Since then, the region has become a motorsports mecca, and the first Daytona 500 was held Feb. 22, 1959, in front of a crowd of more than 41,000. They watched 59 cars race for a purse of less than $70,000, and the finish was so close it took three days to determine Lee Petty had edged Johnny Beauchamp.

Who won the Daytona 500? William Byron, a NASCAR cup series driver from Charlotte, North Carolina, won the 67th annual Daytona 500 on Sunday for the second year in a row. Byron took the checkered flag at Daytona International Speedway after a crash broke out on the final lap,

Sunday’s Daytona 500 drops the green flag on the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season (well, not exactly, but we’ll get to that). Here is what to know before the race, which will be televised on Fox beginning at 1:30 p.