William Byron becomes 43rd different Daytona 500 winner
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — William Byron is the newest Daytona 500 champion with his victory Monday in the 66th annual Daytona 500.
Byron is the fifth different winner in the last five years. The last four Daytona 500s have featured first-time winners of the race.
“It still hasn’t sunk in yet, so I feel like it’s just kind of a blur, and I feel like there’s just so many things that have to go your way to win a race like this,” Byron said.
“It’s special. This is the biggest race. Stuff happens so fast. It’s honestly a chess game that you’re just trying to play, and I feel like we were able to come out on top.”
MORE: All-time Daytona 500 wins list
Three-time Cup Series champion Lee Petty was the first driver to win the Daytona 500 in 1959.
The first seven Daytona 500s were won by different drivers. Richard Petty was the first driver to win multiple races.
Richard Petty has won the most Daytona 500s at seven.
Other active drivers with Daytona 500 victories include Denny Hamlin (3), Jimmie Johnson (2), Austin Dillon (1), Austin Cindric (1), Joey Logano (1), Michael McDowell (1), and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (1).
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Dominic Aragon View All
Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.
From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book "All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story" with racer Geoff Bodine.
Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.
You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.