The 2025 Daytona 500 kicked off with plenty of anticipation and a few notable stories even before the green flag dropped. Among the headlines was the attendance of President Donald Trump, who made a grand entrance during pre-race activities.
Having the President at the event brought added attention, but soon enough, all eyes were focused on the 41 best stock car drivers in the world, and the 67th running of the Daytona 500.
Rain Delay and Early Racing:
The event started with some promise as the green flag waved over Daytona, but just 11 laps in, a heavy rainstorm halted the race, leading to a nearly four-hour long delay.
After a lengthy wait and some rain delay shenanigans (specifically with The Rizzler), racing resumed—and fuel conservation became a key theme. Teams were careful with their fuel strategy, as they have been recently at superspeedways, knowing that taking less fuel would result in better track position.
Stage 1: Joey Logano's Early Dominance:
It didn’t take long to realize that Joey Logano had the best car in the field. Logano took charge of stage one, holding off the competition to take the first stage victory of the 2025 season. This momentum would shortly fizzle out though, as Logano started to experience potential engine issues early in stage two.
Logano would fall a lap down as his team worked miracles. They diagnosed the problem and got him back in contention for the victory.
Crashes and Carnage:
As expected in superspeedway racing, it didn’t take long to produce its traditional carnage. The first significant incident occurred on the stage two restart (the restart that Logano’s engine started to go) with Martin Truex Jr., Ross Chastain, and Helio Castroneves taken out in a multi-car crash.
Stage 2: Ryan Blaney Holds On:
As Logano cut his way back through the field, his Team Penske teammates picked up the slack and took control of the race. Ryan Blaney showcased the strength of his car, beating Austin Cindric to the line to claim the stage two victory.
With Logano back on the lead lap and Blaney and Cindric commanding the lead, this looked like Penske’s race to lose.
Late-Race Chaos:
With just a few laps remaining, another big crash ensued. Contact between Joey Logano and Ricky Stenhouse Jr took out many innocent bystanders. Both Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch, who had been fast throughout the race and looked like they put themselves in position to battle for the win, were swept up in the crash.
With five laps to go, another massive crash occurred. This time, Christopher Bell was turned by Cole Custer and thrown into oncoming traffic. Ryan Preece collided with the front end of Bell’s car and was propelled into the air.
Preece barrel rolled up the turn three banking and crashed back down on his wheels—Preece’s second airborne crash at Daytona in less than two years.
At the Infield Care Center, Preece voiced his concern.
“I’m lucky to walk away,” Preece told FOX Sports, “but we’re getting really close to someone not being able to.”
The Final Laps and Overtime:
As it seems to always play out, the Daytona 500 would come down to an overtime finish. Drivers would bump and grind, desperately trying to reach the front with just two laps to go in the race.
On the final lap, the field would shake up and go three-wide for the lead down the back straightaway. Denny Hamlin was in the middle, Austin Cindric and Cole Custer on each side of him battling for the victory with just half a lap to go.
Until—all three would end up crashing together. Emerging from the wreckage was William Byron to claim his second Daytona 500 win in a row.
Tyler Reddick, who had been hot on Byron’s heels, tried desperately to chase him down but didn’t have the necessary help. Reddick would settle for second place.
Jimmie Johnson, making a rare start for his Cup Series team, finished an impressive third, while JR Motorsports had a remarkable debut in their first-ever Cup race, with Justin Allgaier finishing 9th.
Post-Race Reaction:
While Byron celebrated his second straight victory in the Daytona 500, the finish left some drivers, especially Denny Hamlin, frustrated. Hamlin, who was in contention for his fourth Daytona 500 victory before the final lap crash voiced his displeasure with how the race ended on his podcast Actions Detrimental. He called it “dumbass racing” and criticizing the race’s chaotic nature and Cole Custer’s inexperience in such a big moment.
What’s Next:
With the 2025 Daytona 500 now in the books, attention will shift to next week at Atlanta Motor Speedway—another “drafting style” racetrack. Teams will analyze the lessons learned from the wild race at Daytona, with many drivers hoping to avoid the sort of late-race chaos seen on Sunday. For now, William Byron will bask in the glory of his second consecutive Daytona 500 victory, and Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch will look ahead to having a finish similar to last year at Atlanta, showing good speed but bad luck in the Daytona 500.
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