Every time the Daytona 500 champion only led a single lap

In 68 editions of the Daytona 500, NASCAR has seen plenty of surprise or unexpected winners. However, it wasn’t until 2017 that the victor in stock car racing’s crown jewel event only led the final lap of the 200-lap battle.

While it did not happen once between 1959 and 2016, the phenomenon has now occurred four times in the last decade. It showcases just how unpredictable modern superspeedway racing has become, and how often they end in race-altering wrecks.

Here’s a look at each of the four times the Daytona 500 winner only led the checkered flag lap, and how they managed to beat the odds.

2017 — Kurt Busch plays the fuel-mileage game

Kurt Busch celebrates

In 2017, the 500 finish was very unusual with only a handful of cars in the lead group, and several running on fumes. Busch was near the front for most of the final stint, but he didn’t dare to lead as he wanted to save as much fuel as possible. With ten laps to go, he was running third. He then fell back to fourth behind Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr., and Chase Elliott. With three laps to go, Elliott ran out. A lap later, Truex began to slow, and while Larson led at the white flag, his car began to stumble and Busch roared passed him as well. It was the only time the winner led just the final lap without there being a last-lap crash. Instead, it was a tense fuel-mileage race that ended with Busch on top. The car was battle-scarred from earlier damage, but he had plenty of fuel in the tank, simply because he had the patience to wait.

2018 — Almirola’s failed block on Austin Dillon

Aric Almirola wrecks from the lead

Dillon restarted fourth in overtime in 2018, avoiding the chaos of a crash-filled Daytona 500. There were only about a dozen cars left that could keep up with the pack. He pushed Aric Almirola ahead, and took the white flag in third, side-by-side with Denny Hamlin. Down the backstretch, Dillon had a massive run and Almirola threw an aggressive block. Dillon looked low, and then high, and then Almirola went spinning into the outside wall. It was a hard, single-car crash as Almirola spun from the lead following contact with Dillon. The race remained green, and Dillon won the Daytona 500 in the RCR No. 3, twenty years after Dale Earnhardt had done the same.

Fiery crash ends the Daytona 500

Entering the 2021 Daytona 500, McDowell had never even won a Cup race before. He had been racing in the Cup Series since 2008 with 357 starts — and zero wins. The field was mostly single-file, ripping along the top with two Penske cars in the top three. Between those Penske cars was Kevin Harvick, and behind them in fourth was McDowell. With two laps to go, Brad Keselowski held back and got a massive run on Harvick, putting Penske 1-2 with McDowell following them up to third. On the final lap, it looked like Penske was guaranteed to win. McDowell gave Keselowski a push he used to make a move on teammate Joey Logano, but Logano blocked. The red and yellow No. 22 spun to the inside, the white and black No. 2 spun to the outside, and the seas parted for McDowell as he drove up through the middle. If the race stayed green, his victory would have been far from guaranteed as two other drivers began to pass him, but as cars erupted into flames and even touched the fence behind them, NASCAR had no choice but to throw the yellow. McDowell was now a winner in the Cup Series for the first time, doing so in the biggest race of them all.

Watch: Cinderella: McDowell wins the Daytona 500 in wreck-filled last lap

2026 — Tyler Reddick with a friendly push

Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing Toyota, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet, Joey Logano, Team Penske Ford, Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Riley Herbst, 23XI Racing Toyota

The wildest finish of them all, and you likely don’t need a refresher, but we’ll give you one anyway. Reddick was second when the final caution of the race flew, and restarted on the front row with four laps to go. He had 2024 and 2025 Daytona 500 winner William Byron attached to his rear bumper as McDowell led the way. Reddick surged ahead but as he tried to block both lanes, he got put in the middle between McDowell and Byron. Luckily for him, his 23XI teammate Bubba Wallace wedged his way in behind him, and kept Reddick near the front of the pack. With three to go, McDowell continued to lead with teammate Carson Hocevar second and Reddick third. Reddick dropped to the bottom and got disconnected from Wallace.

With two laps to go, he was back in the top lane and now ran fourth behind Erik Jones and the Spire teammates. He quickly dropped back down to the middle, and now had Logano as his pusher with the pack dynamic changing rapidly. At the white flag, Reddick was in the middle, three-wide, and running fourth at the line. As Hocevar got turned from the race lead, both he and Jones came across Reddick’s nose. He made contact with Jones and doored Byron, but managed to keep moving in the right direction. For a moment, he nosed ahead with the lead while three-wide with new players — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Elliott.

Reddick started to fade with no help, and was in desperate need of a pusher. Well, in his hour of need, another 23XI teammate appeared as Riley Herbst gave him a shot down the backstretch. Entering Turn 3, he was third, and managed to out-duel Zane Smith, getting to his outside. Herbst stayed right there, propelling Reddick forward. On the frontstretch, he faked high before diving low under Elliott, taking the lead as Herbst accidentally triggered a wreck that destroyed the rest of the top five in the run to the finish line. Reddick was victorious, leading only the final lap of the race.

Watch: Tyler Reddick dissects his winning Daytona 500 lap