Daytona International Speedway
Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022
2.5-Mile Oval
2:30 PM ET
Location: Daytona Beach, Florida
TV: Fox
Event: DAYTONA 500
Radio: SiriusXM, PRN
5 KYLE LARSON
Age: 29 (July 31, 1992)
Hometown: Elk Grove, California
Resides: Mooresville, North Carolina
Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels
Standings: 1st (2021)
No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
OH SO CLOSE: On Sunday, defending NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson will seek his first win in NASCAR’s crown jewel event, the DAYTONA 500. In 2017, he led the field with one lap to go in the race before his Chevrolet ran out of fuel and coasted to a 12th-place finish. In 15 starts at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway, Larson has five top-10 results, including 10th in last year’s DAYTONA 500.
THE CHAMP: With a victory in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway in November, Larson won the 2021 Cup Series championship to become the record-extending fourth driver to secure a title for Hendrick Motorsports at the highest level of stock car racing. Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team won five playoff races – tying Tony Stewart for most victories during a 10-race playoff. Overall, the team won a series-leading 10 points-paying events in 2021 plus the annual non-points NASCAR All-Star Race.
DAYTONA CLINCH: Before going on to win the 2021 Cup Series title, Larson secured the regular season championship at Daytona in August despite being involved in a last-lap accident and finishing 20th.
CAREER YEAR: In 2021, Larson led the Cup Series in wins (10), top-five finishes (20), top-10s (26), stage wins (18), laps led (2,581) and average start (6.1) – all career-bests. His laps led in 2021 were more than the combined total of the second- and third-place drivers in that statistical category.
PACING THE FIELD: Larson’s 2021 laps led total (2,581) was the most ever during a 36-race Cup season and the most since NASCAR Hall of Famer and former Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon paced the field for 2,610 circuits in the 31-race 1995 campaign.
WINNER AT DIS: In July 2018, Larson won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway. The Elk Grove, California, native led a race-high 40 laps en route to victory there.
QUICK TIME: At 13.63 seconds, the No. 5 pit crew owned the quickest average time for four-tire pit stops in 2021. The over-the-wall crew returns all five starters in 2022: gasman Brandon Harder, jackman Brandon Johnson, tire carrier R.J. Barnette and tire changers Donnie Tasser (front) and Calvin Teague (rear). Their final performance of 2021 – a 12.345-second four-tire stop – moved Larson from fourth to first for the final restart and propelled the 29-year-old driver to his first Cup Series championship.
YOUR CAR NEEDS: In the DAYTONA 500, Larson will drive the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. From the convenience of home, customers can select the category, make, model and vehicle packages that are important to them from the nearly 30,000 new, high-quality pre-owned and certified cars, trucks and SUVs available at HendrickCars.com. The website also makes it easy for customers to find one of Hendrick Automotive Group’s 93 dealership locations nationwide.
WE’RE HIRING: Hendrick Automotive Group is hiring more than 300 technicians at its dealerships throughout the country. Positions are open for all skill levels and offer tuition and training reimbursement. Interested people can apply at HendrickCars.com.
OVER $200K: In March, Larson launched the Kyle Larson Foundation, which was established to better serve today’s youth, families and communities in need through hands-on support. The Sanneh Foundation and the Urban Youth Racing School are the primary beneficiaries of the foundation, which will also work closely with Hendrick Cares, the corporate social responsibility program of Hendrick Automotive Group. To kickstart the “Drive for 5,” Larson pledged a personal donation of $5 for every Cup Series lap he completed in 2021 and contributed another $5,000 for every top-five finish he earned. After 36 races, he pledged more than $140,000 and raised more than $200,000. To learn more, please visit KyleLarsonFoundation.org.
9 CHASE ELLIOTT
Age: 26 (Nov. 28, 1995)
Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
Resides: Dawsonville, Georgia
Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
Standings: 4th (2021)
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
DAYTONA STATS: In 12 Cup Series starts at Daytona International Speedway, Chase Elliott has two top-five finishes, three top-10s and three pole positions. He’s led 126 laps on the historic 2.5-mile track, including 36 laps last August. Elliott earned a runner-up finish in the 63rd running of the DAYTONA 500 last year, his personal best in the season-opening event. While the Dawsonville, Georgia, native is still looking for his first DAYTONA 500 victory, he has won two Duel qualifying races on the oval (2017 and 2018). Elliott also won a Cup Series event on the track’s road course in 2020.
HISTORY MAKING: In 2016, Elliott became the youngest driver to earn the DAYTONA 500 pole at the age of 20 years, 2 months and 17 days. That record still stands. He earned his second pole for the prestigious event the very next year.
MOST POLES: Alan Gustafson leads all active crew chiefs with four DAYTONA 500 pole positions and is tied with Leonard Wood and Waddell Wilson for the most overall. He won three straight from 2015-2017, with Jeff Gordon taking the top spot in 2015 and Elliott following suit the following two years. Gustafson also won the DAYTONA 500 pole in 2010 with veteran Mark Martin.
RETURNING HOME: 2020 Cup Series champion crew chief Gustafson will make his return home to the “World Center of Racing” for the DAYTONA 500. He grew up in Ormond Beach, Florida, just down the road from the legendary superspeedway. After graduating from Seabreeze High School, Gustafson enrolled at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study mechanical engineering. This season marks his 18th as a crew chief and his seventh with Elliott.
PUBLIC APPEARANCES: On Sunday, Feb. 20, Elliott will make multiple appearances for fans prior to the DAYTONA 500. At 11:35 a.m. ET, he will stop by the Team Chevy stage for a question-and-answer session. The 2020 Cup Series champ will also participate in a Q&A in the Daytona International Speedway Fan Zone at 12:15 p.m. ET.
NAPA RETURNS FOR 500: For the seventh consecutive year, NAPA AUTO PARTS will kick off the NASCAR Cup Series season on the hood of Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for the DAYTONA 500. Elliott has never started the “The Great American Race” without primary sponsorship from the Atlanta-based company. This marks the ninth season NAPA has partnered with Elliott.
IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL: On Wednesday, Feb. 9, Hendrick Motorsports announced UniFirst Corp. has agreed to a five-year contract extension that will lengthen its primary sponsorship of Elliott and the No. 9 team through 2028. UniFirst will maintain three primary races in both 2022 and 2023 before increasing to five per season from 2024-2028. This year, UniFirst will serve as primary sponsor of the No. 9 on March 13 at Phoenix Raceway, May 15 at Kansas Speedway and Aug. 7 at Michigan International Speedway.
WHEN CHASE WINS, YOU WIN: Fans can visit Hooters on Mondays after Cup Series races this season and ask their server for free fried pickles when Elliott finishes in the top 10. If he wins, customers receive free boneless wings with any 10-wing purchase. Get more details at hooters.com/racing.
24 WILLIAM BYRON
Age: 24 (Nov. 29, 1997)
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Resides: Charlotte, North Carolina
Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle
Standings: 10th (2021)
No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
BACK AT THE BEACH: During his time in the NASCAR Cup Series, William Byron has eight starts on the legendary Daytona International Speedway oval. The driver has collected one win, two top-five finishes, two top-10s and 92 laps led. However, stats don’t tell the fully story of Byron’s success at the 2.5-mile track. Not only is it the venue where he collected his first pole award (2019 DAYTONA 500) and his first Cup Series victory (August 2020), but he also won the Duel qualifying race there in 2020. Byron was also in position to capture a win during the summer race in 2019 before weather ended the event early and left him with a runner-up finish. In fact, in two of the last five oval races at Daytona, he has collected two top-two finishes. During his 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship campaign, Byron qualified third in the July race, leading 29 laps to score the victory and become the youngest driver with an Xfinity win at Daytona at 19 years, 7 months and 1 day.
NO. 24 TO THE FRONT: In five of the last seven DAYTONA 500s, the No. 24 Chevrolet has started on the front row. The team won pole positions in 2015 with Jeff Gordon and in 2016 and 2017 with Chase Elliott. Byron most recently added to the total after becoming the second-youngest DAYTONA 500 pole winner in 2019, which also marked the Charlotte, North Carolina, native’s first pole in the Cup Series. He then wound up on the front row again, qualifying second for last year’s DAYTONA 500.
SUPER ON SUPERSPEEDWAYS: While superspeedways brings a lot of uncertainty, Byron has embraced the style of racing. In the past six superspeedway events, he has three top-five finishes including his first Cup Series win, which came at Daytona International Speedway in August 2020.
RUDY RETURNS: Entering his sophomore season as a Cup Series crew chief, Rudy Fugle will climb on top of the No. 24 pit box Sunday for his second DAYTONA 500 and his third Cup-level start at the 2.5-mile oval with Byron. Last year, the duo started both races at Daytona from the second position, but despite running up front, misfortune struck the No. 24 car as it was collected in on-track incidents before the checkered flag was shown. Aside from the two Cup appearances, Fugle has seven other starts at DIS, all coming in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The Livonia, New York, native has one runner-up result, one top-five finish and two top-10s across those seven events, including one with Byron where the pair qualified and finished 13th.
NEW SCHOOL CLASSIC: After embracing a new look in 2021, Axalta is keeping the bright-colored stripes the No. 24 team found success with last year. Now in its 30th year of partnership with Hendrick Motorsports, Axalta will return as a primary partner on Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in 2021. For a better look at Byron’s car, click here.
BACK TO THE ROOTS: Prior to NASCAR festivities getting started at Daytona International Speedway, Byron will get his racing fix just down the street at New Smyrna Speedway. Climbing behind the wheel of the No. 24 Super Late Model for Wilson Motorsports, Byron is taking part in the World Series of Asphalt event. In Sunday’s 35-lap race, he started 20th after issues in qualifying and raced his way to a ninth-place result. Byron will be back at New Smyrna for Monday night’s 100-lap event.
BEACH BUMS: As NASCAR kicks off Daytona Speedweeks in the Sunshine State, two crew members on the No. 24 team will return home for the first points-paying race of 2022. Engineer Brandon McSwain grew up approximately 100 miles from the “World Center of Racing” in Auburndale, Florida. Not far from where McSwain grew up, engine tuner Ben Proctor calls Lakeland, Florida, his hometown.
SEE WILLY B: On Saturday, Feb. 19, Byron will make an appearance at the eNASCAR stage in the Daytona International Speedway fan midway for a question-and-answer session at 9:30 a.m. ET. Then on Sunday, fans will have another chance to see the driver of the No. 24 when he visits the Team Chevy stage in the fan midway for a Q&A at 12:15 p.m. ET.
48 Alex Bowman
Age: 28 (April 25, 1993)
Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
Resides: Concord, North Carolina
Crew Chief: Greg Ives
Standings: 14th (2021)
No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
LET’S MAKE IT FIVE: Alex Bowman has become a familiar face at the front of the DAYTONA 500 field, having started on the front row for the crown jewel race for four consecutive years. The 28-year-old driver earned the pole position in February 2018 and then again in last year’s event. His 2018 performance made him one of the youngest pole winners in the history of the “The Great American Race” at 24 years, 9 months and 17 days old.
2021 RECAPPED: Bowman is coming off a 2021 season that saw him garner four wins (Richmond Raceway, Dover Motor Speedway, Pocono Raceway and Martinsville Speedway), eight top-five finishes and 16 top-10s – all career-bests for the driver of the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. He also clinched his fourth playoff berth in as many seasons with Hendrick Motorsports.
MAIN MAN: Last week at Volusia Speedway Park, Bowman made his World of Outlaws debut with his Alex Bowman Racing team. The 28-year-old drove a No. 55 sprint car sponsored by Ally, his primary partner in the Cup Series, and made the feature in three consecutive nights of racing. His next event for ABR is tonight at East Bay Raceway.
DYNAMIC DUO: Stepping into his fourth season at the helm for Bowman, Greg Ives will make his 15th Daytona International Speedway start as a crew chief in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500. The 42-year-old has one win, two top-five finishes, five top-10s and four pole positions while calling the shots at the 2.5-mile oval. His victory came with Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. in July 2015.
IVES’ SUPERSPEEDWAY SUCCESS: Ives has an impressive background on superspeedways, finding success throughout his career as a crew chief. In the Cup Series, the Bark River, Michigan, native has tallied four pole positions, two points-paying wins (Talladega Superspeedway in May 2015 and Daytona in July 2015) and two victories in the Daytona Duel qualifying races (2015 and 2016 with Earnhardt). In addition, Ives led Regan Smith to a NASCAR Xfinity Series win at Talladega in May 2013.
IT’S THE DAYTONA 500: On Sunday, Hendrick Motorsports will make its 39th appearance in the prestigious DAYTONA 500. The team has brought home the Harley J. Earl trophy on eight occasions, which is one shy of Petty Enterprises’ record of nine. Hendrick Motorsports holds the event records for runner-up finishes (seven), pole positions (14), top-five results (29), top-10s (49) and laps led (1,300). It has won the DAYTONA 500 with five different drivers, which is tied with Wood Brothers Racing for the most.
POLE DAY: Hendrick Motorsports has collected 14 DAYTONA 500 pole positions, which is more than double the total of any other organization. The team has won nine of the last 14 poles for “The Great American Race” and 37% overall since it began competing in 1984. It has swept the DAYTONA 500 front row in qualifying seven times and is the only team to ever to earn a 1-2-3-4 qualifying sweep (2019). Hendrick Motorsports has started the race on the front row in each of the last seven years.
SPEEDWEEKS STREAK: Hendrick Motorsports has won at least one race during Daytona Speedways in eight of the last nine years. It earned trophies in the DAYTONA 500 in 2013 and 2014, won both Duel qualifying races in 2015 and one Duel in 2016, 2017 and 2018. The team won the Clash exhibition at Daytona in 2019 and another Duel qualifier in 2020. Its best Speedweeks performances in 2021 came from Chase Elliott, who finished second in both the Clash and the DAYTONA 500.
CARRYING MOMENTUM: Dating back to the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, Hendrick Motorsports has won five consecutive points-paying races. The team record is six in a row, which it has accomplished twice: last season and in 2007.
DAYTONA DECADES: A victory in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 would make Hendrick Motorsports the first team in history to win the event in five different decades. It has won NASCAR’s biggest race in the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. Petty Enterprises is the only other team to win the DAYTONA 500 in four different decades: the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
ON THIS DAY: On Feb. 20, 2005, four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon won the DAYTONA 500 while driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. It was the third of his three career victories in “The Great American Race.” Today, Gordon is a NASCAR Hall of Famer and the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports.
WE’LL TAKE THE SPECIAL: Entering Daytona Speedweeks, Hendrick Motorsports holds the NASCAR Cup Series record for wins in special events. The team has 37 combined victories in the season-opening Clash (seven), DAYTONA 500 qualifying races (16), the NASCAR All-Star Race (10) and the All-Star Open (four). Richard Childress Racing ranks second with 28 combined special event wins.
BACK FOR MORE: Entering the 2022 NASCAR season, Hendrick Motorsports will seek to defend as Cup Series champions and extend its current streak of consecutive titles to three. Elliott won the coveted Bill France Cup in 2020, followed by teammate Kyle Larson in 2021. Hendrick Motorsports has earned 14 NASCAR Cup titles – the most in history – and holds series records in every major statistical category, including wins, pole positions and laps led.
BANNER YEAR: The 2021 season was one of the most memorable in the history of Hendrick Motorsports. In May, the team finished 1-2-3-4 at Dover Motor Speedway, won Chevrolet’s milestone 800th race at Circuit of The Americas and broke Petty Enterprises’ long-standing record for all-time Cup Series wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The organization recorded 17 points-paying victories, which rank as its second-most ever (18 in 2007). With its entire four-car stable contributing to the 2021 total, Hendrick Motorsports became the first team in Cup Series history with four race winners under the age of 30 in a single season. The year culminated with Larson’s victory at Phoenix Raceway, which clinched the organization’s record-extending 14th NASCAR Cup Series championship.
QUOTABLE /
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on Daytona drafting: “I wasn’t at Daytona for the test (in January), so I don’t know how the new Chevrolet drafts. I’ve watched video of past races and studied how I could have done things differently since I don’t usually finish well in these types of races. I seem to always end up in the middle of the mess, so I watched to see how others stay ahead of it.”
Cliff Daniels, crew chief of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on Daytona preparation: “Our team did not participate in the test (at Daytona in January), but we were able to follow a lot of what was going on in the test live. We had a lot of great feedback from our teams that were there and are absolutely leaning on them.”
Daniels on DAYTONA 500 qualifying Wednesday night: “We’d love to qualify on the front row. Hendrick Motorsports cars have a great history of being on the front row because everyone here puts in a lot of hard work to build fast race cars. Wednesday night is important but, ultimately, we want to be in position to battle for the win on Sunday coming off turn four of the final lap.”
Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on the 2021 season and how the team can improve for 2022: “Not consistently winning, that was the piece we were kind of missing last year. I actually felt like we ran better last year in a lot of ways than we did in 2020. We just didn’t get hot at the end of the year. I was really proud of a lot of things that we did last season and I think we have a lot to build off of. If we can combine the consistency of last year with the number of wins we had in 2020, I think we really have a shot at another championship in 2022.”
Elliott on the racing in the DAYTONA 500: “The 500 is a race that everyone wants to win. The history behind this event and just how special it is, it’s unlike any other race on the schedule. Last year, we came the closest we ever have (second place), but in the past things haven’t worked out so great for us.”
Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on 2022 goals: “Our goal for a successful season never changes. We want to win the championship and win races. Be there in Phoenix (in November) to compete for it, so that’s really our main goal again. The steps to get there are different than they typically are. It’s going to start in a different place and end in a different place as far as what we’ll focus a lot of our energy on. But the goal is still the same, to be the best team in the series.”
Gustafson on tackling 2022 with a new car: “It’s a new challenge with the car and what I’m most looking forward to is that challenge and then ultimately being successful. Taking that challenge and overcoming all the issues that are there and the challenge it creates and being able to be successful, be competitive and ultimately win. It’s always fun to get to the track. It’s been a busy offseason. I just like getting to the track and getting down to business.”
William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on what racing may look like in Daytona with the new race car: “I think it’s going to be similar to what we normally see there. If anything, the test at Daytona in January was more aggressive than we thought it would be. I think the new car allows you to be a bit more aggressive than in the past. I do think the Duels may be somewhat calm just because guys don’t want to tear up their race cars since there’s not many backups available. But the DAYTONA 500 will be just as crazy as it normally is. No one is going to hold anything back and everyone is going to race as hard as they can. Everyone wants to win the DAYTONA 500.”
Byron on how special it is to win at Daytona: “It’s super special to get a win there in any series. Daytona is one of those places that you have to be aggressive to win. That night in (August) 2020 was a big deal for me, trying to get my first Cup Series win but also with the window we were up against to try and make the playoffs. It was stressful, but the DAYTONA 500 is a different feeling than the summer race. It’s a longer race that’s more about setting yourself up for the end. You use the race to learn throughout, but you still want to go for the stage wins to gain points and not start the season in a hole should something happen. You want to make it to the end first and foremost, but you want to really try stay up front all day, if possible, to put yourself in a good spot.”
Rudy Fugle, crew chief of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on the team’s approach to Daytona: “We are one of only a handful of teams who participated in both tests at Daytona with the Next Gen car this off season. We have some really good notes from those sessions that I think we can apply and will give us a slight advantage heading in. That allows us to work on some more specific areas and changes to really get the car dialed in to William’s liking. I think there will be slight caution from everyone this week given the limited amount of cars teams have, but I think it’s not much more than the normal level of caution you have leading into Speedweeks and superspeedway racing where anything can happen at any moment.”
Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing in the DAYTONA 500: “I am excited to get to Daytona and kick off the season. Greg (Ives) and the guys back at the shop have been working super hard to get the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet ready for this week. Hopefully, we continue our streak of front row starts at the 500 and get the momentum rolling early. We just have to try and stay out of the mess and start the year with a win.”
Greg Ives, crew chief of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing in the DAYTONA 500: “Heading to Daytona is always a fun and exciting time. Not only are you getting the season started, but everyone here at Hendrick Motorsports always produces fast speedway Chevrolets, so I am looking forward to getting down there. We have started on the front row for four consecutive years because of what everyone does here at Hendrick Motorsports. Our main goal this year is to go down there and have a car capable of having speed and being there at the end. Whether that is pole-winning speed, I’m not sure, but our goal is to have a car that handles well and be there at the end when it counts at the 500. Having the Harley J. Earl trophy in your collection is something that is really cool, so hopefully we can add it to our shelves this year.”
