DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY (2.5-MILE OVAL)
LOCATION: DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA
EVENT: NASCAR CUP SERIES (RACE ONE OF 36)
TUNE IN: 2:30 P.M. ET, SUNDAY, FEB. 16 (FOX/MRN/SIRIUSXM)
Chase Elliott
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver Chase Elliott Hometown Dawsonville, Georgia
Age 24 Resides Dawsonville, Georgia
2020 Season
TBD
Career
149 starts
6 wins
8 pole positions
44 top-five finishes
74 top-10 finishes
1,844 laps led
Track Career
8 starts
0 wins
3 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
0 top-10 finishes
64 laps led
150TH START: Chase Elliott is set to make his 150th career NASCAR Cup Series start on Sunday, Feb. 16 in the 62nd running of the DAYTONA 500. He will be the third-youngest driver to make their 150th start (24 years, 2 months, 19 days) – only Joey Logano and Kyle Busch were younger. Elliott has proven to be a bona fide star, accumulating six wins, 44 top-five finishes and 74 top-10 finishes. He has eight pole awards and 1,844 laps led. There have been nine drivers who have won in their 150th start, including his father, NASCAR Champion and Hall of Fame Driver Bill Elliott at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1985, and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson in 2006 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
SPEEDWEEKS SUCCESS: Elliott has won an event during three of the last four Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway. In 2016, he won the NASCAR Xfinity Series season opener. The following year, Elliott collected his first career Duel victory at Daytona in the first qualifying event of the evening. He continued the streak in 2018 by winning his second consecutive Duel. In addition to those victories, Elliott was in position to win the 2017 DAYTONA 500 before running out of fuel from the lead on Lap 198 of 200.
500 POLE WINNER: Elliott earned the DAYTONA 500 pole award as a rookie in 2016 and again in his 2017 sophomore season. No. 9 team crew chief Alan Gustafson also earned the DAYTONA 500 pole with driver Jeff Gordon in 2015 and with Elliott in 2016 and 2017. He is tied with NASCAR Hall of Fame crew chief Waddell Wilson and Elliott’s uncle, Ernie Elliott, for the most consecutive DAYTONA 500 poles by a crew chief. Wilson won three straight poles with drivers Buddy Baker, Bobby Allison and Benny Parsons from 1980-82. Ernie Elliott accomplished the feat with Chase Elliott’s father, Bill Elliott, from 1985-87.
LOOK BACK AT 2019: While 2019 was a season of highs and lows for the No. 9 team, Elliott captured career-bests in pole awards (four) and laps led (601). He ultimately captured three wins, 11 top-five finishes and 15 top-10s on the way to advancing to the Round of 8 in the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
FLORIDA NATIVE: This weekend, Gustafson will return home to the “Birthplace of Speed.” Gustafson hails from Ormond Beach, Florida, just down the road from Daytona International Speedway. After graduating from Seabreeze High School, he enrolled at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study mechanical engineering. Gustafson returns to Daytona for his 16th full-time season as a crew chief and his fifth year with Elliott.
GUSTAFSON AT DAYTONA: Though Gustafson has never won a points race at Daytona, he has collected two Duel wins (2017, 2018) with Elliott. The 44-year-old crew chief also has two runner-up finishes at the 2.5-mile superspeedway with Kyle Busch in 2006 and 2007. The 2007 result with Busch and Jamie McMurray was the closest margin of victory ever in the summer race at Daytona (0.005 seconds). Gustafson also has won the pole award at Daytona five times with three drivers (Chase Elliott – 3, Jeff Gordon – 1, Mark Martin – 1). He is tied with Leonard Wood and Waddell Wilson for the most DAYTONA 500 pole awards for a crew chief with four.
NAPA AUTO PARTS ON BOARD FOR THE 500: NAPA AUTO PARTS will kick off the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season on the hood of Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for his fifth consecutive DAYTONA 500. NAPA has served as the primary sponsor for all four of Elliott’s previous starts in “The Great American Race.”
MTN DEW CLASH CAR: In January, Elliott’s Clash ride was unveiled via Hendrick Motorsports’ social media channels. The black and green Chevrolet will look wildly familiar, but unexpectedly different as it features Mountain Dew’s new product, Mtn Dew Zero Sugar. Mtn Dew Zero Sugar has the bold taste and exhilarating charge of the original but none of the sugar, and Elliott now has an exciting new ride to go along with it. Take a closer look at the No. 9 Mtn Dew Zero Sugar Chevy here.
VISIT TO THE CHEVY STAGE: On Sunday, Feb. 16, Elliott will visit the Team Chevy stage at Daytona International Speedway at 11:20 a.m. ET for a question-and-answer session.
William Byron
No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver William Byron Hometown Charlotte, North Carolina
Age 22 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2020 Season
TBD
Career
36 starts
0 wins
5 pole positions
5 top-five finishes
17 top-10 finishes
294 laps led
Track Career
4 starts
0 wins
1 pole positions
1 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finishes
56 laps led
2019 IN THE REAR VIEW: With a second year of NASCAR Cup Series competition under his belt, William Byron is ready to pick up where the No. 24 team left off when the 2020 season kicks off at Daytona International Speedway. Across the board last year, Byron improved in every category, including making the Cup Series playoffs for the first time in his career. The driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE advanced on to the Round of 12 before finishing the season 11th in points, compared to 23rd his rookie year. Before 2019, Byron’s best finish on track was sixth-place, but he improved that statistic with two runner-up finishes in 2019 (Daytona – July, Martinsville – October). Byron collected just four top-10 finishes during 2018, compared to five top-five finishes and 13 top-10s last year, as well as almost quadrupling laps led from 61 to 233. He collected five pole awards during his sophomore campaign and was involved in all seven Hendrick Motorsports front row sweeps en route to improving his average finishing position from 22.1 to 14.9.
THIRD YEAR IS THE CHARM: Despite a successful sophomore season, there is one more box Byron and the No. 24 team want to check off their list – a trip to victory lane in the Cup Series. Five other notable drivers captured their first Cup Series win during their third season of competition, including Hall of Famers Bobby Labonte and Alan Kulwicki, Rusty Wallace, Kyle Larson, and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott. In fact, five past Cup Series champions were winless their first two years (Bill Elliott, Cale Yarborough, Alan Kulwicki, Bobby Labonte, and Dale Jarrett). Compared to those past champions and their first 72 Cup races, Byron ranks third for most top-five finishes, is tied for third in top-10s, has double the number of laps led, and is fourth in overall average finish.
WELCOME BACK, LIBERTY U: Liberty University, a longtime supporter of Byron, announced in September it would return to the No. 24 for 12 races in 2020 and in 2021. This weekend’s Clash will mark the first time this season that the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will have the familiar blue Liberty University paint scheme with red and white flames on board. With a long history with Byron starting back in 2014 in the late model ranks, Liberty University is in the midst of its sixth season of sponsoring the 22-year-old driver. Liberty has been Training Champions for Christ since it was founded in 1971. Located in the mountains of central Virginia, Liberty is a liberal arts institution with 17 colleges and schools that offers more than 600 degree programs from the certificate to the doctoral level, both on campus and online. Working on an undergraduate degree in business communication, Byron now is in his junior year at Liberty through its online program. For more information on the Liberty University extension with Byron and Hendrick Motorsports, click here.
COMING FOR THE CLASH: Capturing five pole awards during the 2019 season — the second-most in the series — Byron locked himself into the 2020 Clash event that kicks off Speedweeks festivities. When the No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE unloads this weekend, it will mark the 22-year-old’s first start in the 75-lap exhibition race.
PRESENTING AXALTA SEA GLASS: Kicking off the 2020 regular season in style, Byron’s No. 24 will have a twist to the iconic flame paint scheme that fans are accustomed to seeing. Unveiled last month, Axalta announced it will showcase its 2020 Global Automotive Color of the Year, Axalta Sea Glass, on the No. 24 Chevrolet for this year’s DAYTONA 500. Utilizing Axalta Sea Glass as the base, Byron’s Chevy will sport orange flames, as well. As a leading global company focused solely on coatings and providing customers with innovative, colorful, beautiful and sustainable solutions, Axalta Coating Systems is continuing its 28-year partnership with Hendrick Motorsports as a primary partner for both the Nos. 24 and 88 teams in 2020. The company sponsored Jeff Gordon and the No. 24 team for 23 years, beginning in November 1992, before moving to the No. 88 team in 2016 and sharing primary sponsorship with the No. 24 starting in 2018. This year, Axalta will return as primary partner on the No. 24 Chevrolet for 22 races. For a better look at Byron’s No. 24 Axalta Sea Glass Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE featuring Axalta’s Global Automotive Color of the Year, Axalta Sea Glass, click here.
TWENTY FOUR TO THE TOP: In four of the last five DAYTONA 500 races, the No. 24 has started from the pole position – in 2015 with Jeff Gordon and in consecutive seasons (2016 and 2017) with Chase Elliott. Byron most recently added to that stat by becoming the second-youngest DAYTONA 500 pole winner in 2019. Last year’s pole marked his first in the Cup Series.
DAYTONA DUELS: Byron will make his third start in the Daytona Duel qualifying races on Feb. 13. In last year’s Duel, Byron lined up first for the opening race of the night after securing the pole for the DAYTONA 500 the previous weekend. Using the opening laps to get a feel for his No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet, Byron elected to drop to the back of the field to avoid any unnecessary damage, crossing the finish line in the 16th position while ensuring that he maintained the top spot for the 61st running of the DAYTONA 500.
BACK AT THE BEACH: Set to make his fifth Cup Series start at Daytona International Speedway and his third in the DAYTONA 500, Byron is looking to kick the 2020 season off with a win at the famed 2.5-mile superspeedway. During a strong Speedweeks last year, Byron secured the pole for the DAYTONA 500, his first Cup Series pole award. He returned to Daytona in July and looked like he could have captured his first Cup Series win, but with weather cutting the race time, Byron was just one position short with a track-best and series-best finish of second. Byron does have one Daytona win on his racing resume though. During his 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship campaign, Byron qualified third in the July 1 race at Daytona International Speedway and found himself at the front of the field when it mattered most, leading 29 laps to score the victory, becoming the youngest driver with a win at Daytona at 19 years, 7 months and 1 day. In addition to his two Xfinity starts at Daytona, Byron has one Truck Series start and one ARCA Racing Series start to his credit.
KNAUS’ KNOWLEDGE: Entering his 20th season on top of the pit box and his second with the No. 24 team, veteran crew chief Chad Knaus is poised to call the shots for his 38th Cup race at Daytona International Speedway. Knaus has captured the checkered flag twice before — he swept the 2013 season and visited victory lane in the season opener, then followed up with a win in the summer at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. Looking to duplicate that success with the No. 24 team, Byron and Knaus went on to capture the pole during DAYTONA 500 qualifying last year, then scored a runner-up finish in the rain-shortened summer race.
BEACH BUMS: Kicking off the 2020 NASCAR season in the “Sunshine State,” three crew members on the No. 24 team will be making their way back home for NASCAR’s Speedweeks. Longtime Hendrick Motorsports rear tire changer Johnny Roberts hails from Titusville, Florida, just down the coast from Daytona Beach, where he spent most of his time surfing before making his way to North Carolina and eventually joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2010. Engineer Brandon McSwain grew up approximately 100 miles from the “World Center of Racing” in Auburndale, Florida. Just a few miles down the road from where McSwain grew up, engine tuner Ben Proctor calls Lakeland, Florida, home.
Jimmie Johnson
No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hometown El Cajon, California
Age 44 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2020 Season
TBD
Career
651 starts
83 wins
36 pole positions
227 top-five finishes
364 top-10 finishes
18,834 laps led
Track Career
36 starts
3 wins
2 pole positions
12 top-five finishes
16 top-10 finishes
299 laps led
NEW LOOK: Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Ally Chevrolet was unveiled in late January on social media and, for the second season, will take to the track with a black base and Ally’s signature colors of plum and grapefruit. The Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE is now a matte black, as opposed to the gloss finish as seen in 2019.
DANIELS AT THE HELM, SAUNDERS UNDER THE HOOD: Cliff Daniels, a 31-year-old native of Smithfield, Virginia, will call his first DAYTONA 500 as a crew chief on top of the No. 48 Ally Racing pit box on Feb. 16. Daniels became Johnson’s crew chief last July. Since taking over the top spot, he accumulated four top-10 finishes with the seven-time champ throughout the 2019 season. Veteran Jesse Saunders, a 34-year-old New Glarus, Wisconsin, native also is back with the No. 48 this season, working as Johnson’s car chief. Both Daniels and Saunders have worked with Johnson in different capacities since 2014.
TWO-TIME DAYTONA CHAMP: Johnson has two victories in the “Great American Race” as he powered to wins in both the 2006 and the 2013 DAYTONA 500s. To his credit, he has three wins at Daytona during regular-season events, as he also won the 400-mile race at the superspeedway in July 2013 to sweep the year at the Daytona Beach track.
TWO-TIME CLASHER: In addition to the three wins in the DAYTONA 500, Johnson now has two wins in the Clash exhibition race at Daytona International Speedway. The most recent was the start of the 2019 season in which Johnson took the lead before rain ensued cutting the race short from its expected distance. Johnson also won the event 2005 when the race format was reserved for NASCAR Cup Series pole position winners who qualified from the previous season.
TWO-TIME DUEL WINNER: Johnson has fared equally as well in the Duel qualifier races leading into the DAYTONA 500. He has two wins in the 60-lap events, which came in 2010 and as recently as 2015. Both wins were exciting finishes. In 2010, Johnson edged Kevin Harvick by only 0.006 seconds, while the 2015 Duel went into overtime and ended under a green-white-checkered flag finish.
TWO-TIME POLE SITTER: As a rookie in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2002, Johnson found success right out of the gate. At 26 years old, he scored the pole position in his very first attempt in the DAYTONA 500 with a qualifying lap of 185.831 mph. His second pole for “The Great American Race” came in 2008. Johnson also earned three second-place starts for the race – in 2005, 2010 and 2015. Last season, he took part in a 1-2-3-4 sweep of Hendrick Motorsports at the front of the pack by qualifying third for the prestigious event.
NEW DECADE: Spanning Johnson’s 83-win career, he has accumulated quite a resume. From 2002-09, Johnson won 47 races, making him the winningest driver of that decade. From 2010-19, he won 36 times, making him the third winningest driver of the decade.
DAYTONA HALF-MARATHON: Before Johnson climbs aboard the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet for qualifying and the Clash on Sunday, Feb. 9, he will run 13.1 miles as he is entered in the Daytona Beach Half-Marathon. Johnson competed last year and brought home a time of 1:34:18, which was second in his age group and 15th overall in a field of 763 competitors. Additionally, the Jimmie Johnson Foundation is proud to host a team of 10 runners at the event. The team will try and keep up with the seven-time champ as they run one of the “seven scenic half marathons in America”. #TeamJJF runners have committed to raising a minimum of $1,000 each to benefit the Jimmie Johnson Foundation’s Champions Grant and Team Up For Technology programs. Funds raised will allow K-12 public schools to address their critical needs, ranging from updating classroom libraries to school-wide technology makeovers, plus everything in between.
CHAMPIONS RIDE: The NASCAR cycling community remains strong. On Thursday, Feb. 13, Johnson, along with other drivers, crew members and personalities in the cycling community will participate in the annual Champions Ride for Bicycle Safety, organized by fellow competitor Scott Lagasse. The event, aimed at creating awareness for road cycling safety, is a 45-mile ride beginning at 7 a.m. ET from Gatorade Victory Lane at Daytona International Speedway. Media interested in covering should contact Amy Walsh Stock.
HAVE CAR, WILL WIN: There are some huge milestones on the horizon for Johnson. The next time the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crosses the finish line first, he will have scored his 84th points-paying series win. A win would tie Hall of Famers Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison for fourth all-time. Johnson currently is 10 wins behind former teammate Jeff Gordon, who has 93 victories and is third on the list. Johnson has the most wins of all active drivers with 83.
TEAM CHEVY STAGE: Johnson will make a public appearance at the Team Chevy stage at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, Feb. 16, at 10:25 a.m. ET for a question-and-answer session.
ALLY AT VOLUSIA MALL: Once again this year, Ally is bringing the fun, 48 swag and even a giant cornhole game to fans at Daytona. Look for activation on Saturday, Feb. 15 and 16 at the Volusia Mall, which is across the street from the speedway on International Speedway Boulevard in Daytona Beach. Johnson will make an appearance on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 10:45 a.m. ET for a question-and-answer session.
ONE FINAL TIME: Last week, Johnson took to social media and explained that he “isn’t chasing anything.” Meaning, he is no longer using the #Chasing8 to denote his final full-time season in NASCAR Cup Series competition, but rather he is looking at it as #OneFinalTime. Click here for the video.
Alex Bowman
No. 88 Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver Alex Bowman Hometown Tucson, Arizona
Age 26 Resides Concord, North Carolina
2020 Season
TBD
Career
153 starts
1 wins
2 pole positions
10 top-five finishes
26 top-10 finishes
474 laps led
Track Career
7 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
0 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finish
14 laps led
VALVOLINE ON BOARD FOR DAYTONA: Valvoline’s iconic red, white and blue colors will adorn the hood of the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for the 62nd annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 16, as well as the Clash event on Feb. 9. In January 2018, the leading worldwide supplier of premium-branded lubricants and automotive services extended its partnership with Hendrick Motorsports through 2022. The Official Lubricants Partner of Hendrick Motorsports will be on board Bowman’s machine in four events this season and will continue to be an associate partner on the organization’s full stable of Chevrolets.
TOP FIVE IN CLASH: Bowman has qualified for two Clash events at the iconic Florida-based superspeedway. The 26-year-old driver qualified for his first Clash race in 2017 after capturing a pole position at Phoenix Raceway in 2016 with Hendrick Motorsports. In that event, the Tucson, Arizona, native rolled off eighth and finished third after 63 laps. Last season, Bowman started the non-points race in the fifth position and led 11 laps en route to a fifth-place finish. As a former DAYTONA 500 pole winner (2018), Bowman is once again entered in this year’s Clash.
DAYTONA 500 REWIND: After qualifying second for the 2019 DAYTONA 500, Bowman went on to finish 11th after 207 laps. He finished Stage 1 in the second position, earning valuable stage points. While pitting under the stage-ending yellow, the team noticed some right rear damage from earlier in the run. Crew chief Greg Ives elected to take the time to make all necessary repairs, sending Bowman back out in the 20th position for the start of Stage 2. By Lap 88, Bowman was back inside the top five, running in third. The No. 88 team finished Stage 2 in the 25th position after a pit road penalty while pitting under the yellow with 14 laps to go. Bowman remained strong and was able to bring home an 11th-place finish at the end of the event.
DUELING: Bowman will make his fifth start in the Duel qualifying races on Thursday, Feb. 13. The driver of the Valvoline machine ran the Duel event in 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019. Last season, Bowman started from the lead in Duel No. 2 after qualifying second for the DAYTONA 500. He kept his Camaro ZL1 1LE clean and finished 13th after 60 laps.
IVES HAS PLATE TRACK SUCCESS: Crew chief Ives has earned two of his four points-paying Cup wins at plate tracks. In 2015, he visited victory lane three times with Dale Earnhardt Jr., including at Daytona and Talladega. Ives won a Duel at Daytona in 2015 and 2016 with Earnhardt and has three Cup plate pole awards, including two at Daytona. In 2013, Ives called the shots for Regan Smith in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and led the driver to a win at Talladega. From 2006-12, Ives was a race engineer on the No. 48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. During that time, he was part of one win (2006), one pole award (2008) and one runner-up finish (2009) at Daytona International Speedway.
2019 IN THE REAR VIEW: In his second full-time season with Hendrick Motorsports in 2019, Bowman had his most successful year to date. The young driver led 200 laps throughout 36 events and captured seven top-five results. In June last season, the Tucson, Arizona, native captured his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory at Chicagoland Speedway after leading 88 laps. Bowman accumulated 12 top-10 finishes in 2019 and he made it to the Round of 12 for the second year in a row in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
OFF-SEASON IS FOR RACING: Earlier this year, Bowman entered the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals event under his own banner at Alex Bowman Racing. The 26-year-old driver spent the off-season building and tweaking his own cars in order to be ready for what some call the “Super Bowl of Midget Racing.” In addition to Bowman’s machine, ABR entered a second car for driver C.J. Leary. Bowman drove from 17th up to 12th before ending his Chili Bowl journey. Bowman served as crew chief for Leary, who advanced from the B-Main and ultimately finished the A-Main 17th after starting 22nd.
BOWMAN TAKEOVER: On Sunday, Feb. 9, the Valvoline driver will take over Daytona International Speedway’s Instagram story to give fans a behind-the-scenes look at the DAYTONA 500 qualifying and Clash race day. Be sure to follow along on Instagram at @disupdates.
CHEVY STAGE: Bowman will be out at the Team Chevy stage in the Daytona International Speedway FanZone on Sunday, Feb. 16 at 11:50 a.m. ET. Stop by and meet the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE driver and get an autograph.
WE’VE GOT THE GOODS: On Jan. 29, Hendrick Motorsports announced that three key Chevrolet Accessories partners have joined Bowman and the No. 88 team as primary sponsors for 26 races in 2020. The new website ChevyGoods.com, which launched this week, will promote Adam’s Polishes, NOCO and Truck Hero products throughout 2020. Bowman’s No. 88 ChevyGoods.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE paint scheme will debut March 29 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports drivers Chase Elliott, William Byron, Jimmie Johnson and Alex Bowman will be available to members of the media at DAYTONA 500 Media Day on Wednesday, Feb. 12, at Daytona International Speedway.
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT DAYTONA: Hendrick Motorsports has earned eight DAYTONA 500 wins with five different drivers, which is tied with Wood Brothers Racing for the most different drivers for one team. The organization’s first DAYTONA 500 victory came with Geoffrey Bodine in 1986, followed by Darrell Waltrip in 1989. Jeff Gordon has won the event three times, with Jimmie Johnson posting two victories. Dale Earnhardt Jr. most recently won “The Great American Race” for Hendrick Motorsports in 2014. A victory for the organization on Feb. 16 would tie Petty Enterprises for the most all-time DAYTONA 500 wins with nine. Hendrick Motorsports is the all-time leader in nearly every major DAYTONA 500 category, including starts (120), poles (13), top-five finishes (28), top-10s (47) and laps led (1,266).
SPEEDWEEKS STREAK: Hendrick Motorsports has won at least one race during Daytona Speedweeks in each of the last seven years, which marks the longest active streak in the NASCAR Cup Series. In 2013 and 2014, the organization captured back-to-back DAYTONA 500s. In 2015, Hendrick Motorsports drivers won both Duel races, and one Duel win has been earned in 2016, 2017 and 2018. In 2019, the organization won the Clash.
DAYTONA 500 POLES: Hendrick Motorsports holds the all-time record for most DAYTONA 500 pole positions with 13. Richard Childress Racing is second with six poles, followed by Ranier Racing and Yates Racing with five each. A Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet has won the pole in eight of the last 12 DAYTONA 500 races, including the last six, which is the all-time record. The organization has won 21 percent of the DAYTONA 500 poles all-time and has won the pole in 36 percent of the DAYTONA 500s in which it has competed. Last year, Hendrick Motorsports’ DAYTONA 500 pole also marked the 700th NASCAR Cup Series pole for Chevrolet and the manufacturer’s 50th DAYTONA 500 pole.
FRONT ROW GANG: Hendrick Motorsports has swept the top two starting spots in the DAYTONA 500 six times, which happened for the first time in 1989 with Ken Schrader and Waltrip starting first and second, respectively. Mark Martin, Earnhardt and Johnson went off one-two-three in 2010, and Earnhardt and Gordon started one-two in 2011. In the 2015 DAYTONA 500, three Hendrick Motorsports teammates once again started at the front of the pack – Gordon first, Johnson second and Earnhardt third. William Byron and Alex Bowman secured the front row in 2019 with Byron becoming the youngest DAYTONA 500 pole winner in history.
HISTORY MADE: Not only did Byron and Bowman secure the front row for the 2019 DAYTONA 500, but Hendrick Motorsports became the only team in history to sweep the top-four positions in DAYTONA 500 qualifying. Byron, Bowman, Johnson and Chase Elliott qualified first, second, third and fourth, respectively. Byron and Bowman’s combined age of 46 also made it the youngest DAYTONA 500 front row in history.
ON THIS DATE: Hendrick Motorsports has won two of its eight DAYTONA 500s on Feb. 16, which is the date of this year’s event. In 1986, Bodine delivered the organization’s first victory in “The Great American Race” on Feb. 16. Eleven years later, Gordon captured the first of his three DAYTONA 500 wins on Feb. 16, 1997.
DUELS STATS: Hendrick Motorsports has 15 Daytona Duel victories, including five wins in the last 10 races. The organization won at least one of the two races between 2015 and 2018, including a sweep of the two Duel races in 2015 with Earnhardt winning Duel No. 1 and Johnson winning Duel No. 2.
THE CLASH: Four different Hendrick Motorsports drivers have combined to win the Clash – the season-opening exhibition race at Daytona International Speedway – on six occasions: Schrader (1989, 1990), Gordon (1994, 1997), Johnson (2005, 2019) and Earnhardt (2008).
SUPERSPEEDWAY PERFORMANCE: Ten different Hendrick Motorsports drivers have won at a superspeedway, the most all-time. That includes Gordon, who is tied for the second-most superspeedway wins with 12. The organization leads all teams in starts, poles, wins, top-five finishes, top-10s and laps led on superspeedway tracks. Hendrick Motorsports has earned 33 poles – the most of all teams by 15 – on superspeedway tracks. The organization has won the pole for 12 of the last 18 superspeedway races with qualifying and has swept the front row in six of the last 11 superspeedway races, starting with the 2017 DAYTONA 500.
FIRST-TIME WINNERS: With Bowman earning his first Cup Series win at Chicago in 2019, Hendrick Motorsports continues to hold the record for the most first-time Cup Series winners with 10. If Byron wins at Daytona, it will extend the record to the 11th time a driver has recorded his first career Cup Series win while driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Two of the last three first-time winners in the NASCAR Cup Series were Hendrick Motorsports drivers. Elliott captured his first Cup Series win at Watkins Glen in 2018.
ORGANIZATION STATS: To date, Hendrick Motorsports has totals of 12 championships, 256 race victories, 225 pole positions, 1,071 top-five finishes and 1,839 top-10 finishes in points-paying NASCAR Cup Series competition. Its teams have led more than 68,000 laps since 1984. Hendrick Motorsports won four times in 2019, extending its streak to 34 consecutive seasons with at least one win, the longest streak all-time.
QUOTABLE /
Chase Elliott on what it would mean to win DAYTONA 500:
“That’s certainly the goal, that’s why everyone goes. The list of winners of the 500 is pretty short; it’s a pretty rare thing to say you won it. It’s one of those events that I feel is kind of a stand-alone event by itself. You can’t let that race define your season by any means, but it would be great to win down there and start the year off really well.”
William Byron on his preparation for 2020:
“I’m excited to finally get the 2020 season started. The No. 24 team had a good momentum going the last half of 2019 and I think we should come out even stronger this time round. I think I’ve prepared even harder this offseason compared to any other offseason, just getting prepared in every way possible. Daytona was pretty good to us last year, with winning the pole for the DAYTONA 500 and then finishing second in the summer. A win would definitely top things off and show all the hard work we’ve been putting in as a team.”
Jimmie Johnson on his final season:
“I absolutely can’t wait to get in my race car in Daytona. I’m as fired up for a season as I have ever been, and I’m mentally and physically ready to win races and compete for a championship in my final season. I had a great off-season, its been a ton of fun, but now I am ready to get back to business.”
Bowman on what drivers look for in the Clash:
“Obviously it is the first on track opportunity in a racing environment with our new body, so just figuring out how it drafts and how it drives and learning whatever we can is key. That is a really different thing compared to anywhere else we go in the season, so not a lot of data. It is still great to get that data for other superspeedways. I think you can do some of that in practice, but the race conditions in the Clash are your best glimpse at how you car will run in the 500.”
Bowman on the pressures of winning the DAYTONA 500:
“The 500 is a huge deal. It’s unique for us to start our season with the biggest race of the year. There are so many people there. It is such a crazy atmosphere. Every cup race is a big deal, but you walk out at driver introductions for the 500 and it is just a sea of people. It’s an amazing event and that would be a dream come true. I always look forward to it every year.”
Ives of the advantages the Camaro ZL1 1LE has this year versus last season:
“It gives me a better balance. Basically, we focused on putting more air on the rear spoiler for the ability to free up the race car through the center of the corner. We’ll see how that plays out. But a lot of crew chiefs, drivers and engineers know how difficult it is to product rear downforce in these race cars and also continue to keep them turning. Everyone at GM and all the engineers and key partners did a great job of accomplishing that goal that we set out for them. We’ll see when the races start.”
Ives on his offseason:
“It was awesome. I never relax; I’m always working on something. I did go hunting up in Michigan and I was up there for Thanksgiving. We stayed here for Christmas. I took my son racing a few times. He’s only five, but he’s racing box stocks. I took him to the go-cart track and a lot of different things.”
