Hamlin powered his way past Matt Kenseth on the final lap, then edged Martin Truex, Jr. at the line by .010 seconds, the closest finish in Daytona 500 history, to win his first 500.
After one of the greatest finishes in NASCAR history capping off one of the most dominating manufacturer performances ever, here's what was surprising and not surprising from the Super Bowl of NASCAR, the Daytona 500.
The hottest 20 drivers heading into Sunday are all locked in. Thanks to some large wallets, even Carl Edwards and Kurt Busch are good to go for the rest of the season, buying up those Charters from Waltrip’s defunct operation.
The two Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet's of the No. 4 driven by Kevin Harvick and No. 14 driven by Brian Vickers failed post-qualifying tech inspection after the track bars were found to be out of compliance with the Sprint Cup Series rule book.
Starting in ten days, just about every week the engines will roar to life and 43 cars will take the green flag. However, we all know that not all race drivers and teams are created equal.
I loved watching Cale Yarborough in the No. 11 and Richard Petty piloting the No. 43. How I miss seeing Dale Earnhardt in that black No. 3. I wish I could see Rusty Wallace again in that blue deuce though my reasoning is that him driving means there was no way in hell he would be announcing.
Busch won the Ford EcoBoost 400, holding off Kevin Harvick to win his first Sprint Cup championship. Busch missed the first 11 races of the season after breaking his leg at a crash at Daytona in February. “A pasty white guy from Las Vegas is the Sprint Cup champion,” Busch said. “Ironically, all other driver ‘pale’ in comparison to me.
Family. We often hear how NASCAR is a family sport, where drivers, their wives, and their kids all share in the experience behind the scenes. The family theme has dominated since the sport’s earliest years. I mean, it starts with the France family, as Bill, Bill, Jr., and now grandson Brian have held the reins of the family operation since the very beginning.
With rain interfering one last time and delaying the race start for over an hour, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the season finale, the 17th annual Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
It has been a wild ride these last 35 races, but all good things must come to an end. This week, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series makes its final trek of the season down to South Florida to run the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It's the 36th and final race of the 2015 season.
