Ahead of the 2024 Daytona 500, Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski Eyeing the Record Books

Records are meant to be broken. And that is something Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski will have at the back of their minds going into the big season opener. The Joe Gibbs Racing will be eyeing his fourth Daytona 500 victory, while RFK racing’s number 6 Dark Horse driver will be gunning for his first win at NASCAR’s super bowl. However, there’s plenty more for the taking. Even with rain throwing a wrench in the plans of the Great American race, a trend as it happens, the drivers will be no less motivated when the race kicks off on Monday.

In a recent post on X, NASCAR enthusiast Trey Ryan elaborated on both drivers’ prospects. He tweeted, “Something to watch for in the 2024 Daytona 500. If Denny Hamlin leads the most laps, it’ll be the 5th time he’s done so in the race, more than anyone in history. If Brad Keselowski leads the most laps, it’ll be the 3rd straight year he’s done so, the longest streak in history.”

Dubbed as NASCAR’s villain, even his haters know that Hamlin is one of the toughest racers out there. He has already clinched three Daytona 500 wins ahead of the 66th running of the Great American Race this year. As it stands, only two racers have more Daytona victories than him: Richard Petty (seven) and Cale Yarborough (four). So if he wins this time, not only will he make it 52 but also equal Yarborough for a joint second most Daytona 500 wins.

Making his ambition clear ahead of the race, Hamlin shared a little peak into his mindset – “While having teammates is great and are certainly assets to use in certain situations to win races, I think sometimes it’s those who are the most selfish, that make moves for themselves, they are those who win the race.”

Meanwhile, former Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski might turn things around after a winless streak. He grabbed an impressive win at the 2020 Food City 500 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Dale Earnhardt Jr. believes that Keselowski may snag the Daytona trophy this year. After Hamlin, he is the best restrictor-plate racer.

Watch This Story: The unmatched legacy of Dale Earnhardt at Daytona 

At this crucial juncture, it is important to remember former NASCAR stars who created legacies.

Past records to get inspired by

If any racer comes to your mind when you hear the word ‘legend’, it should be Richard Petty. He has the most starts, poles, victories, top-5s, top-10s, races led and laps led. 1967 was his best year, when he won a jaw-dropping 10 consecutive races between August 12 and October 1st. He also won a whopping 200 races, with the final one in 1984. 

Similarly, Jeff Gordon is another legend who has 797 consecutive starts to his name, the highest in this category. Jimmie Johnson is also a dazzling star, having clinched five consecutive Cup Series titles between 2006 and 2010.

With the Daytona 500 now slated for Monday 4pm ET, aside from waiting to find out who will win the race this time after a chaotic season opening, it also remains to be seen if more records will be made or broken.

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