR driver Jesse Little joins Good Day Orlando to discuss the track-drying process ahead of Monday's double-header after a wet, wet weekend across Central Florida. The United Rentals 300 race is slated for 11 a.m., with the Daytona 500 set to kick off at 4 p.m. on FOX 35.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) - William Byron launched Hendrick Motorsports' 40th anniversary season by snapping the team's nine-year Daytona 500 losing streak with a win Monday in the rain-delayed "Great American Race."
The last Hendrick driver to win the Daytona 500 was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2014. The 26-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, is the sixth different driver to win the 500 for Rick Hendrick, the winningest team owner in NASCAR history who made his way to victory lane on the actual 40th anniversary of his first Cup win.
Byron was in second on a restart with four laps remaining in the No. 24 Chevrolet. He and Ross Chastain of Trackhouse Racing pushed back and forth for the lead, and it was Byron out front as a crash broke out behind him just as he'd crossed under the white flag, marking the final lap of the race.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 19: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2024 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrma
Byron won under caution and was followed by teammate Alex Bowman in a sweep for Chevrolet. Christopher Bell, in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, finished third and was followed by Chevys from Corey Lajoie of Spire Motorsports and AJ Allmendinger of Kaulig Racing.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 19: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2024 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Pho
Bubba Wallace was sixth in a Toyota for 23XI Racing and was followed by John Hunter Nemecheck in another Toyota but for Legacy Motor Club. Chase Briscoe was eighth in a Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing and followed by Legacy driver Erik Jones and SHR teammate Noah Gragson.
The Daytona 500 finally started a day later than scheduled because of two days of rain at Daytona International Speedway.
The day was supposed to open with the rescheduled second-tier Xfinity Series race and then lead into "The Great American Race." However, when it was still raining Monday morning, NASCAR reordered the events and made the Xfinity race the closer.
Joey Logano started from the pole in a Ford for Team Penske — a first for Roger Penske’s storied team — in an all-Ford front row, but right before the race began, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin became the betting favorite, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
There was no pre-race concert on Monday as scheduled performer Pitbull said he’d return next year to make good on his appearance. He said a scheduling conflict prevented him from staying in Daytona on Monday, but grand marshal Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson did stay the extra day and was the most popular attraction in pre-race activities.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 19: A general view of racing during the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2024 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
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Johnson was swarmed on the starting grid, in the fan zone, and received the loudest ovation in the pre-race driver meeting, to which he showed up 30 minutes ahead of schedule wearing a black tank top.
The flexibility NASCAR has shown this month in working within its schedule to avoid inclement weather is practically unprecedented in the first 75 hours of the series. NASCAR, to start the month, moved the exhibition Clash at the Coliseum up a full day because of impending rain. At Daytona, it rescheduled the ARCA Series race from Saturday to Friday night and made early decisions to move both the Xfinity and Cup Series races.
The decision to postpone the Cup race a day was made early Sunday morning and prevented fans from sitting in rain-soaked grandstands to see if the race would begin.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 300 has been postponed to Monday night, approximately one hour after the Daytona 500 (approx. 9 p.m. ET).