Sunday, Feb. 26 will mark the 59th running of the Daytona 500 but did you know that it has been the season-opener only since 1982? The first “Great American Race” was held in 1959 and won by Lee Petty in his first appearance at the event in his No. 42 Oldsmobile Super 88. He led 38 laps and won by two feet in a photo finish battle with Johnny Beauchamp and Joe Weatherly. Twenty-five years later, his son, Richard Petty, captured his 200th win at Daytona in the Firecracker 400 on July 4, 1984.
Thirty-seven different drivers have won the Daytona 500 led by Richard Petty with seven victories. He’s followed by Cale Yarborough with four wins. Bobby Allison, Dale Jarrett and Jeff Gordon have won three 500s while Bill Elliott, Sterling Marlin, Michael Waltrip, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth have won the season-opener two times.
But did you know that only three drivers have back-to-back wins in this iconic race? Richard Petty did it (1973-74) and so did Yarborough (1983-84). However, Marlin was the last competitor to accomplish this feat (1994 and 1995).
Thirty years separate the oldest and youngest drivers who have won the 500. Trevor Bayne became the youngest driver (20 years, 0 months, 1 day) on Feb. 20, 2011, when he scored the checkered flag in his first start in the Daytona 500. It was also his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory. Bobby Allison won his third Daytona 500 on Feb. 14, 1988, making him the oldest Daytona 500 winner (50 years, 2 months, 11 days).
It’s often said that it’s not important where you start but rather where you finish. However, when it comes to the Daytona 500, qualifying well is a key factor. Did you know that the pole position has produced more winners (nine) than any other position? In fact, 28 of the 58 Daytona 500s (48.3 percent) have been won from a top-five starting position with a whopping 72.4 percent being won from a top 10 starting position.
The Daytona 500 is one of the most sought after wins in NASCAR’s premier series, and for good reason. Five drivers who won the 500 went on to become the Cup Series Champion the same year, for a total of 8 championships between them. The list includes Richard Petty (1964,1971,1974), Johnson (2006,2013), Lee Petty (1959), Yarborough (1977) and Jeff Gordon (1997).
The 59th Daytona 500 will kick off the 2017 season Sunday with television coverage on FOX at 2 p.m. It will also be broadcast on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR radio. The on-track activity begins Thursday, Feb. 23 with Cup practice at noon on FS1.
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