DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sunday at Daytona International Speedway, incidents wreaked havoc on the Daytona 500 field and ultimately sent the race to overtime.
When all was said and done, Alex Bowman was the highest-finishing Hendrick Motorsports driver with a 17th-place result in “The Great American Race.”
Bowman was involved in a multiple-car incident with two laps to go that sent the race into the extra frame.
"We put ourselves in a good position all day and really shouldn’t have been in that spot," Bowman said. "That last restart I didn’t do a good job and that is what put us there. My fault, learn from it move on. Definitely do some things differently going forward, but everybody on this Nationwide 88 did such a great job."
William Byron was similarly involved in a number of multiple-car incidents but was able to finish the race, taking home a 23rd-place result.
Both Chase Elliott and Jimmie Johnson were knocked out of the race early after being involved in multiple-car incidents of their own.
Both were racing near the front of the pack when their respective incidents occurred.
"Had such a fast NAPA Camaro ZL1 and just wanted a shot there at the end,” said Elliott, who was running second at the time. “I hate that we didn’t have that opportunity.”
He was scored 33rd.
“Just disappointed for this Lowe's team and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports for all the hard work they put into it,” said Johnson, who was scored 38th.
Austin Dillon won the Daytona 500.
Below is a closer look at how all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared Sunday.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
FINISHED: 33rd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After starting fourth, Elliott continued to run inside the top 10 in the early stages of the Daytona 500, but was stuck in the outside lane and was shuffled back outside of the top 20 on Lap 19.
- He recovered to take the race lead on Lap 45, battling between first and second for the remainder of Stage 1 until he was caught in the middle during three-wide racing and shuffled back in the pack. He finished Stage 1 eighth.
- In Stage 2, Elliott maintained a top-10 position, and on Lap 101 he raced all the way up to second.
- One lap later, a push from behind sent Elliott into the wall and caused a multiple-car incident. The damage to the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ended Elliott’s day early. He was scored 33rd.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
FINISHED: 23rd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Byron began Sunday’s “Great American Race” at the rear of the field in a backup car, but he quickly worked his way through the back half of the field, finding the top 15 by Lap 31.
- On the final lap of Stage 1, Byron was involved in a multiple-car incident, though the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 avoided major damage and stayed in the race.
- On Lap 93, Byron made contact with the wall, causing a caution. After repairs by the No. 24 team, he returned to the track down a lap in 30th.
- Byron raced his way to the first car a lap down, earning himself a free pass back onto the lead lap when a caution flag flew at the end of Stage 2.
- During a long stretch of green-flag racing in the final segment, Byron lost a lap once again and raced just inside the top 20 until the No. 24 Chevy experienced a tire issue that caused a spin and a caution with 11 laps to go.
- In overtime, he took home a 23rd-place finish.
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S FOR PROS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
FINISHED: 38th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After starting the Daytona 500 at the rear of the field in a backup car, it took Johnson just 30 laps to make his way into the top 10.
- By Lap 35, he was inside the top five.
- As the laps wound down in Stage 1, Johnson was utilizing the outside lane to maintain a top-10 position with an opportunity to lock in stage points.
- On Lap 59, however, Johnson was caught up in a multiple-car incident. The resulting damage to the No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ended Johnson’s Daytona 500 early. He was scored 38th.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 NATIONWIDE CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
FINISHED: 17th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman started the Daytona 500 on the pole, though he lost the lead before Lap 1 concluded. He regained it on Lap 15, leading seven laps before falling back inside the top 10.
- After being shuffled outside of the top 15, Bowman recovered to finish Stage 1 in second, picking up nine extra points in the process.
- Bowman started Stage 2 once again in the lead, but he lost it on the restart and was eventually shuffled all the way outside of the top 20. He avoided a multiple-car incident to finish Stage 2 in 14th.
- In the final segment, Bowman settled into fourth place before making a green-flag pit stop and returning to the racetrack still in fourth once the field cycled through.
- Racing inside the top-10 with two laps to go, Bowman was caught in a multiple-car incident that sent the race to overtime. He took home a 17th-place finish after the extra frame.