2021 Daytona 500

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 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. 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

Daytona International Speedway is one of three superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the other two being Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is long. The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees. The race will be the return of multiple retired drivers, such as 2010 winner Jamie McMurray and Derrike Cope, the 1990 winner. The race will also be the debut of drivers Anthony Alfredo, Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric and Noah Gragson. 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.

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 . 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.

Qualifying

Alex Bowman won the pole.
Alex Bowman scored the pole for the race with a time of 47.056 and a speed of .
Electrical problems for Derrike Cope and multiple inspection failures for Noah Gragson kept them from taking a timed lap.

Qualifying results

Bluegreen Vacations Duels

Duel 1

Duel 1 results

Duel 2

Duel 2 results

Starting lineup

Practice (post–Duels)

Second practice (February 13)

Brad Keselowski was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 45.826 seconds and a speed of .

Final practice (February 13)

Final practice session scheduled for Saturday was cancelled due to rain.

Race

Teammates Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano wrecked on the final lap

Stage Results

Stage One
''Laps:'' 65

Stage Two
''Laps:'' 65

Final Stage Results

Michael McDowell won his first Cup race in his 358th start

Stage Three
''Laps:'' 70

Race statistics

* Lead changes: 22 among 13 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 7 for 40
* Red flags: 1 for 5 hours, 40 minutes and 29 seconds
* Time of race: 3 hours, 27 minutes and 44 seconds
* Average speed:

Media

Television

Since 2001—with the exception of 2002, 2004 and 2006—the Daytona 500 has been broadcast on Fox in the United States. The booth crew consisted of longtime NASCAR lap-by-lap announcer Mike Joy, three-time Daytona 500 champion Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer. Jamie Little, Regan Smith and Vince Welch handled pit road for the television side. 1992 and 1998 Daytona 500 winning crew chief Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.

Radio

The race was broadcast on radio by the Motor Racing Network—who has covered the Daytona 500 since 1970—and was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. The booth crew consisted of Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle and 1989 Cup Series champion Rusty Wallace. Longtime turn announcer Dave Moody was the lead turn announcer, calling the race from atop the Sunoco tower outside the exit of turn 2 when the field raced through turns 1 and 2. Mike Bagley worked the backstretch for the race from a spotter's stand on the inside of the track & Kyle Rickey called the race when the field raced through turns 3 and 4 from the Sunoco tower outside the exit of turn 4. On pit road, MRN was manned by Steve Post and Kim Coon.

Standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings

Austin Dillon left the 500 as the points leader
;Manufacturers' Championship standings

*Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daytona 500, 2021
2021 NASCAR Cup Series
2021 in sports in Florida
February 2021 sports events in the United States
NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway