Daytona 500

This article is about the stock car race. For the motorcycle race, see Daytona 200. For the song by Ghostface Killah, see Daytona 500 (song).
Daytona 500
NASCAR Cup Series
VenueDaytona International Speedway
LocationDaytona Beach, Florida, United States
First race1959 (1959)
Distance500 mi (800 km)
Laps200
Stages 1/2: 65 each
Final stage: 70
Previous namesInaugural 500 Mile International Sweepstakes (1959)
Second Annual 500 Mile International Sweepstakes (1960)
Daytona 500 presented by STP (1991–1993)
Daytona 500 presented by Dodge (2001)
Daytona 500 presented by Toyota (2007)
Daytona 500 (1961–1990, 1994–2000, 2002–2006, 2008–present)
Most wins (driver)Richard Petty (7)
Most wins (team)Petty Enterprises
Hendrick Motorsports (9)
Most wins (manufacturer)Chevrolet (26)
Circuit information
SurfaceAsphalt
Length2.5 mi (4.0 km)
Turns4
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The Daytona 500 is a 500-mile-long (805 km) NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of three held in Florida, with the annual fall showdown Straight Talk Wireless 400 being held at Homestead south of Miami. From 1988 to 2019, it was one of the four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule. The inaugural Daytona 500 was held in 1959 coinciding with the opening of the speedway and since 1982, it has been the season-opening race of the Cup series.[1]

The Daytona 500 is regarded as the most important and prestigious race on the NASCAR calendar, carrying by far the largest purse.[2] Championship points awarded are equal to that of any other NASCAR Cup Series race. It is also the series' first race of the year; this phenomenon is unique in sports, which tend to have championships or other major events at the end of the season rather than the start. From 1995–2020, U.S. television ratings for the Daytona 500 have been the highest for any auto race of the year, surpassing the traditional leader, the Indianapolis 500 which in turn greatly surpasses the Daytona 500 in in-track attendance and international viewing; however, in 2021 the Indianapolis 500 surpassed the Daytona 500 in TV ratings and viewership.[3][4] The 2006 Daytona 500 attracted the sixth largest average live global TV audience of any sporting event that year with 20 million viewers.[5]

The race serves as the final event of Speedweeks and is also known as "The Great American Race" or the "Super Bowl of Stock Car Racing".[6][7][8] Since its inception, the race has been held in mid-to-late February. From 1971 to 2011, and again since 2018, the event has been as associated with Presidents Day weekend,[9] taking place on the third Sunday of February and since 2022, it was held on the same day that the NBA All-Star Game was held and one week after the Super Bowl. On eight occasions, the race has been run on Valentine's Day.

Since 1997, the winner of the Daytona 500 has been presented with the Harley J. Earl Trophy in Victory Lane, and the winning car is displayed in race-winning condition for one year at Daytona 500 Experience, a museum and gallery adjacent to Daytona International Speedway.

  1. ^ Chad Culver (2014). Dover International Speedway: The Monster Mile. Arcadia Publishing. p. 127. ISBN 978-1467121378.
  2. ^ "Culture, Class, Distinction"Bennett, Tony. Culture, Class, Distinction. Routledge (2009) Disaggregating cultural capital. English translation ISBN 0-415-42242-6 (hardcover).
  3. ^ Staff, The Athletic. "Daytona 500 posts record-worst TV rating, in part due to rain delay". The Athletic. Archived from the original on 2021-10-20. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  4. ^ "Indy 500 viewership highest in five years". June 2, 2021. Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved October 20, 2021.
  5. ^ "World's most watched TV sports events: 2006 Rank & Trends report". Initiative. 2007-01-19. Archived from the original on 2007-02-08. Retrieved 2007-01-30.
  6. ^ "A History of the Daytona 500". TicketCity. Archived from the original on May 9, 2012. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  7. ^ Crossman, Matt (February 22, 2015). "Daytona 500 Magic Hour: Best 60 minutes in sports". NASCAR. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  8. ^ Briggs, Josh (10 February 2009). "How Daytona Qualifying Works". HowStuffWorks. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  9. ^ "Your Gateway to Knowledge". Knowledge Zone. Retrieved 2024-01-31.