Daytona 500 history


This article documents historical records, statistics, and race recaps of the Daytona 500, held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Pre-race history

The table below summarizes the pace cars, Grand Marshals, Honorary Starters, and performers of the national anthem at the Daytona 500. Since 2006, the pace car has been driven by a celebrity guest at the start of the race. During the race, however, a NASCAR official drives the pace car during caution periods. Since 2004, Brett Bodine has served as the official pace car driver. Previously, Robert "Buster" Auton and Elmo Langley were pace car drivers.

Race recaps

1959–1969

, patriarch of the racing family, won the 1959 Daytona 500 on February 22, 1959, defeating Johnny Beauchamp in a highly unusual manner. Petty and Beauchamp were lapping Joe Weatherly at the finish. Petty, Beauchamp, and Weatherly crossed the finish line three abreast with Weatherly on the outside, Beauchamp on the inside, and Petty in the middle. A photo finish in a race of that duration and speed seemed inconceivable and photo-finish cameras were not installed at the track. NASCAR initially declared Beauchamp the winner. After reviewing photographs and newsreels of the finish for three days, the call was reversed, and Petty was awarded the win. Petty received $19,050 for winning. Ken Marriott was scored as the last place driver having completed one lap and won $100.
In 1960, Robert "Junior" Johnson won, despite running a slower, year-old car in a field of 68 cars, most in Daytona 500 history through the present day. Johnson made use of the draft, then a little-understood phenomenon, to keep up with the leaders.
After three years of being the best driver never to win the Daytona 500, Glenn "Fireball" Roberts came to the 1962 edition race of the Daytona 500 on a hot roll, he won the American Challenge for winners of 1961 NASCAR events, the pole position for the Daytona 500, and the Twin-100-mile qualifier. He dominated the race, leading 144 of the 200 laps and finally won his first Daytona 500.
In 1963, it was DeWayne "Tiny" Lund who took the victory for the Wood Brothers, however the real drama began a couple weeks before the race when Lund helped pull 1961 winner Marvin Panch from a burning sportscar at a considerable risk to himself. As a result of his heroism, the Wood Brothers asked Lund to replace Panch in the Daytona 500 and Lund took the car to the winner's circle.
Driving a potent Plymouth with the new Hemi engine, Richard Petty led 184 of the 200 laps to win the 1964 Daytona 500 going away. Plymouths ran 1-2-3 at the finish. The triumph was Petty's first on a super-speedway.
The first rain-shortened Daytona 500 was the 1965 event. Leader Marvin Panch and Fred Lorenzen made contact on Lap 129, as rain began to fall; Panch spun out, and Lorenzen won when the race was finally called on Lap 133. The 1966 Daytona 500, won by Richard Petty, was also shortened, to 198 laps, due to rain.
1967 saw Mario Andretti dominate the race. He led 112 of the 200 laps including the last 33 laps to capture his only win in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
The 1968 race saw a duel involving Cale Yarborough and LeeRoy Yarbrough. For much of the day, both drivers traded the lead. With 5 laps to go, Yarborough made a successful slingshot pass on the third turn to take the lead from Yarbrough and never looked back as he won his first Daytona 500 by 1.3 seconds. LeeRoy Yarbrough would inflict the same treatment on Charlie Glotzbach the next year, winning the 1969 Daytona 500 on the last lap.

1970–1979

The 1970s opened with Cale Yarborough qualifying at pole with a run. Fate played a major role in the 1970 race, claiming one driver after another as soon as the green flag fell. Richard Petty, then Yarborough who dropped out after leading 26 of the first 31 laps, Donnie Allison, and A. J. Foyt also dropped out of the race. Later in the race, Pete Hamilton, an unknown driver prior to this race, was contested the lead with the likes of Charlie Glotzbach and David Pearson. On lap 192, Hamilton passed Pearson for the lead, and although Pearson tried valiantly to regain the lead, it was Hamilton who took the checkered flag in front of the largest crowd to ever have seen the Daytona 500. It was the first of 4 victories Hamilton would have in his brief NASCAR career.
The 1972 race was called a One-Sided Daytona 500. A. J. Foyt cruised lanyard into the lead with about 300 miles to go and captured the victory. It was Foyt's sixth career Winston Cup Grand National victory, and it gave the famed Wood Brothers of Stuart, VA, their third Daytona 500 triumph. They had previously won with Tiny Lund in 1963 and Cale Yarborough in 1968. In the event punctuated by a weak field because of factory withdrawal, Foyt outlasted four rivals and beat runner-up Charlie Glotzbach by nearly two laps. Jim Vandiver was six laps down and finished third; Benny Parsons was fourth and James Hylton fifth. Only three caution flags for 17 laps interrupted Foyt's pace. He averaged 161.550 mph—an all-time record for the Daytona 500.
During the start of the 1974 NASCAR season, many races had their distance cut ten percent in response to the 1973 oil crisis. As a result, the 1974 Daytona 500, won by Richard Petty, was shortened to 180 laps, as symbolically, the race "started" on Lap 21. The Twin 125 qualifying races were also shortened to 45 laps. Richard Petty overcame tough luck of his own and capitalized on the misfortunes of Donnie Allison to win his fifth Daytona 500. The 47-second triumph was petty's 155th in Winston Cup Grand National competition. A record 53 laps were run under the caution flag, which reduced Petty's average winning speed to 140.894 mph.
In 1975, it appeared David Pearson was on his way to his first Daytona 500 victory as he built a sizable lead on second place Benny Parsons late in the race. However, Richard Petty, who was several laps behind the leaders, and Parsons hooked up in a draft and began reeling in Pearson who was slowed by lapped traffic. The key moment of the race occurred two laps from the end when contact with a backmarker sent Pearson spinning on the backstretch. Parsons avoided the accident and went on to take the win.
In the 1976 500, Richard Petty was leading on the last lap when he was passed on the backstretch by David Pearson. Petty tried to turn under Pearson coming off the final corner, but didn't clear Pearson. The contact caused the drivers to spin into the grass in the infield just short of the finish line. Petty's car didn't start, but Pearson was able to keep his car running and limp over the finish line for the win. Many fans consider this finish to be the greatest in the history of NASCAR.
For Bobby Allison, the Daytona 500 prior to the 1978 race was not kind to him, in fact he came to the race with a 67-race winless streak but with 11 laps remaining, he pushed his Bud Moore Ford around Buddy Baker to take the lead and never look back as he captured his first Daytona 500 win.
The 1979 Daytona 500 was the first race to be broadcast live on national television, airing on CBS, whose audience was increased in much of the Eastern and Midwestern USA due to a blizzard. That telecast introduced in-car and low-level track-side cameras, which has now become standard in all sorts of automotive racing broadcasts. A final lap crash and subsequent fight between leaders Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison brought national publicity to NASCAR, with the added emphasis of a snowstorm that bogged down much of the northeastern part of the United States. Donnie Allison was leading the race on the final lap with Yarborough drafting him tightly. As Yarborough attempted a slingshot pass at the end of the backstretch, Allison attempted to block him. Yarborough refused to give ground and as he pulled alongside Allison, his left side tires left the pavement and went into the wet and muddy infield grass. Yarborough lost control of his car and contacted Allison's car halfway down the backstretch. As both drivers tried to regain control, their cars made contact several more times before finally locking together and crashing into the outside wall in turn three. After the cars settled in the grass, Donnie Allison and Yarborough began to argue. After they had talked it out, Bobby Allison, who was lapped at that point, pulled over, began defending his brother, and a fight broke out. Richard Petty, who was over half a lap behind at the time, went on to win; with the brawl in the infield, the television audience scarcely noticed. The story was the talk of the water cooler the next day, even making the front page of The New York Times Sports section. NASCAR, as a national sport, had finally arrived after years of moonshine runners.

1980–1989

. The inside cars are Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Reed Sorenson. The outside cars are Michael Waltrip and Denny Hamlin.