Ten Things To Watch For In The Daytona 500

Bizarre way to start the season

While the Daytona 500 is usually a race that is known for its breathtaking moments, great last lap passes and unbridled prestige, it has also become home to some of the most bizarre and downright jaw-dropping moments in all of NASCAR history. This has been especially true in the last decade or so of The Great American Race.

The last time something bizarre happened was in 2012, when the race was run on Monday night for the first time due to lengthy thunderstorms in the area on Sunday afternoon and early Monday. Although that occurrence was strange in itself, it was nothing compared to the incident that would set the track on fire and delay the race for several hours while repairs were made to the track surface.

The incident occurred when Juan Pablo Montoya got loose while trying to catch up to the pack during the caution and ended up slamming right into a jet dryer at the top of the track.  The incident caused jet fuel to leak down the banking of the track and eventually catch fire when other cars came around during pace laps.

This resulted in a lengthy red flag delay that caused the race not to finish until 1 am the following morning. This marked not only the longest amount of time to finish a Daytona 500 in the race’s history, but also the first time that the race ended after midnight. If anything, these bizarre incidents should act as a testament to just how insane things can get during The Daytona 500.

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