Monday
Feb192018
FEBRUARY 21, 2018
Monday, February 19, 2018 at 09:53AM 
(Sarah Crabill/Getty Images)
Austin Dillon (No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Dow Chevrolet) shoved race leader Aric Almirola (No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Smithfield Ford) out of the way on the final lap in true Dale Earnhardt fashion to win the Daytona 500, the season opener of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Series. Dillon got a huge push from Darrel Wallace Jr. (No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Click 'N Close Chevrolet) going down the back stretch of the overtime finish, and Dillon did the rest. “I did what I had to do there at the end,” Dillon said. “I hate it for the No. 10 (Almirola’s) guys. We had a run, and I stayed in the gas. It is what it is here at Daytona. This is so awesome to take the No. 3 car back to Victory Lane. This one is for Dale Earnhardt Sr. and all those (Dale) Sr. fans. I love you guys. We are going to keep kicking butt the rest of the year!” “I said (after) my first win I couldn’t beat it, but this does," Dillon continued. "My grandfather (Richard Childress) has done everything for me. Everybody knows it. There is a lot of pressure on me to perform, because I’ve had a little bit of everything. But I like that pressure. The same with the No. 3. There is a lot of pressure behind that. But I’m willing to take that and go with it." Wallace ran second, 0.260 seconds behind Dillon and .002 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing FEDEX Toyota), who led the field to green to start the overtime, but, as the only Toyota driver on the lead lap, couldn’t find a drafting partner in the two-lap shootout that decided the race. Wallace posted the best finish ever by an African-American driver in the Daytona 500, surpassing the 13th-place result of NASCAR Hall of Famer Wendell Scott in 1966.
Austin Dillon (No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Dow Chevrolet) shoved race leader Aric Almirola (No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Smithfield Ford) out of the way on the final lap in true Dale Earnhardt fashion to win the Daytona 500, the season opener of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Series. Dillon got a huge push from Darrel Wallace Jr. (No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Click 'N Close Chevrolet) going down the back stretch of the overtime finish, and Dillon did the rest. “I did what I had to do there at the end,” Dillon said. “I hate it for the No. 10 (Almirola’s) guys. We had a run, and I stayed in the gas. It is what it is here at Daytona. This is so awesome to take the No. 3 car back to Victory Lane. This one is for Dale Earnhardt Sr. and all those (Dale) Sr. fans. I love you guys. We are going to keep kicking butt the rest of the year!” “I said (after) my first win I couldn’t beat it, but this does," Dillon continued. "My grandfather (Richard Childress) has done everything for me. Everybody knows it. There is a lot of pressure on me to perform, because I’ve had a little bit of everything. But I like that pressure. The same with the No. 3. There is a lot of pressure behind that. But I’m willing to take that and go with it." Wallace ran second, 0.260 seconds behind Dillon and .002 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing FEDEX Toyota), who led the field to green to start the overtime, but, as the only Toyota driver on the lead lap, couldn’t find a drafting partner in the two-lap shootout that decided the race. Wallace posted the best finish ever by an African-American driver in the Daytona 500, surpassing the 13th-place result of NASCAR Hall of Famer Wendell Scott in 1966.
(Photo by Jim Fluharty/HHP for GM/Chevrolet Racing)
Darrell Wallace Jr. (No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Click N’ Close Chevrolet) finished second in the 60th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
Darrell Wallace Jr. (No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Click N’ Close Chevrolet) finished second in the 60th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
