{"id":3153,"date":"2018-02-19T00:33:47","date_gmt":"2018-02-19T05:33:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=3153"},"modified":"2018-02-19T00:33:47","modified_gmt":"2018-02-19T05:33:47","slug":"3153","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2018\/02\/19\/3153\/","title":{"rendered":"Austin Dillon Wins Daytona 500 Under #3"},"content":{"rendered":"

They say history repeats itself. And while it wasn\u2019t the same name, it was the same number that saw itself in victory lane after the Daytona 500<\/strong>, 20 years later. Austin Dillon<\/strong> won the Daytona 500, driving the number of Dale Earnhardt Sr.<\/strong>, #3. Earnhardt\u2019s first 500 win came 20 years ago. <\/span><\/p>\n

Austin Dillon Wins Daytona 500 Under #3<\/h1>\n

The race started with new #88 driver, Alex Bowman<\/strong> on pole position. Denny Hamlin<\/strong> was with him on the first row. Danica Patrick<\/strong>, running her last NASCAR race started in 28th. Defending MENCS Champion Martin Truex Jr.<\/strong> started in 24th, while defending Daytona 500 winner Kurt Busch<\/strong> started in 11th.<\/span><\/p>\n

Very early in the race, Corey Lajoie<\/strong> retired due to an engine issue. During the caution pitting, Hamlin overshot his stall, giving him a 1 lap penalty. Kasey Kahne<\/strong> saved himself from spinning out in what looked like an alarming situation. On Lap 30, Kyle Busch<\/strong> started to have car issues. Later on, Kyle Busch went spinning after blowing a rear tire. <\/span><\/p>\n

We went back to green with 5 to go. Kurt Busch was in the lead. Logano made slight contact with Elliott, making him go to the pits. We stayed green. On the final lap of Stage 1<\/strong>, a huge wreck happened. Ricky Stenhouse<\/strong> was aggressive, blocking Ryan Blaney<\/strong> from passing him. He wiggled but saved his car, though the cars behind him crashed. The crash involved William Byron, Jimmie Johnson, Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones & Ty Dillon<\/strong>. Byron was the only one who was able to continue the race. Meanwhile, Kurt Busch maintained his lead and won Stage one of the race.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Stage 2<\/strong> started with Bowman and Blaney in the front row. With 28 laps left in Stage 2, William Byron had smoke coming out of his car. A caution was thrown out due to debris. Another big wreck happened with 19 to go. Chase Elliott<\/strong> was spun by Brad Keselowski<\/strong>, tagging Patrick, Harvick, Ragan<\/strong> & Kahne with them. This crash was the final chapter of Danica Patrick\u2019s NASCAR career. Harvick, Keselowski, Ragan & Kahne did not finish the race either.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ryan Blaney<\/strong> held on to the Stage 2 with clean racing that tied over to the final stage as well. <\/span><\/p>\n

Ryan Blaney held the lead for majority of the Final stage<\/strong>. We had a short caution with 10 to go when William Byron\u2019s car gave up on him. The right front of the car blew out.<\/span><\/p>\n

Near the conclusion of the race, many names shuffled around the front group. Denny Hamlin<\/strong> and Kurt Busch both had the lead at one point. With two laps to go, Ryan Blaney made Kurt Busch go sideways, causing another huge wreck. Stenhouse, <\/strong>Kurt Busch, DiBenedetto & Bowman<\/strong> got involved (involuntarily). <\/span><\/p>\n

We went to NASCAR Overtime to find a winner. Aric Almirola<\/strong> had the lead for the first of two overtime laps, but got spun out by Austin Dillon<\/strong> on the second lap. This paved the way for Dillon to take the checkered flag. Bubba Wallace<\/strong> got second place, just barely beating out Denny Hamlin. This was Wallace\u2019s first cup race with a permanent team. <\/span><\/p>\n

Dillon and his team celebrated after the race with a slide across the grass. Austin Dillon got his second career win, and his most memorable.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read all our NASCAR coverage this weekend including interviews here: https:\/\/lastwordonmotorsport.com\/nascar\/<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

MAIN PHOTO:<\/strong>
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>