Back Daytona 500 AST 500 milles de Daytona Catalan Daytona 500 Danish Daytona 500 German Daytona 500 Greek Daytona 500 English 500 Millas de Daytona Spanish Daytona 500 Finnish Daytona 500 French Daytona 500 Galician
 | |
 | |
| Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series | |
|---|---|
| Venue | Daytona International Speedway |
| Location | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
| First race | 1959 |
| Distance | 500 mi (800 km) |
| Laps | 200 (Stage 1: 60 Stage 2: 60 Final stage: 80) |
| Previous names | Inaugural 500 Mile International Sweepstakes (1959) Second Annual 500 Mile International Sweepstakes (1960) Daytona 500 by STP (1991–1993) Daytona 500 by Dodge (2001) Daytona 500 by Toyota (2007) Daytona 500 (1961–1990, 1994–2000, 2002–2006, 2008–present) |
| Most wins (driver) | Richard Petty (7) |
| Most wins (team) | Petty Enterprises (9) |
| Most wins (manufacturer) | Chevrolet (23) |
| Circuit information | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.5 mi (4.0 km) |
| Turns | 4 |
The Daytona 500 is an auto race held in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the opening event of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Daytona has hosted racing for many years. Originally cars raced on the beach, but in 1959, race officials built the Daytona International Speedway, where the race has been held ever since. The Daytona track hosts many other races as well. The Daytona 500 is considered the most important event in NASCAR.
The Daytona 500 has many memories, the winners receive a Harley J. Earl Trophy every year at the end of every race, The trophy is not the only one awarded to the event, The crew chief of the teams receives the Cannonball trophy, a trophy by Cannonball Baker.
Eventually, the 500-mile (804.672 km) race was held in 1959, It was the second 500-mile NASCAR race, following the Southern 500, By 1961, the race was referred as the Daytona 500.
At Daytona, the cars pile up in multi-car wrecks, known as The Big One.