Get a breakdown of how the full 43-car field fared in the Great American Race
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1. Joey Logano, No. 22 Ford, Team Penske. “Sliced Bread” was a bit worried after Ryan Blaney and Brad Keselowski had car trouble, but it was all for nothing. Logano led 31 laps and didn’t give up the lead from Lap 191 on as he carried all of the momentum from a breakout 2014 season into 2015. | WATCH: How Logano won the Daytona 500
2. Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. The 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion had the fastest car during green-flag runs with an average speed of 198.102 mph, but didn’t lead a lap. Harvick was right there at the end and would have given Logano all he could handle if the caution hadn’t come out on the final lap.
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. Dale Jr. made a strong bid to repeat as the Daytona 500 champion, leading 32 laps, and made a nice recovery after making a move with 19 laps remaining that left him stuck in the middle, a move Junior took responsibility for over the radio at the end of the race. “I made a poor move on that restart with 19 to go. Should not have done that.” | WATCH: Junior weighs in on costly decision
4. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. Hamlin carried the flag for a JGR stable that showed lots of speed all week. Hamlin topped final practice and it carried over into the race as he spent all but five of 203 laps in the top 15 and had the most quality passes (396) in the race.
5. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. A pit-road penalty seemed to leave the 48 team miffed, but the six-time series champion rebounded from it en route to leading 39 laps and being there late to challenge for the victory.
6. Casey Mears, No. 13 Chevrolet, Germain Racing. After nearly not making the Daytona 500 with an engine failure in the first Daytona Duel, Mears took full advantage of his new life with his fourth straight top-10 at Daytona.
7. Clint Bowyer, No. 15 Toyota, Michael Waltrip Racing. A wreck in group qualifying didn’t start the week off right, but the veteran driver had plenty of speed Sunday (198.020 mph, seventh-fastest during green flag runs) and nearly made a run all the way to the front. Bowyer had a fan in eventual race winner Logano, who said on Lap 179, “Tell Bowyer he’s doing great.” | Sign up for Scanner today to hear in-car audio
8. Martin Truex Jr., No. 78 Chevrolet, Furniture Row Racing. Truex was one of the surprises of Speedweeks with a great run in the Sprint Unlimited. He overcame a pit road penalty and also led a lap to match his total for 2014 as the No. 78 team sent notice that the new season will bring new results.
9. Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. In his first race with new crew chief Keith Rodden atop the pit box, Kahne had his best Daytona 500 finish since 2008 thanks to the second-most green flag passes for the day (479).
10. Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. For the fourth straight time and fifth time in the last six Daytona 500s, Biffle scored a top-10 finish; he also recorded the third-most green flag passes with 459.
11.David Gilliland, No. 38 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. After not recording a top-20 finish until the 21st race of the season last year, Gilliland wasted no time in doing that this year and nearly brought home a top-10.
12. Sam Hornish Jr., No. 9 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. In his first start for RPM, Hornish started in the back of the field but came on strong late as the second-best closer of the race, gaining 14 spots in the final 20 laps.
13. Michael Annett, No. 46 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. Making his first start for the expanded two-car HScott team, Annett had the best finish of his 37 career Sprint Cup starts, and he did so by making up 14 spots in the final 20 laps.
14. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Dillon has run some of his best Cup races at Daytona, and while he didn’t score a top-10 finish, he spent plenty of time in the front of pack. The handling of his car late in the race had the young driver a bit miffed, as he told his team, “You’ve never seen (expletive) like this before. We’re sideways every lap.” | Sign up for Scanner today, to hear in-car audio
15. Aric Almirola, No. 43 Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports. Back at Daytona to run his first points-paying race since his Coke Zero 400 win last July, the Florida native was the best closer, gaining 18 spots in final 20 laps.
16. Regan Smith, No. 41 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. Named as a sub for the suspended Kurt Busch, the NASCAR XFINITY Series runner-up in 2014 ran a solid race for SHR; one that could merit him more consideration for additional seat time in the No. 41 car.
17. David Ragan, No. 34 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. Ragan’s strength is restrictor-plate racing with both of his Sprint Cup wins coming at such venues. This result is a welcome one for a driver that struggled to a 32nd-place finish in the final standings in 2014.
18. Matt Crafton, No. 18 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. A late sub for the injured Kyle Busch, the two-time defending NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion seemed to get more comfortable as the race went on and did an admirable job in less-than-ideal circumstances. | MORE: Gibbs gives update on Kyle Busch
19. Johnny Sauter, No. 83 Toyota, BK Racing. Sauter, a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series veteran, carried the flag for BK Racing, notching his best Sprint Cup result since a 15th-place finish at Phoenix in November of 2007.
20. AJ Allmendinger, No. 47 Chevrolet, JTG Daugherty Racing. The ‘Dinger had his share of issues early in the race and was running in the back thanks to a starting position of 40th, but he came on strong late, gaining 12 spots in the final 20 laps of the race.
21. Danica Patrick, No. 10 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. It was an interesting Speedweeks for Danica, from going through several cars to a run-in with Denny Hamlin, but the third-year Sprint Cup driver toughed it out in the end.
22. Cole Whitt, No. 35 Ford, Front Row Motorsports. In his first start with the expanded Front Row organization, Whitt had his best-career finish at Daytona.
23. Carl Edwards, No. 19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. In his first points race for JGR, Edwards spent plenty of time at the front with 160 laps in the top 15 and led three laps. A speeding penalty on pit road on Lap 89 led Edwards to tell his team over the radio, “Completely my fault, guys. I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you.” | Sign up for Scanner today, to hear in-car audio
24. Bobby Labonte, No. 32 Ford, GO FAS Racing. This finish was the 2000 premier series champion’s worst in the Daytona 500 since 2006, but he did gain 19 spots from his starting position.
25. Paul Menard, No. 27 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. After stringing together back-to-back top-10s in the 2011 and 2012 Daytona 500, Menard’s past two Daytona 500s have resulted in a 21st-place finish and a 32nd-place finish, so this finish roughly splits that distance.
26. Michael Waltrip, No. 55 Toyota, Michael Waltrip Racing. Filling in for the sidelined Brian Vickers, the two-time Daytona 500 winner gained nine spots in the final 20 laps.
27. Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. The CGR driver couldn’t replicate his Rolex 24 success from last month, but the “Big-game hunter” spent 134 laps in the top 15.
28. Ty Dillon, No. 33 Chevrolet, Circle Sport Racing. Making just his third career Sprint Cup start, the younger Dillon turned some heads with the eighth-fastest car in green flag conditions, but his promising run trailed off in the latter half of the race after taking on damage in a late wreck.
29. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. The third-year Cup driver had his worst Daytona 500 finish in 2015 after a career-best seventh-place result in 2014, but he did have the most green flag passes (484) in the race.
30. Trevor Bayne, No. 6 Ford, Roush Fenway Racing. Since his surprising win in his first Daytona 500 in 2011, Bayne has averaged a finish of 31.3. On the positive side, Bayne was the fourth-fastest car on restarts.
31. Michael McDowell, No. 95 Ford, Leavine Family Racing. For the third time in his four career Daytona 500 starts, McDowell finished 30th or worse; the exception was a ninth-place finish in the 2013 Daytona 500.
32. Reed Sorenson, No. 44 Chevrolet, Team Xtreme Racing. Sorenson, who wasn’t sure he was going to have a backup car for the Daytona 500, raced his way into the field but had his worst finish in the Great American Race in six starts.
33. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports. The Coors Light Pole Award winner led a race-high 87 laps and looked like one of the cars to beat. His finishing position is not indicative of his day as he was involved in a wreck on the final lap. | PHOTOS: Gordon through the years at Daytona
34. Kyle Larson, No. 42 Chevrolet, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. Larson’s sophomore campaign got off to a slow start after a day marred by pit road troubles that seemed to derailed the 2014 Sunoco Rookie of the Year at inopportune times.
35. Matt Kenseth, No. 20 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing. The Sprint Unlimited winner had plenty of speed during Speedweeks but couldn’t recover from damage suffered due to contact from Tony Stewart on Lap 41, and he finished a lap down.
36. Mike Wallace, No. 66 Toyota, Premium Motorsports. Running his first Daytona 500 since 2007, the 54-year-old couldn’t match his 2007 run when he finished fourth.
37. Justin Allgaier, No. 51 Chevrolet, HScott Motorsports. The second-year Sprint Cup competitor was in a wreck that triggered the green-white-checkered finish on Lap 199. | WATCH: Allgaier brings out caution
38. Ryan Newman, No. 31 Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing. Last year’s runner-up in the final standings suffered damage from a chain reaction after Brad Keselowski’s car blew up; Newman would finish 19 laps back.
39. Ryan Blaney, No. 21 Ford, Wood Brothers Racing. In his maiden start for Wood Brothers Racing, Blaney was enjoying a nice run until his car blew up in similar fashion to Brad Keselowski’s on Lap 176.
40. J.J. Yeley, No. 23 Toyota, BK Racing. Yeley had trouble shifting into gear late in the race, which took him off the track and resulted in his third finish of 40th-or-worse in six Daytona 500 starts.
41. Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Ford, Team Penske. The 2012 Sprint Cup champion had been steadily making his way up through the field before car trouble on Lap 161 caused his worst career finish in the Daytona 500. | MORE: Blown engine cuts Keselowski’s day short
42. Tony Stewart, No. 14 Chevrolet, Stewart-Haas Racing. The elusive Daytona 500 victory will remain the trophy “Smoke” can’t rein in as a steering issue following a Lap 41 accident derailed his day. | MORE: Daytona 500 drought continues for Stewart
43. Landon Cassill, No. 40 Chevrolet, Hillman Smith Racing. Cassill’s engine expired on Lap 19, bringing the day to an early end for a driver who has had some recent success at restrictor-plate tracks.
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