A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 36 in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | February 14–15, 2021 | ||
| Location | Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (800 km) | ||
| Average speed | 144.416 miles per hour (232.415 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Time | 47.056 | ||
| Qualifying race winners | |||
| Duel 1 Winner | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | |
| Duel 2 Winner | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 98 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer | ||
| Nielsen Ratings | 4.830 million[12] | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth Announcers | Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle, and Rusty Wallace | ||
| Turn Announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2), Mike Bagley (Backstretch) and Kyle Rickey (3 & 4) | ||
The 2021 Daytona 500, the 63rd running of the event, was a NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on February 14–15, 2021 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Contested over 200 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) asphalt superspeedway, it was the first race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. In one of the biggest surprise upsets in Daytona 500 history, Michael McDowell, driving for Front Row Motorsports, won after Team Penske teammates Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski wrecked battling for the lead on the final lap.[13][14] McDowell was a 100–1 underdog, making his 358th Cup Series start and driving for a team with only two previous Cup Series victories.
Report
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida that is one of six superspeedways, the others being Auto Club Speedway, Pocono Raceway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.
Background
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Daytona International Speedway is one of three superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the other two being Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.[15] The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long.[16] The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.[16] The race will be the return of multiple retired drivers, such as 2010 winner Jamie McMurray[17] and Derrike Cope, the 1990 winner.[18] The race will also be the debut of drivers Anthony Alfredo, Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric[19] and Noah Gragson.[20] Although Gragson missed the race due to Crashing in duel 2. The race will also be the debut of many new teams, most notably 23XI Racing.[21]
This is the first Daytona 500 without two-time Daytona 500 winner Jimmie Johnson since 2001.
Entry list
- (W) denotes past 500 winner.
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
First practice (February 9)
Bubba Wallace was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 45.057 seconds and a speed of 199.747 mph (321.462 km/h).[22] This was the first practice session for a NASCAR Cup Series race in almost a year, the last one being at the 2020 March Phoenix Race.
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 45.057 | 199.747 |
| 2 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 45.069 | 199.694 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 45.070 | 199.689 |
| Official first practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Alex Bowman scored the pole for the race with a time of 47.056 and a speed of 191.261 mph (307.805 km/h).[23] Electrical problems for Derrike Cope and multiple inspection failures for Noah Gragson kept them from taking a timed lap.