The 2021 Daytona 500 winner was only at the top at the end of the race after a heavy fall on the final lap opened the way for him to drive through.
Michael McDowell was chasing leaders (and Penske teammates) Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski on lap 200 of the 200-lap race when Logano and Keselowski collapsed and NASCAR subsequently turned on the warning lights. McDowell was a car’s length ahead of Chase Elliott at the time of caution, giving him the lead and race win. After gaining his first win in the Cup series at his 358th career start, he was the first to cross the start-finish line.
“I can’t believe it,” said McDowell. “I have to thank God. So many years of just stamping it out, hoping for an opportunity like this. I have to thank (team owner) Bob Jenkins for giving me this opportunity. I’m so grateful .
“What a great way to get that first win – in the Daytona 500!”
McDowell, who only led the final lap of the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway, is the eighth driver to claim his maiden cup win at the Great American Race. His win is the third for Front Row Motorsports – all in a 34 Ford with three different drivers: David Ragan in Talladega, Chris Buescher in Pocono and McDowell in Daytona.
The win also qualified McDowell for the round of 16 of the playoffs of the Cup series.
Meanwhile, Keselowski threw his gloves and helmet in frustration after getting out of his badly damaged car.
“Had a big rebound, went to the pass to win the Daytona 500, and it ended really badly,” he told Fox Sports. “I don’t feel like I made a mistake, but I can’t drive everyone else’s car.” It was unclear whether Keselowski was referring to Logano, who seemed to be blocking him, or McDowell, who nudged him just before the wreck.
“The chaos has struck,” Logano told Fox Sports. “The 2 (Keselowski) kept trying to secure themselves to get a run, (I) tried to secure with him to keep the run from getting too big. I think he got on that again 34 (McDowell) and It was a really big run coming my way, and it seemed like we all only collided in one place. Really crap. “
McDowell said he could get through because his car and Keselowski were “separated” during the shock just before the wreck. “Otherwise I would have been right on 2,” he said.
“The way these runs work, sometimes when you hit a guy you push him out a little and you break away from him,” continued McDowell. “Brad and I had a great run and I was on his bumper and then he pulled down and I got a bit detached from him and then he and 22 (Logano) got together.”
The wild end on early Monday crowned a marathon racing day bracketed by large wrecks.
Mother Nature reluctantly allowed NASCAR Cup Series drivers to start a new season. Bad weather loomed over 500 on Sunday, and the rain over Daytona Beach, Florida caused nearly six hours of delay.
Sporting News followed live updates and lap-by-lap highlights of the Daytona 500. For the full results of the 2021 NASCAR season opener, see below.
Contributor: Tom Gatto. Material from the NASCAR Wire Service was also used in this report.
MORE: Watch NASCAR Races Live with fuboTV (7 Day Free Trial)
Daytona 500 results 2021
(Official order of completion)
| Item | driver |
| 1. | Michael McDowell |
| 2. | Chase Elliott |
| 3. | Austin Dillon |
| 4th | Kevin Harvick |
| 5. | Denny Hamlin |
| 6th | Ryan Preece |
| 7th | Ross Chastain |
| 8th. | Jamie McMurray |
| 9. | Corey LaJoie |
| 10. | Kyle Larson |
| 11. | Cole Custer |
| 12. | Joey Logano |
| 13. | Brad Keselowski |
| 14th | Kyle Busch |
| 15th | Austin Cindric |
| 16. | Christopher Bell |
| 17th | Bubba Wallace |
| 18th | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 19th | Chase Briscoe |
| 20th | Joey gases |
| 21st | Cody ware |
| 22nd | Kurt Busch |
| 23 | BJ McLeod |
| 24. | Josh Bilicki |
| 25th | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 26th | William Byron |
| 27 | Tyler Reddick |
| 28. | Kaz Grala |
| 29 | Quin Houff |
| 30th | Ryan Blaney |
| 31. | Chris Buescher |
| 32. | Anthony Alfredo |
| 33. | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 34. | Aric Almirola |
| 35. | Alex Bowman |
| 36. | Daniel Suarez |
| 37. | David Ragan |
| 38. | Ryan Newman |
| 39. | Erik Jones |
| 40. | Derrike Cope |
Daytona 500 live updates, highlights from the 2021 race
(All times east)
12:16 am – A huge, fiery fall in the final lap brings out front runners Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski and gives Michael McDowell the opportunity to win NASCAR’s most important event with caution.
00:10 am – Up to 10 laps remaining. It’s time to leave.
midnight – Unscheduled green flag stop for Bubba Wallace; Fox Sports reports that it told its crew that its car was vibrating. Right tire for the 23er who goes down a lap.
11:55 pm – The last stops of the night with the green flag begin in lap 170, with each manufacturer group pitting separately.
11:45 p.m. – The calm before the storm. Denny Hamlin is still leading, and everyone else is behind him.
11:35 pm – Denny Hamlin performs at 52 to go. The field runs a single file on the high side before the serious race begins.
11:20 pm – Denny Hamlin wins the second stage of the Daytona 500 and builds on his first stage win. The top 10 of the stage: Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon, Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Ryan Preece and Austin Cindric.
There are only 70 laps left in this year’s Great American Race. It’s going to be wild soon.
11:05 pm – A frightening moment when the right rear end of Kaz Grala’s car catches fire in the pit lane. Security forces are there to put it out. Grala was one of the drivers involved in the wreck caused by Bell. Amazingly, Grala tried to keep running before being told to stop for the night.
23 o’clock – – CAUTION NO. 5. Christopher Bell causes a multiple vehicle wreck when his rear left tire fails. Kyle Larson is one of the roughly half a dozen drivers. Bubba Wallace escapes and is ranked second at the time of the yellow.
10:55 pm – Kyle Larson is the leader after all pit stops. Less than 20 laps in phase 2.
10:45 p.m. – In the second half of the second stage, pit stops with a green flag are imminent. (Oh, by the way, the race is now official after we left lap 100 behind.)
10:30 p.m. – The worst of the rain seems to be behind us, but there are some concerns about the fog.
10:10 p.m. – Denny Hamlin reaches the first stage of the Daytona 500. The rest of the top 10:
Top 10 in stage 1 at the # Daytona500:
1. Hamlin
2. Preece
3. Dillon
4. Larson
5. Cindric
6. Bell
7. Wallace
8. Logano
9. Chastain
10. Custer
– Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) February 15, 2021
9:55 pm – OK, turn off yellow for green. Can we be careful guys please?
9:45 p.m. – And the yellow flag is back on lap 38. Quin Houff is out of the race.
9:35 pm – Waving green flag. On lap 30 we are in full swing.
9:20 pm – Well that seems problematic. At the moment still under the yellow flag.
Truex says there are puddles on the wall in areas where water leaks under the barrier.
– Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) February 15, 2021
“It will take a while, the track is still wet. You don’t need to hear it from me, everyone else is probably yelling at you. But I see moisture in different places ”- Ross Chastain | #NASCAR
– Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) February 15, 2021
9:05 pm – A quick look back at where we will be as the reboot approaches:
15/200
Currently out of the race:
Derrike Cope, Aric Almirola, David Ragan, Ryan Blaney, Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones, Alex Bowman and Ryan Newman
– Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) February 15, 2021
8:20 pm – Hey, it’s a restart time! This could actually happen.
7:55 pm – Trend in the right direction …
“Only one light scatters through 3 and 4,” reports a truck from the tower.
– Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) February 15, 2021
“Light scatters all around, but we do not lose progress,” reports a truck to the tower.
– Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) February 15, 2021
6:50 pm – The Air Titans are back on track, but NASCAR hasn’t offered any additional details on a possible restart time.
6:20 pm – Good news: there might be a window to dry the track between the rain waves. Bad news: this second wave could be ugly.
5:15 pm – OK, this rain really needs to cool off for a minute.
NASCAR’s “Air Titans” track drying system started by blowing water off the track. A few minutes later the rain returned and NASCAR stopped drying the track. pic.twitter.com/fGAgCR5IYA
– Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) February 14, 2021
4:55 pm – Chase Briscoe hits the Panda Express Drive-Through while delayed. A real power movement.
4:10 p.m. – So that’s not ideal.
3:55 pm – After only 15 laps, the Air Titans are on the road with the Daytona 500 under the red flag. Kevin Harvick is the current leader.
3:40 pm – Here is a full list of the drivers involved in the crash on lap 14, according to FOX broadcast: Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Tyler Reddick, Aric Almirola, Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher, Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell, Matt DiBenedetto, William Byron, David Ragan, Anthony Alfredo, Erik Jones, Alex Bowman, Jamie McMurray and Daniel Suarez.
3:35 pm – And now a red flag because of a light strike. What a wild start.
RED FLAG: Lightning strike nearby. The race is interrupted for at least 30 minutes. #NASCAR
– Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) February 14, 2021
3:25 pm – Whoa. We have a major accident involving at least a dozen cars.
3:10 p.m. – The warning flag goes up after Derrike Cope hits the wall on round 3. He’s ready for the day.
3 pm – A new season. Daytona 500th Pit Bull. Here we go.
2.40 p.m. – Let’s hope these rain clouds are floating right next to the track.
When does the Daytona 500 start?
The Daytona 500 will start broadcasting at 2:30 p.m. (CET) on Sunday, February 14, but the race itself may not start until around 3:00 p.m. (CET). It will take place at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
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Daytona 500 starting grid 2021
Wednesday’s pole qualifying was the front row for the Daytona 500, with Alex Bowman winning and William Byron setting the second-fastest lap. The results of Thursday’s duel races won by Aric Almirola and Austin Dillon formed the remainder of the field.
| Start pos. | driver |
| 1. | Alex Bowman |
| 2. | William Byron |
| 3. | Aric Almirola |
| 4th | Austin Dillon |
| 5. | Christopher Bell |
| 6th | Bubba Wallace |
| 7th | Ryan Newman |
| 8th. | Kevin Harvick |
| 9. | Joey Logano |
| 10. | Kyle Busch |
| 11. | Ryan Preece |
| 12. | Chase Elliott |
| 13. | Kyle Larson |
| 14th | David Ragan |
| 15th | Daniel Suarez |
| 16. | Corey LaJoie |
| 17th | Michael McDowell |
| 18th | David Regan |
| 19th | Jamie McMurray |
| 20th | Kurt Busch |
| 21st | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 22nd | Chris Buescher |
| 23 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 24. | Brad Keselowski |
| 25th | Denny Hamlin |
| 26th | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 27 | Cole Custer |
| 28. | Joey gases |
| 29 | Tyler Reddick |
| 30th | Chase Briscoe |
| 31. | Erik Jones |
| 32. | Derrike Cope |
| 33. | Quin Houff |
| 34. | Ross Chastain |
| 35. | Cody ware |
| 36. | Anthony Alfredo |
| 37. | Josh Bilicki |
| 38. | BJ McLeod |
| 39. | Austin Cindric |
| 40. | Kaz Grala |
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