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Ten Things To Watch For In The Daytona 500

By Brian Thornsburg

Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports
Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 13, 2015; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Jimmie Johnson (48) and his crew chief Chad Knaus during practice for the The Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 13, 2015; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Jimmie Johnson (48) and his crew chief Chad Knaus during practice for the The Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports /

Doubling down

Winning one Daytona 500 is nice, but winning two great American races puts you among some very elite company in NASCAR history. With that being said, the accomplishment is no easy feat, especially if you consider that The Daytona 500 is a 200 lap marathon race against 42 other very skilled drivers. Not only that, the race also forces the 43 car field to pack race, which only brings more pressure to drivers by adding close quarter racing and the possibility of huge accidents to the mix.

With all this in mind, Dale Earnhardt JR was the last driver to accomplish this massive feat, winning The Great American Race in 2004 and then again in 2014. Before him, there was Jimmie Johnson who won The Great American Race in 2013 and 2006. And finally, there was Matt Kenseth who recorded his second wins in the 2009 Daytona 500 and the 2012 Daytona 500.

There is also another interesting trend to this stat, as 3 of the five last double Daytona 500 winners have also won at least one  Sprint Cup champion. If nothing else, this accomplishment is one of the few things that could predict future success in The Cup Series.

Next: Safety concerns?

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