After 20 long years, when Kyle Busch had finally thought that he was in the form to claim the Daytona 500 jewel, things weren’t made for his luck, yet again. A late crash ensured that Busch was out of contention, and it also changed the entire picture of the race. 

While the idea for Kyle Busch was to recreate Dale Earnhardt’s iconic Daytona win on the tracks, he bore the brunt of the fastest car on the track. Busch stood out of contention, unable to understand what exactly happened and why he couldn’t hit back the tracks once again. 

Logano’s fast-moving car might have been the reason for this blow-up

 With only 15 laps remaining, Logano slowed down unexpectedly in Turn 2. This triggered a chain reaction that involved 10 to 12 cars. The incident ultimately led to Ross Chastain of Trackhouse Racing spinning out. Consequently, several others were caught in the wreck, including Helio Castroneves, Martin Truex Jr., John Hunter Nemechek, Justin Allgaier, Riley Herbst, Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe, Cody Ware, and Jimmie Johnson.

Being the most favored racer for the win, Kyle Busch ended the race in the 34th position, just one seat behind Joey Logano. After the wreck, Busch’s car was not able to race back, although it didn’t have major damages. Speaking of the same, Busch said, “Umm. I will see the replay but by NASCAR procedures in,  I had four five tires out there and Jack systems in the car mandatory by NASCAR…..Totally see the work area where our guys didn’t see anything massively wrong.” He further added, “All wheels, going in the right direction. It was told to us that if you need to work back, you need to go back to that place but if you go back to the place, they park you. So what are we supposed to do to continue work on it, now that we have got four new tires pointed in the right direction.”

The recent incident stands in sharp contrast to the updated DVP mandate, which explicitly states that teams now have the discretion to decide whether to continue racing after a crash. However, if a car is unable to return to the garage on its own and requires towing, it falls under this rule. Kyle Busch went to the garage for minor adjustments, but upon his return, he was unexpectedly ruled out of the race.

Even fans watching were left puzzled by the decision. Samantha, Busch’s wife, took to her X accounted and posted, “Driver, crew chief everyone yelling don’t hook it up just need a push it yet no one listens?! I’m confused what’s the protocol here genuinely wondering? @bobpockrass@jeff_gluck Do you know?”

Busch also didn’t shy back to hail Joey Logano as the major reason behind this crash. He said, “Looks like the fastest car got in a hurry to get to the wreck. Logano was by far the fastest car today. Saw a lot of laps lead and could about do anything; the Penske cars were very strong. We still have 20 laps to go and he’s trying to go through the middle and make a hole that isn’t there and created chaos.” While Busch didn’t make it in the Daytona 500, yet another time, the hopes have not ended for the 2025 season.

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Byron wins the Daytona 500 after last-lap crash

A massive crash erupted on the final lap of the Daytona 500. This shook up the front of the pack and altered the race’s outcome. Several top contenders were involved in the wreck like Denny Hamlin, Cole Custer, Chase Briscoe, and Austin Cindric. Some of them were also forced to slow down, losing their momentum at a critical moment. The chaotic incident opened the door for William Byron. He had been running outside the top five, to seize the opportunity. 

As the dust settled and the track cleared ahead of him, Byron surged forward. He took the lead in the final stretch and crossed the finish line as the Daytona 500 champion. Byron said, “Just obviously fortunate it worked out in our favour. Just really proud of this team. Worked super hard all week. Had an amazing car…Crazy? Yeah. I can’t honestly believe that but we’re here.”

Byron had a good run throughout the drive and while the crash opened up doors for him, he was quick to recognize the same and charge forward. Whether he will be able to maintain the same momentum walking into Atlanta is a test of time.