The Daytona GOATs
When determining the best of something, it's usually important to look at a wide variety of facts and indicators in order to make the best overall selection. Well, we didn't do that here. We decided that when it comes to a NASCAR race, the most important thing is winning said race. So, with that in mind, we have ranked the greatest Daytona 500 drivers by wins.
And you know what? It turned out to be a pretty good way to do things, as you'll see when we get to the number one guy of all time. Although, doing so does also leave some greats off the list (so, feel free to politely let us know in the comments if you think we messed up).
13: William Byron (2)
Byron won his first Daytona 500 in 2024 when instant replay determined he was in the lead when the fifth caution of the race was called—thus ending the race.
Grindstone Media Group, Shutterstock
13: William Byron (2)
In 2025, Byron again took advantage of a crash to win the race for the second straight year—moving up from seventh, avoiding the destruction around him, and holding off Tyler Reddick for the final one-third of a lap.
Joint Base Myer, Wikimedia Commons
12: Michael Waltrip (2)
Waltrip won his first Daytona 500 in 2001—although, the race will always be remembered, sadly, as the one in which Dale Earnhardt suffered his fatal crash.
Michael Waltrip's First Win & Dale Earnhardt's Final Race, jaydizz
12: Michael Waltrip (2)
Two years later, in 2003, Waltrip took home his second victory at the Daytona 500—although, this one will be remembered as the shortest Daytona 500 ever, after being called after lap 109 due to rain.
Brian Cantoni, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
11: Matt Kenseth (2)
Matt Kenseth began the 2009 Daytona 500 in 39th place and eventually worked his way up to first. He won the race as he was in the lead when the race was called early due to rain.
Mike Fonseca, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
11: Matt Kenseth (2)
In 2012, three years after his first ever win at the Daytona 500, Kenseth took over the first place position on lap 146 and eventually took home the victory for his second win at Daytona.
U.S. Army, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
10: Sterling Marlin (2)
Only eight other drivers had ever won their first ever NASCAR race at the Daytona 500, when Sterling Martin did it in 1994.
Ed McDonald, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
10: Sterling Marlin (2)
Only four drivers have ever won back-to-back Daytona 500s. Sterling Martin is one of them—winning again in 1995.
us44mt, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
9: Bill Elliott (2)
Elliott took the pole position at the Daytona 500 three years in a row from 1985-87. And he won two of those races—the first one coming in 1985.
Ted Van Pelt, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
9: Bill Elliott (2)
He wasn't able to go back-to-back, but after one year away from the winners circle, Elliott again reached the top of the Daytona 500 mountain in 1987.
Ted Van Pelt, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
8: Dale Earnhardt Jr (2)
Six years to the day of his father's first, and only, Daytona 500 victory—and three years after the fatal crash that took his life—Dale Earnhardt Jr passed Tony Stewart on lap 181 and held on to win his first Daytona 500 in 2004.
D Ramey Logan, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
8: Dale Earnhardt Jr (2)
In 2014,10 years after that win, Dale Earnhardt Jr did something his father never did—he won a second Daytona 500. There were multiple lead changes, but Earnhardt Jr took over first place on lap 183 and never gave it up again.
Grindstone Media Group. Shutterstock
7: Jimmie Johnson (2)
Johnson's seven NASCAR Championships are tied for the most ever with Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty—so, there's no denying he is one of the greatest to ever get behind the wheel. And at Daytona, he proved himself to be the best on two separate occasions.
The first came in 2006 when Johnson went from a ninth place starting position to the top of the podium.
Zach Catanzareti, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
7: Jimmie Johnson (2)
The 2013 Daytona 500 was historic for Danica Patrick becoming the first woman to ever win the pole position. Her eighth place finish was also the highest any woman had ever placed in the race. But it was seven places behind the winner—Jimmie Johnson.
Zach Catanzareti, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6: Dale Jarrett (3)
Jarrett took home the Daytona 500 trophy three times but it was his first victory in 1993 that is his most memorable. Known as the "Dale and Dale show", Jarrett and Earnhardt battled back and forth that year, with Jarrett pulling ahead on the final lap and leaving with the win.
Darryl Moran, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6: Dale Jarrett (3)
Three years later, in 1996, Jarrett won the Daytona 500, although it was Earnhardt who took the pole position (the only time he ever did).
1996 Daytona 500, NascarAllOut
6: Dale Jarrett (3)
In 2000, Jarrett battled Johnny Benson Jr and with four laps to go, Jarrett took the lead—a lead he held onto until a caution came out with only two laps to go. The race ended up finishing under caution and Jarrett had his third win at Daytona.
Royalbroil, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
5: Bobby Allison (3)
Allison finished third at Daytona twice and came in second on three occasions. Add to that his three wins and you're looking at a man who was at his best at the Daytona International Speedway—starting with his first win in 1978.
1978 Daytona 500 from Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR Classics
5: Bobby Allison (3)
Allison's win in 1982 wasn't without controversy. Early in the race, a car tapped the back of Allison's vehicle and caused his rear bumper to fly off. This ended up triggering a crash behind Allison, but without the bumper, Allison's car was faster and able to pull away from the pack.
Known as "Bumpergate"—there are those who claim that the bumper had been installed in such a way that it would easily disconnect from the car. Allison and his team always denied the allegations.
Robert Alexander, Getty Images
5: Bobby Allison (3)
In 1988, Allison finished second at the Daytona 500—Davey Allison that is. Yup, Bobby had to fend off his son in the final laps in order to take home his third—and final—win at the Daytona 500.
Robert Alexander, Getty Images
4: Jeff Gordon (3)
When Jeff Gordon won his first Daytona 500 in 1997, he was just 25 years old—making him the youngest driver to ever accomplish the feat...at the time. His record was broken by 20-year-old Trevor Bayne at the 2011 race.
Darryl Moran, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
4: Jeff Gordon (3)
In 1999, Gordon won the pole and won the race—the first time anyone had done that since Bill Elliott in 1987. Gordon also made his mark in this race for his memorable three-wide pass on Rusty Wallace and Mike Skinner.
Jeff Gordon Career Win #43 1999 Daytona 500, Jeff Gordon Edits
4: Jeff Gordon (3)
Eight years after his first win, Gordon took the checkered flag at the Daytona 500 for the third time in 2005. With the recent implementation of the new green-white-checker finish rule, this was the first Daytona 500 to go past 200 laps because of a caution. The race ended after 203 laps (507.5 miles).
Jeff Gordon Career Win #70 2005 Daytona 500, Jeff Gordon Edits
3: Denny Hamlin (3)
Hamlin's 27th career victory was his first Daytona 500 win—and it was a doozy. The 2016 Daytona 500 came right down to the wire, with Hamlin edging across the finish line 0.010 seconds before Martin Truex—the closest finish in Daytona 500 history.
FullmentalFic, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
3: Denny Hamlin (3)
The 2019 Daytona 500 was the first without an Earnhardt in the field since 1978—and it was Hamlin who came out victorious for the second time in his career.
Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, Picryl
3: Denny Hamlin (3)
Hamlin became a back-to-back champion with his 2020 Daytona 500 win. And again it wasn't easy. Hamlin took the win by only 0.014 seconds over Ryan Blaney. Hamlin would go for the three-peat the following year, but would end up in fifth place at the end of the 2021 race.
Zach Catanzareti Photo, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
2: Cale Yarborough (4)
Three Daytona 500 wins is impressive, but four is better—and that's how many the great Cale Yarborough won in his career. Starting with the 1968 race—which Yarborough won from the pole position.
Ted Van Pelt, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
2: Cale Yarborough (4)
It would be nine years before Yarborough would again find himself in the winners circle at Daytona. He didn't just win the Daytona 500 in 1977 either—he also went on to win his second straight Winston Cup title that year.
1977 Daytona 500 from Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR Classics
2: Cale Yarborough (4)
In 1983, Yarborough became the first driver to run a qualifying lap of more than 200 miles per hour. And when it came to the actual race, he took the lead on the last lap and raced to victory for the third time.
us44mt, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
2: Cale Yarborough (4)
Not only was the 1984 Daytona 500 Yarborough's fourth win at the race—it also made for a back-to-back win at Daytona, becoming (at the time) only the second driver to ever do that.
Ted Van Pelt, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
1: Richard Petty (7)
Did you think it was going to be anyone else? Of course not! Richard Petty might be the greatest driver NASCAR has ever seen and—with seven wins—he is, without doubt, the greatest the Daytona 500 has ever witnessed. His first victory came in 1964—a race in which he led 184 of the 200 laps (a record that still stands today).
1: Richard Petty (7)
50 cars started the 1966 Daytona 500, and by the end there were 18 still driving. One of them was Richard Petty's number 43 car—which began the race in the pole position.
1966 Daytona 500 from Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR Classics
1: Richard Petty (7)
Petty got number three in 1971. Petty led a total of 69 laps and won the Daytona 500. He would also go on to win the Winston Cup championship that year as well.
1: Richard Petty (7)
Two years after getting number three, Petty got his fourth Daytona 500 win in 1973—and it was a relatively easy win this time. Bobby Isaac finished in second place—more than two laps behind the victorious Petty.
State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, Wikimedia Commons
1: Richard Petty (7)
Richard Petty became the first driver to ever do the back-to-back thing at the Daytona 500 when he crossed the finish line first in 1974. Due to the energy crisis at the time, many NASCAR races were shortened by 10% and the Daytona 500 was no exception.
The race that year was 180, rather than 200, laps and is often referred to as the Daytona 450.
Robert Alexander, Getty Images
1: Richard Petty (7)
Going into the final lap of the 1979 Daytona 500, it didn't look like Petty had any chance to get a sixth win. But then Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison collided and Petty (who was half a lap behind) rode to victory.
1979 Daytona 500 from Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR Classics
1: Richard Petty (7)
Petty's seventh, and final, win at the Daytona 500 came in 1981—16 years after he'd won it for the first time, all the way back in 1964. Helped by Bobby Allison running out of fuel and having to coast to his final pit stop, Petty took the lead and held on for the win.
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