(AP) DAYTONA BEACH, FL Following a series of late-race collisions that eliminated other competitors and pushed the Hendrick Motorsports driver into victory lane on Sunday night at Daytona International Speedway, William Byron sped to his second consecutive Daytona 500 triumph.
Byron became the first back-to-back winner since Denny Hamlin in 2019–20, finishing ninth in the No. 24 Chevrolet with one lap remaining.
On the last lap, Bryon exploited yet another accident. At Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR took another well-known burnout instead of dropping the caution and allowing the pack to race to the finish.
After leading drivers on two laps around the track in his heavily armored presidential limousine, known in Washington as The Beast, Byron, 27, managed to hold on to the victory after two weather-related delays that lasted more than three and a half hours. President Donald Trump is scheduled to watch the remainder of the race in Florida.
Hendrick Motorsports broke a record tie with Petty Enterprises by winning the Daytona 500 for the tenth time.
“We’re just very lucky that it went our way,” Byron remarked. Crazy? Yes. To be honest, I find it hard to believe that we are here.
Without the fierce late wrecks that force the race into overtime, Daytona wouldn’t be the same.
Ryan Preece completely lost control of his No. 60 Ford and practically wheelied it with four circuits remaining. His automobile impacted the outer wall after flipping onto its roof and then back onto its tires. To let crews know he was alright, Preece dropped his safety net.
The race was red-flagged just 11 laps after another major one jumbled the field and eliminated four former Cup Series champions, spoiling the chances of Brad Keselowski, Daniel Suarez, Kyle Larson, and Bubba Wallace to win.
The multi-car collision began when reigning NASCAR champion Joey Logano moved to the middle and Ricky Stenhouse sought to block him. Logano was stacked up, and the accordion effect sent a number of vehicles, including those of Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Busch, who had previously won the Cup, skidding in all directions.
In The Great American Race, Busch’s car ended up on a wrecker, extending his slide to 0 for 20.
Jimmie Johnson, a two-time Daytona 500 champion, finished third, followed by Tyler Reddick in second place.
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By AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston
