Posted on by Staff Report

The first NASCAR Cup Series race at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course had plenty of firsts and memorable moments, including a sprint to the finish following a late caution that saw a topsy-turvy final few laps with plenty of movement in the running order.

We analyzed the running position of the final three, then used our Compare tool in Race Center and footage from in-car cameras shown on NASCAR Drive to paint a fuller picture. Here’s some of the significant movement over the final three laps at Daytona.

NASCAR Drive: Use compare tool

Bubba Wallace

Lap 63: 8
Lap 64: 9
Lap 65: 25

Note: As you can see in the video above, Wallace’s top-10 run was spoiled on the final lap. Shortly after crossing the start/finish line after the white flag dropped, Wallace led a tight pack of five cars into the first turn. In tight quarters, Joey Logano nudged Alex Bowman’s No. 88 Chevrolet from behind, sending Bowman into Wallace’s No. 43, which took a spin way off course. There was not significant damage and Wallace continued the race, but lost 16 positions.

Ryan Blaney

Lap 63: 19
Lap 64: 24
Lap 65: 31

Note: Blaney’s final lap was undone after he missed the frontstretch chicane (shown in the GIF below), which forced a stop-and-go penalty on the track. The 31st-place finish was especially disappointing after running in the top 10 most of the day. In fact, 31st was the worst Blaney had run in the entire race — and it’s where he finished.

Blaney Last Lap

Brad Keselowski; Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Lap 63: 18; 11
Lap 64: 17; 15
Lap 65: 13; 16

Note: Keselowski and Stenhouse Jr. were the other drivers to gain or lose five spots over the final three laps — with Keselowski gaining five and Stenhouse Jr. losing five. Below is a graphic from the Compare tool.

Kes Stenhouse Compare

Posted on by Zack Albert

A test of the Next Gen car for NASCAR’s Cup Series is scheduled Monday and Tuesday at Dover International Speedway following a Cup Series doubleheader weekend.

Competition officials confirmed Monday that Stewart-Haas Racing rookie Cole Custer will make laps in the prototype at the 1-mile Delaware track, putting more production parts into use and testing the high-load conditions of the concrete high banks. It’s the first test for the Next Gen model since the COVID-19 outbreak in March.

NASCAR officials announced April 2 that the Next Gen car’s Cup Series debut would be delayed from 2021 to 2022 as the industry weathered the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The outbreak also scratched a March 16-17 test scheduled with SHR’s Clint Bowyer at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Additionally, competition officials revealed that IMSA team Action Express Racing is making laps Monday with its own Next Gen prototype at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course. The team test is being conducted with reigning series champ Felipe Nasr and Team Penske’s Austin Cindric, who won Saturday’s Xfinity Series race on the 3.61-mile Daytona Road Course layout.

“The Action Express test allows a sports car team to learn about the architecture of the Next Gen car and explore any opportunities to adopt new technologies,” said John Probst, NASCAR Senior VP of Innovation and Racing Development. “The test also benefits NASCAR — it helps us check the durability of parts, helps with tire development and gives us data from a road course test.”

Previous tests of the Next Gen car include Austin Dillon at Richmond (Oct. 8-9, 2019), Joey Logano at Phoenix (Dec. 9-10, 2019), Erik Jones at Homestead-Miami (Jan. 15-16) and William Byron at Auto Club Speedway (March 2-3).

RELATED: William Byron details Next Gen test

Posted on by Staff Report

NBC Sports’ Rick Allen joined Tyler Reddick and Jeff Burton to help Richard Childress Racing reveal the Darlington throwback scheme for the No. 8 Chevrolet this year. It’s a Caterpillar look that harkens back to Burton’s rookie year in 1994 when he ran a Raybestos theme.

RELATED: NASCAR 2020 schedule | Throwback gear

Burton knows a thing or two about what Reddick is going through in his first NASCAR Cup Series campaign in 2020, and like Reddick, Burton has ties to the No. 8, RCR and Caterpillar. The two drivers had fun with the announcement via social media with Allen:

Check out the scheme below as you wait for the playoff opener, the Southern 500 at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 6 (NBCSN, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

2020 Aug17 Tyler Reddick Darlington

Posted on by Data Skrive

William Byron finished eighth in the Go Bowling 235 at the DAYTONA Road Course at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

The top-10 finish for Byron, his seventh of the year, added 40 points to his season total. Byron is now 14th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 577 points.

Byron started in 13th position. The third-year driver has earned five top-five and 23 top-10 finishes in his career.

The Charlotte, North Carolina native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting two spots higher than his career mark of 15.2 and completing the race 10 places ahead of his 18.1 career average finish.

Byron’s eighth-place finish came against 39 other drivers. The race endured four cautions and seven caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were 13 lead changes.

Chase Elliott earned the victory in the race, and Denny Hamlin followed in second. Martin Truex Jr crossed the finish line third, Jimmie Johnson took fourth, and Chris Buescher rounded out the top five.

After Elliott won Stage 1, Hamlin drove the No. 11 car to victory in Stage 2.

William Byron Driver Page | Get Byron Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Kaz Grala finished seventh in the Go Bowling 235 at the DAYTONA Road Course at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

Grala was unable to add to his season point total.

Grala started in 10th position and led three laps in the race. The first-year driver has never finished inside the top 10 in his career.

Grala competed with a field of 39 drivers on the way to his seventh-place finish. The race endured four cautions and seven caution laps. There were 13 lead changes.

Chase Elliott brought home the win in the race, and Denny Hamlin took second. Martin Truex Jr placed third, Jimmie Johnson brought home fourth, and Chris Buescher finished off the top five.

After Elliott won the first stage, Hamlin drove the No. 11 car to the win in Stage 2.

Kaz Grala Driver Page | Get Grala Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Chris Buescher finished fifth in the Go Bowling 235 at the DAYTONA Road Course at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

Buescher’s top-five finish, the second time he has achieved that result this year, added 32 points to his season total. Buescher is now 22nd in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 403 points. A total of 16 drivers make the playoffs.

Buescher started in 21st position. The sixth-year driver has one career victory, with five top-five finishes and 16 results inside the top 10.

The Prosper, Texas native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting four spots higher than his career mark of 24.8 and completing the race 17 places ahead of his 22.2 career average finish.

Buescher’s fifth-place finish was against 39 other drivers. The race endured four cautions and seven caution laps. There were 13 lead changes.

Chase Elliott finished first in the race, and Denny Hamlin finished second. Martin Truex Jr crossed the finish line third, with Jimmie Johnson securing fourth place. Buescher rounded out the top five.

After Elliott won the first stage, Hamlin drove the No. 11 car to victory in Stage 2.

Chris Buescher Driver Page | Get Buescher Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Jimmie Johnson finished fourth in the Go Bowling 235 at the DAYTONA Road Course at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

Johnson’s top-five finish, the third time he has achieved that result this year, added 41 points to his season total. Johnson now sits at No. 15 in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 552 points.

Johnson started in 11th position. The 20th-year driver has piled up 83 career victories, with 229 top-five finishes and 370 results inside the top 10.

The El Cajon, California native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting two spots higher than his career mark of 12.7 and completing the race 10 places ahead of his 13.9 career average finish.

Johnson’s fourth-place finish came against 39 other drivers. The race endured four cautions and seven caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were 13 lead changes.

Chase Elliott earned the victory in the race, followed by Denny Hamlin in second place and Martin Truex Jr in third place. Johnson took fourth ahead of Chris Buescher’s No. 5 finish.

After Elliott won Stage 1, Hamlin drove the No. 11 car to the win in Stage 2.

Jimmie Johnson Driver Page | Get Johnson Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Michael McDowell rounded out the top 10 in the Go Bowling 235 at the DAYTONA Road Course at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

The top-10 finish for McDowell, his third of the year, added 27 points to his season total. McDowell is now 23rd in the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 403 points.

McDowell started in 30th position. The 13th-year driver has picked up three top-five and 10 top-10 finishes in his career.

The Glendale, Arizona native began the race one spot behind his career mark of 28.9, but finished 21 places ahead of his career average of 31.1.

McDowell battled against 39 other drivers on the way to his 10th-place finish. The race endured four cautions and seven caution laps. There were 13 lead changes.

Chase Elliott earned the victory in the race, and Denny Hamlin finished second. Martin Truex Jr placed third, Jimmie Johnson brought home fourth, and Chris Buescher finished off the top five.

After Elliott won Stage 1, Hamlin drove the No. 11 car to the win in Stage 2.

Michael McDowell Driver Page | Get McDowell Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Parker Kligerman finished eighth in the Sunoco 159 at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

The top-10 finish for Kligerman added 29 points to his season total.

Kligerman started in 16th position. The 10th-year driver has earned two career victories, with 16 top-five finishes and 37 results inside the top 10.

The Westport, Connecticut native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting one spot higher than his career mark of 16.8 and completing the race six places ahead of his 14.4 career average finish.

Kligerman’s eighth-place finish came against 38 other drivers. The race endured five cautions and seven caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were 10 lead changes.

Sheldon Creed brought home the win in the race, and Brett Moffitt finished second. Raphael Lessard placed third, Matt Crafton took fourth, and Austin Hill closed out the top five.

After Moffitt won Stage 1, Creed seized control and won Stage 2 before taking the checkered flag.

Parker Kligerman Driver Page | Get Kligerman Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Austin Hill finished fifth in the Sunoco 159 at Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday.

Hill’s top-five finish added 48 points to his season total. Hill now sits at No. 1 in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series standings with 476 points.

Hill started in fourth position and led one lap in the race. The seventh-year driver has secured five career victories, with 13 top-five finishes and 30 results inside the top 10.

The Winston, Georgia native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting 12 spots higher than his career mark of 15.8 and completing the race 12 places ahead of his 16.7 career average finish.

Hill’s fifth-place finish came against a field of 38 drivers. The race endured five cautions and seven caution laps. There were 10 lead changes.

Sheldon Creed earned the checkered flag in the race, and Brett Moffitt finished second. Raphael Lessard placed third, with Matt Crafton securing fourth place. Hill rounded out the top five.

After Moffitt won Stage 1, Creed took control and won Stage 2 before earning the checkered flag.

Austin Hill Driver Page | Get Hill Gear | Race Center