The Daytona 500 is the greatest stock-car spectacle in the world — and as such, it has attracted a wide swath of drivers over the years attempting to qualify for the field.

Many of those stories — like those of Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty and Jeff Gordon — are well known. Others are a bit more unique.

We analyzed every driver who has driven in the “Great American Race” and selected 10 whose stories deserve to be told.

Below are 10 of the most unique drivers to ever compete in the Daytona 500.

RELATED: 2025 Daytona Speedweeks schedule | SHOP: Daytona 500 gear

Maynard Troyer

There are few drivers more closely associated with Modified racing than Maynard Troyer.

Troyer is well known as the founder of Troyer Engineering, a chassis and parts business he formed in 1977.

However, long before that, he was a fierce competitor at tracks up and down the East Coast. From his home base in Spencerport, New York, Troyer competed against the best Modified competitors of the era, including NASCAR Hall of Famers Richie Evans and Jerry Cook.

Troyer was a track champion at New York venues like Spencer Speedway and Lancaster Motorplex, and his orange No. 6 Modified was well known across the region with major victories coming in the Race of Champions and the Spring Sizzler.

In 1971, Troyer moved up to the Cup Series and made his Daytona 500 debut. However, things took a disastrous turn only nine laps into the race when an engine failure on his No. 60 Ford resulted in a horrible crash that saw Troyer flip more than a dozen times.

Troyer was seriously hurt but was back racing by April. He returned to Daytona in 1973 for his second and final start in the “Great American Race,” finishing 23rd after an engine failure knocked him out of the race after 150 laps.

Troyer would remain involved in the motorsports industry for years through his business, Troyer Engineering. He died in 2018 at age 78.

Pedro Rodríguez de la Vega

Decades before Daniel Suárez became the first Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race, Pedro Rodríguez de la Vega became the first Mexican-born driver to compete in a NASCAR Cup Series event years before making his Daytona 500 debut.

Born in Mexico City, Mexico, he began racing at an early age. Alongside his brother Ricardo, who was also a renowned racer, the brothers captured national motorcycle championships in the early 1950s in Mexico.

By 1959, he began racing in Europe, but that didn’t stop him from competing in North America. In 1959, the then 19-year-old made his Cup Series debut during an event at New Jersey’s Trenton Speedway, finishing sixth in a field that included winner Tom Pistone, Lee Petty, Cotton Owens, Richard Petty and Junior Johnson.

That was the first of six Cup Series events he would compete in during his career, which included a fifth-place effort in the 1965 World 600.

Away from NASCAR, Rodríguez made a name for himself in sports cars and Formula One. He won two Formula One Grands Prix and captured victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Weeks after winning the Rolex 24 in 1971, he made his Daytona 500 debut. He initially attempted to qualify for the Daytona 500 in a car prepared by Bill Ellis, but an engine failure prevented him from doing so.

Thankfully, Jabe Thomas agreed to step out of the No. 25 owned by Don Robertson, and Rodríguez drove Robertson’s Plymouth to a 13th-place finish.

Rodríguez’s life came to a tragic end only a few months later when he was killed while competing in a sports car event at the Norisring in Nuremberg, West Germany. He was 31.

Eduardo Dibós Chappuis

One of the more unique stories to come out of the first Daytona 500 in 1959 centers around Eduardo Dibós Chappuis, who was known professionally as Eduardo Dibós or by the nickname “Chachi.”

Born in Lima, Peru, Dibós was the son of former Lima mayor Eduardo Dibós Dammert and Rina Chappuis Castagnino.

He became interested in racing at an early age, and in the 1960s, he raced sports cars against the greatest drivers of the era, including Pedro Rodríguez, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt.

His NASCAR participation began in 1959 when he, alongside fellow Peruvian driver Raul Cilloniz, traveled to Florida to compete in the inaugural running of the Daytona 500.

Driving the No. 37 Thunderbird for team owner Van Acker, Dibós finished fifth in the 40-lap Daytona 500 qualifying race held on Feb. 20, outlasting Lee Petty, Rex White, Speedy Thompson, Junior Johnson, Tim Flock, Fireball Roberts and Buck Baker.

His success in the qualifying race didn’t transition to the Daytona 500. Starting ninth in the 59-car field, Dibós fell out of the race early with a suspension issue and finished 48th.

That wasn’t the end of his NASCAR adventure, however. He returned to Daytona International Speedway later that year to compete in the inaugural Firecracker 250. Again, driving for Acker, Dibós qualified third and finished fifth. It was his final Cup race.

Robert McGregor Innes Ireland

In the early days of the Daytona 500, it wasn’t uncommon for drivers from other racing disciplines to enter NASCAR’s biggest event.

Robert McGregor Innes Ireland, or simply Innes Ireland, is one of those drivers.

Born in Mytholmroyd, Yorkshire, England, Ireland served in the British Army in the 1950s. During this time, he also expressed an interest in racing, and by 1957, he began to pursue it as a career.

He eventually reached Formula One, but in 1961, Ireland was seriously injured in a crash in the Monaco Grand Prix. Despite this, Ireland returned to competition and scored his lone Formula One victory that same year during the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen International.

He made his NASCAR debut in 1967 at Daytona. Driving the No. 31 Dodge owned and prepared by the legendary Ray Fox, Ireland finished 10th in his qualifying race to earn a spot in the Daytona 500.

Sharing his impressions of Daytona after his first laps on the track, Ireland told National Speed Sport News, “Those banks look nice from here, but when you drive down the straightaway, they look like bloody ribbons.”

Starting 20th, Ireland failed to finish the 500-mile event after an engine failure. He was credited with finishing 27th.

Ireland retired from driving shortly thereafter. He later became a motorsports journalist and owned fishing trawlers that operated in the North Atlantic. He died after a battle with cancer on Oct. 22, 1993, at age 63.

Sammy Swindell

If you’re a fan or even a casual watcher of dirt-track racing, then odds are you know the name Sammy Swindell.

Swindell is arguably one of the greatest sprint car drivers ever. His accolades are abundant and his victories countless, but here are a few examples just to lay the groundwork.

Swindell, who was given the nickname “Slammin’ Sammy” for his hard-nosed and aggressive driving style, captured three World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series championships in 1981, 1982 and 1997. He also won the 1983 Knoxville Nationals.

He’s also an ace in a midget car, which he proved by winning the Chili Bowl Nationals five times, more than any other driver in event history.

Swindell has never been afraid to try something different. He made his Cup debut in 1985, driving a car fielded by Raymond Beadle at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he finished 30th after retiring early following a crash.

He made one more Cup start, which came in 1991 during the Daytona 500. At the wheel of the No. 20 Oldsmobile owned by Dick Moroso, Swindell’s lone Daytona 500 start ended abruptly after 28 laps after he was involved in not one but two different accidents.

Swindell remains active in the racing world today as a competitor, though he has backed off the gas quite a bit compared to the 1980s and 1990s. He competed in the Chili Bowl Nationals in January in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where, at 69 years old, he raced his way to a D-Feature on championship Saturday.

Bob Senneker

The Midwestern region of the United States has produced some of the greatest short-track racers ever, including Dick Trickle, Rich Bickle and the next man on this list, Bob Senneker.

A Michigan native, Senneker began his racing career in 1963 and quickly became one of the most successful racers in the Midwest, capturing the 1966 track championship at Berlin Raceway.

In a career that spanned more than three decades, Senneker competed in and won some of the biggest short-track races in the United States, including seven Winchester 400 wins and one triumph in the All American 400.

Senneker made his only Daytona 500 start early in his career in 1968. Driving a 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle that he and his crew prepared, Senneker started 34th and finished 13th, only one position behind the legendary A.J. Foyt.

Senneker would go on to make a few more Cup Series starts, including five in 1983, but he was never able to top that 13th-place result in the 1968 Daytona 500.

His driving career may be long over, but Senneker and his famous “Bluebird” race car still make occasional appearances at tracks across the Midwest, where his accolades are revered.

Al Holbert

Less than a dozen drivers can say they’ve won three of the biggest sports car races in the world — the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

One of those drivers was Al Holbert.

The son of race car driver and Porsche dealership owner Bob Holbert, the younger Holbert developed into one of the best American road racers of his era.

He captured the first of his five IMSA championships in 1976 and added a second in 1977. He later added three more championships in 1983, 1985 and 1986. He won the Rolex 24 twice, the 12 Hours of Sebring twice and the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times and even finished fourth in the 1984 Indianapolis 500.

Holbert dabbled in NASCAR during the 1970s, mostly driving for James Hylton. In his third Cup start, he competed in the 1978 Daytona 500 aboard Hylton’s No. 48 Chevrolet.

He failed to finish the race after an engine failure, which left him 29th. Holbert made a total of 19 Cup starts, earning a best finish of seventh at Darlington Raceway.

Holbert’s life was tragically cut short after he was killed in a plane crash on Sept. 30, 1988. He was 41.

Don Tilley

Tilley was an early pioneer in both stock car and motorcycle racing. It was through his time racing stock cars that he became friends with Richard Petty, for whom he worked as a mechanic during some of Petty’s most successful seasons.

As part of his stock-car racing career, Tilley competed in several events at Daytona International Speedway in the 1960s, including the 1965 Daytona 500.

Driving the No. 81 Dodge owned by Joe Keistler, Tilley drove from 33rd at the start to finish 22nd after rain halted the race after the completion of 133 laps. Fred Lorenzen was ultimately declared the winner, the first time the Daytona 500 ended early because of weather.

Tilley made six Cup starts during his brief driving career, earning a best finish of 15th at Hickory Motor Speedway.

Tilley was also a co-founder of the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America and always made room on his schedule for the ride.

Tilley and his wife, Robinette, died following a motorcycle accident on Aug. 29, 2014. Tilley was 78 years old. Tilley Harley-Davidson, the business he founded in 1972, continues to operate today.

Bill Kimmel Sr.

Fans of the ARCA Menards Series are very familiar with the Kimmel family, which includes the family patriarch Bill Kimmel Sr.

Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Kimmel served in the United States Army before pursuing a career in motorsports.

For roughly three decades, Kimmel made a living through racing. It’s estimated he won more than 500 races at a variety of tracks and is known to have captured 12 track championships. He also won three races as a driver in what is now known as the ARCA Menards Series.

In 1969, Kimmel traveled to Florida to qualify for the Daytona 500. Driving the No. 69 Chevrolet owned by Carl Manis, he successfully made the race but finished 46th due to an engine failure.

After concluding his own racing career, he shifted his focus to helping his sons Thom, Bill Jr. and Frank as they pursued racing careers of their own.

The most successful of the trio was Frank, who won 10 ARCA Menards Series championships and a series-best 80 races. Eight of those championships came consecutively from 2000 to 2008.

Kimmel died of natural causes on July 30, 2020, at age 91. Kimmel Racing, the race team he started in the 1950s, continues to operate today with his grandson, Will Kimmel, at the helm.

Bernie Hentges

Race car drivers will do amazing things to make sure they get to the race track. Then, there is what Bernie Hentges did to make sure he raced in the inaugural running of the Daytona 500 in 1959.

The Minnesota native raced successfully on dirt tracks in his home state as a teenager, winning more than 100 races. He then got the itch to compete in the inaugural running of what would eventually become NASCAR’s greatest event.

In early 1959, the 22-year-old Hentges walked into a local car dealership and purchased a new DeSoto, which he then drove from Minnesota all the way to Daytona Beach so he could drive the car in the first “Great American Race.”

“You see those high banks, and you say, ‘Wow. What am I doing here?'” Hentges told the San Diego Union-Tribune in 2008.

Thousands of miles from home, Hentges made the most of his time in Florida. He qualified 12th and finished 12th in his qualifying race, which earned him the 23rd starting position in the 59-car starting field.

Driving the only DeSoto in the field, Hentges was competitive until the engine in his car expired. He finished 37th but ahead of a few notable names, including Buck Baker, Fireball Roberts and Richard Petty.

Hentges never competed in NASCAR again. After a stint in the National Guard, he eventually settled in Vista, California, where he worked as a mechanic and carpenter.