DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Erik Jones passed Martin Truex Jr. on the final lap to win the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday night. The win is the first of Jones' career.
With the win, the 22-year-old Jones becomes the youngest driver in NASCAR history to win the July race at Daytona, and the youngest driver to win this season. His teammate, Kyle Busch, previously held the record by winning the race at age 23 nearly a decade ago. Jones also becomes the second Toyota driver in NASCAR history to win at the track.
Jones had already made a name for himself before his first career win, claiming Rookie of the Year honors in all three major NASCAR Series before taking over for Matt Kenseth in the No. 20 for Joe Gibbs Racing this season.
And there he is, THAT JONES BOY @erik_jones, raising the #CokeZeroSugar400 trophy at @DISupdates for the first time in his #NASCAR Cup Series career.
Video: @ZTown24 pic.twitter.com/TvIy7tpIu0 — Matthew Mayer (@MatthewMayerCBS) July 8, 2018
Chase Elliott started on the pole, but surrendered the lead to last year's winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. after about 10 laps. Stenhouse went on to block his way to a Stage 1 victory. Kyle Busch finished the stage second followed by Kyle Larson, William Byron and Elliott.
A massive pile-up struck early in Stage 2, involving nearly half the field. Heavy hitters Ryan Blaney, Logano, Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski and Elliott were forced to the garage. It appeared Stage-1 winner Stenhouse got into the back of Keselowski, causing the big wreck.
After the restart, Stenhouse went on to take out Kyle Busch, who spun into and wrecked the leader Byron. Despite all the madness, Stenhouse still went on to win Stage 2. The No. 17 was on the receiving end of a few wrecks in the Final Stage, but was able to recover and stay on the track throughout.
Wrecks continued throughout the final stage up until the very end. We encourage you to keep reading along to see who was involved and where each driver finished.
Coke Zero Sugar 400 results
Erik Jones Martin Truex Jr. AJ Allmendinger Kasey Kahne Chris Buescher Ty Dillon Matt DiBenedetto Ryan Newman Austin Dillon Alex Bowman Jeffrey Earnhardt Brendan Gaughan DJ Kennington Bubba Wallace David Ragan Ray Black Jr. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JJ Yeley Kevin Harvick Trevor Bayne Ross Chastain Clint Bowyer Jimmie Johnson Landon Cassill Joey Gase Michael McDowell Aric Almirola Paul Menard Kyle Larson Jamie McMurray Corey LaJoie William Byron Kyle Busch Chase Elliott Daniel Suarez Brad Keselowski Kurt Busch Denny Hamlin Joey Logano Ryan Blaney
2018 NASCAR Cup Series regular season standings
POSITION DRIVER CAR # POINTS BEHIND WINS 1. Kyle Busch 18 749 LEADER 5 2. Kevin Harvick 4 692 -57 5 3. Martin Truex Jr. 78 629 -120 3 4. Joey Logano 22 618 -131 1 5. Brad Keselowski 2 596 -153 0 6. Clint Bowyer 14 594 -155 2 7. Kurt Busch 41 566 -183 0 8. Kyle Larson 42 544 -205 0 9. Denny Hamlin 11 538 -211 0 10. Aric Almirola 10 503 -246 0 11. Ryan Blaney 12 496 -253 0 12. Jimmie Johnson 48 461 -288 0 13. Erik Jones 20 448 -301 1 14. Chase Elliott 9 444 -305 0 15. Alex Bowman 88 426 -323 0 16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 407 -342 0 17. Paul Menard 21 371 -378 0 18. Austin Dillon 3 347 -402 1 19. Ryan Newman 31 332 -417 0 20. Daniel Suarez 19 318 -431 0 21. William Byron 24 318 -431 0
Stage 1: Stenhouse dominates early
Elliott started on the pole with Hendrick teammates Alex Bowman and Jimmie Johnson right behind him. Last year's Daytona July race winner Stenhouse began challenging Elliott for the lead 10 laps in and eventually took it on Lap 12.
Stenhouse worked the high lane as Elliott fell out of the top 10. Michael McDowell trailed in second with Dillon in third. Drivers began to challenge Stenhouse with five to go in the stage, with Dillon moving to second and Larson grabbing third.
The No. 17 drove on to win the stage, while Kyle Busch came out of nowhere to finish second. Elliott rebounded strongly, coming in fifth when the green-and-white checkered flew.
Stage 1 results
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (10 points plus 1 playoff point) Kyle Busch (9 points) Kyle Larson (8 points) William Byron (7 points) Chase Elliott (6 points) Kurt Busch (5 points) Ryan Newman (4 points) Brad Keselowski (3 points) Austin Dillon (2 points) Alex Bowman (1 point)
Stage 2: Wrecky Stenhouse Jr.
Truex was penalized for an uncontrolled tire and was sent to the rear between stages. Jones also suffered a setback, missing his pit box and losing multiple positions. However none of the contenders had it worse than Harvick and Blaney, who each had to make multiple trips down pit road for issues.
Keselowski won the race off pit road and led the field to green to begin Stage 2. As Keselowski continued to lead, Paul Menard went spinning into the infield grass, nearly losing his hood as the caution flag flew.
Paul Menard's hood is GONE... so is the infield grass pic.twitter.com/UPO6CAeyOn — Matthew Mayer (@MatthewMayerCBS) July 8, 2018
Byron took the lead on the restart before all hell broke loose when Stenhouse and Keselowski caused a massive pile-up involving most of the leaders. All three Penske cars, Keselowski, Logano and Blaney were eliminated from contention. Elliott, Hamlin and Kurt Busch were also forced to the garage after being caught up in the wreck.
Massive pile-up at Daytona... Looks like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. pushed Brad Keselowski and all hell broke loose. pic.twitter.com/jmonRwIKA6 — Matthew Mayer (@MatthewMayerCBS) July 8, 2018
You thought it was over? Think again… This time on the restart, Stenhouse got into the back of Busch and sent him spinning into the leader Byron. Both saw their days come to a close as they took their cars to the garage.
Stenhouse remained undamaged and resurfaced as the race leader. He was able to drive on unchallenged to win Stage 2 against a hampered field.
Stage 2 results
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (10 points plus 1 playoff point) Michael McDowell (9 points) Alex Bowman (8 points) Kasey Kahne (7 points) Ty Dillon (6 points) Jimmie Johnson (5 points) Kyle Larson (4 points) Austin Dillon (3 points) Trevor Bayne (2 points) Ryan Newman (1 point)
Final Stage: Marathon of wrecks continues
Stenhouse suffered an extended stop on pit road and was bumped from the lead. Ty Dillon led the field to green to begin the final stage but was passed by Bowyer on the first lap. A few laps later, Bowyer fell back, as McDowell charged to the lead ahead of Trevor Bayne.
McDowell continued to hold serve in the front while Stenhouse and Harvick approached. After 19 laps led, McDowell surrendered the lead back to Stenhouse. One lap later, Johnson took the lead from the No. 17.
Johnson came down pit road from the lead for a green flag stop with 40 to go but was caught for pitting outside his box and lost a lap. Stenhouse and Larson stayed out, and it was for the worst. Ryan Newman got loose and made contact with Larson, who spun and collected Stenhouse in the process. Larson took it to the garage while Stenhouse was able to stay on the track.
Looked like Ryan Newman made contact with Kyle Larson, sending him into a spin. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was a casualty.... I'll let you guys call it karma pic.twitter.com/5oKbHsyiuq — Matthew Mayer (@MatthewMayerCBS) July 8, 2018
Truex restarted from the lead paced the field for 10 laps before DJ Kennington went spinning to bring out the seventh caution of the evening.
The No. 78 again restarted from the lead but lost it quickly to Kasey Kahne. The No. 95 immediately had to play defense against Harvick and Alex Bowman while Truex lingered near the front. Things cooled off a bit for Kahne over the next 10 or so laps before Stenhouse went down with a blown tire (for the record, he remained in the race out of contention).
After causing nearly half the field to wreck, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. goes down at Daytona in Titanic fashion.... pic.twitter.com/x82Ulep5Eo — Matthew Mayer (@MatthewMayerCBS) July 8, 2018
Kahne restarted from the lead, but immediately gave it up to none other than Harvick. Just as Harvick crossed the start-finish line, McDowell, Almirola, Johnson and Joey Gase got caught up in a huge wreck that absolutely totaled McDowell's No. 34 and caused Almirola's tire to fly off.
Harvick led Truex and Bowyer to green in NASCAR overtime with the No. 78 getting the jump on the restart. However, before Truex could take the white flag, Bubba Wallace got into the back of Bowyer and caused another massive pile-up. Harvick and Johnson were also collected for good in the wreck.
Chaos ensues as the field enters the tri-oval in NASCAR Overtime.#CokeZeroSugar400 pic.twitter.com/DMPawsaauS — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
Truex held the lead on the restart but was instantly challenged by Jones. The No. 20 moved ahead of Truex coming down the backstretch and drove on unchallenged to win his first career race.
Miss any of the action? Catch up with our live blog below. If the blog is not working for you, click here.
Erik Jones came out victorious Saturday night as NASCAR went back under the lights at Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero Sugar 400.
In a race filled with wrecks, the field was reduced to 20 drivers in the final laps and two overtimes were needed by the time the checkered flag was waved. Jones managed to avoid all the damage to earn his first career Monster Energy Cup Series victory.
MORE: Starting lineup for the Coke Zero 400
"How about that race, boys and girls?" Jones shouted to the fans in the grandstands after his celebratory burnout in front of the flag stand. "My first Cup win, My first win at Daytona, my first superspeedway win — what an awesome day, man!"
Martin Truex Jr. got the lead after the final restart on Lap 167 but couldn't hold it. The outside lane was more organized as the final lap unfolded, and Jones got a strong run through Turns 1 and 2.
"He (Jones) got a big run getting into (Turn) 1 and through the center, and I just didn't block him good enough in the middle of 1 and 2," Truex said. "He got to my right rear quarter — just barely — enough to slow me down off of 2, and then the race was on from there.
"Just missed that block a little bit. I've got to get better at my mirror-driving. I've never really been good at that, and unfortunately, that's part of this racing here, but I'm really proud to get to the end."
All eyes were on Ricky Stenhouse Jr. for much of the night. He won the race's first two stages, and he also caused two of the night's biggest wrecks, which knocked out contenders like Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch.
“Ricky was doing the best he could to give me a good push and had a great run to take the lead, and the car in front of me (the 24 of William Byron) just threw a late, bad block,” Keselowski said. “I made the mistake of lifting instead of just driving through him, and that’s my fault.
“I've got to wreck more people, and then they’ll stop blocking me late and behind like that. That's my fault. I'll take the credit for my team, and we'll go to Talladega, and we'll wreck everybody that throws a bad block like that."
WATCH: Tune in to NASCAR all season long on fuboTV (7-day free trial)
Another wreck just before Martin Truex Jr. was able to take the white flag in the first overtime knocked out teammates Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer, who were battling it out near the front of the pack.
Sporting News has highlights and results from Jones' Coke Zero Sugar 400 win at Daytona.
(Material from the NASCAR Wire Service was used in this report.)
NASCAR at Daytona: Results, highlights
(All times Eastern)
10:18 — What a race. Bravo, Erik Jones.
10:10 — The finish:
10:06 — And it's Erik Jones who claims his first ever Monster Energy Cup Series victory!
10:05 — Green again and Kasey Kahne takes the lead from Martin Truex then Erik Jones comes out of nowhere.
9:54 — They'll run it back for another two-lap overtime and it'll be Martin Truex Jr., Erik Jones and Kasey Kahne leading the pack.
9:53 — Some contenders knocked out among others including Harvick, Bowyer, Johnson, Bayne and Chastain. The red flag is out.
9:50 — Wild! Martin Truex Jr. takes the lead but there's another huge wreck just before he reaches the line.
Chaos ensues as the field enters the tri-oval in NASCAR Overtime. #CokeZeroSugar400 pic.twitter.com/DMPawsaauS — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
9:48 — Overtime at Daytona. It'll be Harvick, Truex and Bowyer on the restart with two laps left.
9:39 — And another caution out for Aric Almirola, Michael McDowell and Joey Gase who all wreck out.
9:38 — Kevin Harvick to the lead with five to go.
9:36 — Six laps to go on the restart and it's Kahne-Harvick-Truex.
9:28 — Caution out again as Ricky Stenhouse Jr. blows a tire.
. @StenhouseJr loses a tire to bring out a caution late in the going. #CokeZeroSugar400 pic.twitter.com/raexjNIgb2 — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
9:27 — The top eight have separated from the rest of the pack. It's Kahne, Harvick, Truex, Bowman, Bowyer, Newman, Jones, Buescher.
9:20 — Kasey Kahne the new leader with 20 laps left.
9:19 — Back to green with 23 to go. It's Martin Truex, Kasey Kahne and Bubba Wallace out front.
9:10 — DJ Kennington spins out towards the infield and it'll be another caution flag with 27 laps left.
9:07 — Green again on the restart and it's Martin Truex Jr. out front.
9:00 — Caution flag comes out for none other than Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who gets bumped and spun by Kyle Larson.
8:57 — Tough break for Jimmie Johnson. He gets a one-lap penalty for pitting outside his box.
8:56 — Green flag pit stops coming in two groups: the Fords and the Chevys.
8:51 — Tight back and forth battle between Jimmie Johnson, Michael McDowell and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. with 45 laps to go.
8:47 — Fifty laps to go in Daytona and it's single file with none other than Jimmie Johnson out front.
8:31 — Michael McDowell the new leader out front.
8:30 — Back to green and the restart order for the final stage goes Ty Dillon, Clint Bowyer and Kasey Kahne. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. restarting at P15.
8:21 — Denny Hamlin's spotter with some Twitter words for Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Well, congrats @StenhouseJr ...you’re 2 for 2 in causing a big one at both @DISupdates races this year, but you’re 2 for 2 just tonight. How bout u learn to race em...not wreck em. That thing has 2 pedals in it for a reason. Unreal... — Chris Lambert (@3widemiddle) July 8, 2018
8:17 — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. takes Stage 2.
STAGE WINNER: @StenhouseJr picks up his second stage win of the night!
Top 10 grab stage points 👉: https://t.co/u38wfH4M6r pic.twitter.com/YAvjlzhPxv — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
8:14 — Five laps to go in Stage 2 and it's Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Michael McDowell and Ryan Newman sitting 1-2-3.
8:09 — Back to green again. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. up front.
8:01 — And another one! Caution flag comes back out for another big wreck that knocks out Kyle Busch and William Byron.
8:00 — Brad Keselowski was not too thrilled after that wreck.
. @keselowski with a message for the field after being collected in The Big One. #CokeZeroSugar400 pic.twitter.com/KWniinGOj6 — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
7:57 — Back to green and it's William Byron, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch on the restart.
7:53 — Chase Elliott and Daniel Suarez done for the night too.
7:49 — Several drivers done and more getting worked on.
OUT: Keselowski, Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Logano, Blaney. — Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) July 8, 2018
7:43 — Sparks went flying and quite a few got dinged up.
Keselowski, Elliott, Hamlin, Wallace, Kurt Busch, Larson, Logano, Bowyer, Suarez among those involved #NASCAR — Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) July 8, 2018
7:40 — Not green for long. A huge wreck here brings another caution. Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin all knocked out of the race.
7:39 — Back to green again in Daytona. Paul Menard still getting work done.
7:32 — Paul Menard wrecks on lap 48, spins into the grass and the caution flag is out.
7:31 — Some trouble for Michael McDowell and Ty Dillon to start Stage 2.
7:30 — Kevin Harvick, Jamie McMurray and Ryan Blaney forced to head back down pit road again.
7:26 — A pair of penalties on pit road: Martin Truex for an uncontrolled tire and Corey LaJoie for too many crew members over the wall.
7:25 — Brad Keselowski wins off pit road followed by Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Kurt Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
7:20 — Stage 1 top 10:
#NASCAR ... End of Stage 1
1 Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
2 Kyle Busch
3 Kyle Larson
4 William Byron
5 Chase Elliott
6 Kurt Busch
7 Ryan Newman
8 Brad Keselowski
9 Austin Dillon
10 Alex Bowman — Dustin Long (@dustinlong) July 8, 2018
7:18 — The group tightens in the final few laps of the stage but it's Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who hangs on for the Stage 1 win.
That. Was. Wild.
Watch as @StenhouseJr holds off the field to win Stage 1 at Daytona. Sponsored by @FordPerformance . pic.twitter.com/e9CffHzDl2 — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
7:11 — Ten laps to go in Stage 1. It's single file up front with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Michael McDowell and Austin Dillon.
7 — Chase Elliott falls back to P8. The outside lane holds all top seven drivers and appears to be the lane to be in tonight.
6:57 — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. out front now after taking the high line.
6:55 — Ten laps in and it's Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman and Jimmie Johnson out front.
6:50 — Early trouble for Landon Cassill.
Landon Cassill didn't take the green but is leaving the garage area. Battery swap. — Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) July 7, 2018
6:48 — They are green at Daytona. Let's go racing.
6:45 — The traditional NASCAR military salute at Daytona.
#NASCARSalutes all of the men and women who serve or who have served to protect our country, so that we can do what we love.
A tradition at @DISUpdates like no other. pic.twitter.com/t8GDDttQ0W — NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 7, 2018
6:30 — Engines are fired. It's race time.
"DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES!"
U.S. Army Colonel Greg Gadson gets us fired up for the #CokeZeroSugar400 at @DISupdates ! pic.twitter.com/Wbw5dj74cp — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 7, 2018
6 — Four drivers headed to the rear for unapproved adjustments: Daniel Suarez, David Ragan, Kasey Kahne and Landon Cassill.
5 p.m. — It's a gorgeous race day in Daytona.
Sparks fly as multiple cars collide during Stage 2 of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Datyona International Speedway. (Photo: Jared C. Tilton, Getty Images)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Two multi-car crashes during the second stage changed the complexion of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway Saturday night.
Half of the 40-car field was involved to some extent in the first accident.
Contact between Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Brad Keselowski in turn three started the mayhem. Stenhouse bumped Keselowski from the rear near the front of a huge pack of cars, sending Keselowski into the outside wall.
Following drivers scattered in attempts to avoid the wreck, but most failed. Among those whose cars were damaged were Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Daniel Suarez, Bubba Wallace, Kurt Busch, Austin Dillon, Kasey Kahne and Aric Almirola.
Stenhouse, who drove away from the crash area to continue, won the race’s first stage.
“This usually happens much later in the night,” Hamlin said. “It’s unfortunate for all the cars who got torn up. It looks like most of the contenders were taken out.”
Keselowski took a much more sarcastic view of the incident after being checked and released from the infield care center:
“Ricky was doing the best he could to give me a good push and had a great run to take the lead and the car in front of me (William Byron) just threw a late, bad block. I made the mistake of lifting instead of just driving through him and that’s my fault. I know better than that.
"I’ve got to wreck more people and then they’ll stop blocking me late and behind like that. That’s my fault. I’ll take the credit for my team and we’ll go to Talladega and we’ll wreck everybody that throws a bad block like that.”
The Big One started at the front of the field.
Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch got through barely, but it's as if the rest of the field just piled in at Daytona.
NBC or https://t.co/WTwvY7sMVlpic.twitter.com/rrvkS3T9Vw — NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 8, 2018
Only a few laps later, chaos erupted again, this time in turn four and with Stenhouse at the center of the activity again. Stenhouse clipped the rear of Kyle Busch’s car, sending Busch hard into the wall. Busch hit William Byron as other drivers tried to avoid the wreck.
Erik Jones celebrates after winning the Coke Zero Sugar 400, Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo: Jasen Vinlove, USA TODAY Sports)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Highlights of Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway as the series reaches its halfway point:
WINNER: At the end of a week in which talk of younger drivers needing to show force in NASCAR racing edged into the conversation, one did.
Joe Gibbs Racing's Erik Jones drove through one of the most wreck-filled NASCAR races in recent years Saturday night and led only the final lap in winning at the series most famous track.
"How about that race boys and girls!" Jones shouted to the crowd when he climbed out of his car.
The victory was the first Cup win for the 22-year-old Jones, a driver nurtured by Toyota’s motorsports program and one of the leading representatives of the young group of drivers expected to gain traction over the next few years.
“What a day,” Jones said. “I didn’t think we were going to have a shot to win this one about halfway. Got ourselves back into contention, and our guys did a great job getting this thing fixed up and getting the buyatoyota.com into victory lane.
“I’ve never been that good on superspeedways and never thought this was our shot to win. But to get here tonight, that’s pretty awesome. It’s our first win and not much has felt better than this one.”
BIG ONE: Half of the field collides in massive crash in Stage 2
REPLACING STARS: Are NASCAR's young drivers feeling pressure to perform
CATCH PHRASE: Dale Jr.'s 'slide job' takes on a life of its own at Daytona
Jones and other drivers in the under-30 group were expected to make noise this season with the departure of several leading drivers, but the younger drivers have been slow to produce.
That ended in a flash as Jones wrote a fairy tale finish to a crash-filled night by zipping past reigning series champion Martin Truex Jr., his former teammate at Furniture Row Racing, for the lead on the last lap of the second overtime.
Because the race featured so many wrecks, only 13 cars finished on the lead lap, and may drivers recorded their best finish of the season.
AJ Allmendinger finished third, followed by Kasey Kahne and Chris Buescher. Rounding out the top 10 were Ty Dillon, Matt DiBenedetto, Ryan Newman, Austin Dillon and Alex Bowman.
Jeffrey Earnhardt, Brendan Gaughan and D.J. Kennington were the final cars on the lead lap.
FIRST OVERTIME: Just before the leaders took the white flag, a multicar collision took out another set of contenders and brought out the red flag. Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr. made contact with Clint Bowyer, who spun and collected Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Trevor Bayne and Ross Chastain.
Chaos ensues as the field enters the tri-oval in NASCAR Overtime.#CokeZeroSugar400pic.twitter.com/DMPawsaauS — NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 8, 2018
STENHOUSE, AGAIN: Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the focus of much of the evening’s caution activity, caused the eighth caution with 11 laps to go when damage on his car caused a tire rub and eventually a tire failure. He spun onto the frontstretch grass. The caution enabled Jimmie Johnson to return to the lead lap.
STENHOUSE: Knee deep in the chaos of Coke Zero Sugar 400
KENNINGTON SPINS: D.J. Kennington, who ran as high as second after much of the field was pounded in accidents, caused the night’s seventh caution with a spin with 27 laps to go.
STENHOUSE, LARSON CRASH : Kyle Larson lost control of his car with 37 laps to go, apparently because of a tire issue, and his spin collected Stenhouse putting the field under caution for the sixth time.
JOHNSON PENALIZED: Jimmie Johnson, seeking to end a 40-race winless streak, was running up front with 40 laps to go when his crew serviced the car outside its pit box. He was penalized a lap, drawing a complaint from crew chief Chad Knaus.
STAGE TWO: Stenhouse won the second stage over Michael McDowell as the field, decimated by two big wrecks, finished lap 80.
THE SECOND BIG ONE: The night’s second major crash occurred on lap 65. Stenhouse bumped Kyle Busch and sent the No. 18 Toyota into the wall. William Byron, also racing near the front, was involved along with several other drivers.
THE BIG ONE: More than half of the 40-car field was involved in the first big crash of the night. The wreck occurred on lap 54 after contact between Brad Keselowski and Stenhouse near the front of the pack. Cars in the following group were swept into the accident.
Keselowski blamed leader William Byron for the crash, pointing out that a Byron blocking move forced the issue.
“Ricky (Stenhouse) was doing the best he could to give me a good push and had a great run to take the lead, and the car in front of me just threw a late, bad block, Keselowski said. “I made the mistake of lifting instead of just driving through him, and that’s my fault. I know better than that.
“I’ve got to wreck more people, and then they’ll stop blocking me late and behind like that. That’s my fault. I’ll take the credit for my team, and we’ll go to Talladega and we’ll wreck everybody that throws a bad block like that.”
MENARD GETS SOME AIR: Contact from Johnson in a pack of cars sent Paul Menard sliding off the backstretch and into the air on lap 49. As the car slid across the apron and adjacent grassy areas, its left front was damaged, and its hood almost broke loose from the car. The incident caused the second caution.
what in the world pic.twitter.com/tyDOAzuIcC — Nick Bromberg (@NickBromberg) July 8, 2018
STAGE ONE: Stenhouse dominated the race’s first stage and edged Kyle Busch for the stage win. Following in the top 10 were Kyle Larson, Byron, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Keselowski, Austin Dillon and Alex Bowman.
Follow Hembree on Twitter @mikehembree
COKE ZERO SUGAR 400 RESULTS
Saturday night at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway (starting position in parentheses):
1. (29) Erik Jones, Toyota, 168 laps, 0 rating, 40 points.
2. (13) Martin Truex Jr, Toyota, 168, 0, 35.
3. (24) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 34.
4. (28) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 40.
5. (25) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 32.
6. (19) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 37.
7. (31) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 168, 0, 30.
8. (7) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 34.
9. (10) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 33.
10. (2) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 36.
11. (34) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Toyota, 168, 0, 26.
12. (16) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 168, 0, 25.
13. (35) D.J. Kennington, Toyota, 168, 0, 24.
14. (22) Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet, 167, 0, 23.
15. (21) David Ragan, Ford, 167, 0, 22.
16. (39) Ray Black Jr, Chevrolet, 167, 0, 0.
17. (6) Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ford, 167, 0, 40.
18. (40) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 166, 0, 0.
19. (5) Kevin Harvick, Ford, accident, 162, 0, 18.
20. (20) Trevor Bayne, Ford, accident, 162, 0, 19.
21. (33) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, accident, 162, 0, 0.
22. (9) Clint Bowyer, Ford, accident, 162, 0, 15.
23. (4) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, accident, 162, 0, 19.
24. (37) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 162, 0, 13.
25. (36) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, accident, 161, 0, 0.
26. (8) Michael McDowell, Ford, accident, 155, 0, 20.
27. (26) Aric Almirola, Ford, accident, 155, 0, 10.
28. (30) Paul Menard, Ford, 152, 0, 9.
29. (14) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, accident, 123, 0, 20.
30. (27) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, accident, 68, 0, 7.
31. (38) Corey Lajoie, Chevrolet, accident, 65, 0, 6.
32. (18) William Byron, Chevrolet, accident, 64, 0, 12.
33. (15) Kyle Busch, Toyota, accident, 64, 0, 13.
34. (1) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, accident, 54, 0, 9.
35. (32) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, accident, 54, 0, 2.
36. (3) Brad Keselowski, Ford, accident, 53, 0, 4.
37. (23) Kurt Busch, Ford, accident, 53, 0, 6.
38. (17) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, accident, 53, 0, 1.
39. (11) Joey Logano, Ford, accident, 53, 0, 1.
40. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford, accident, 53, 0, 1.
–––
Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 130.425 mph.
Time of Race: 3 hours, 13 minutes, 12 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.125 seconds.
Caution Flags: 10 for 46 laps.
Lead Changes: 25 among 16 drivers.
Lap Leaders: C.Elliott 1-10; R.Stenhouse 11; C.Elliott 12; R.Stenhouse 13-42; Ky.Busch 43; B.Keselowski 44-52; W.Byron 53-64; R.Stenhouse 65-69; R.Newman 70; R.Stenhouse 71-81; A.Bowman 82; A.Allmendinger 83; T.Dillon 84-86; C.Bowyer 87-88; M.McDowell 89-107; R.Stenhouse 108; J.Johnson 109-112; M.McDowell 113; J.Johnson 114-119; R.Stenhouse 120-122; K.Harvick 123; M.Truex 124-137; K.Kahne 138-154; K.Harvick 155-161; M.Truex 162-167; E.Jones 168
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): R.Stenhouse, 6 times for 45 laps; M.McDowell, 2 times for 18 laps; M.Truex, 2 times for 18 laps; K.Kahne, 1 time for 16 laps; W.Byron, 1 time for 11 laps; C.Elliott, 2 times for 9 laps; J.Johnson, 2 times for 8 laps; B.Keselowski, 1 time for 8 laps; K.Harvick, 2 times for 6 laps; T.Dillon, 1 time for 2 laps; C.Bowyer, 1 time for 1 lap; A.Allmendinger, 1 time for 0 laps; A.Bowman, 1 time for 0 laps; Ky.Busch, 1 time for 0 laps; E.Jones, 1 time for 0 laps; R.Newman, 1 time for 0 laps.
Wins: Ky.Busch, 5; K.Harvick, 5; M.Truex, 3; C.Bowyer, 2; A.Dillon, 1; E.Jones, 1; J.Logano, 1.
Top 16 in Points: 1. Ky.Busch, 749; 2. K.Harvick, 692; 3. M.Truex, 629; 4. J.Logano, 618; 5. B.Keselowski, 596; 6. C.Bowyer, 594; 7. Ku.Busch, 566; 8. K.Larson, 544; 9. D.Hamlin, 538; 10. A.Almirola, 503; 11. R.Blaney, 496; 12. J.Johnson, 461; 13. E.Jones, 448; 14. C.Elliott, 444; 15. A.Bowman, 426; 16. R.Stenhouse, 407.
