No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang – Austin Cindric
Start: 5th
Race Finish: 1st – First career NCS Victory
Stage 1 Finish: 12th
Stage 2 Finish: 6th
Laps Led: 21
Point Standings: 1st (+0)
Race Rundown: Austin Cindric raced into NASCAR history on Sunday afternoon, winning the 64th running of the Daytona 500 in the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang. Cindric claimed the victory in only his second-career start in the Great American Race, winning Team Penske’s third Daytona 500 (2008, 2015, 2022). The victory kicked off Cindric’s rookie season by also locking the No. 2 Ford team into the NASCAR Playoffs. The former NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion led four times for 21 laps and used drafting help late from teammate Ryan Blaney to cross the checkered flag and secure the victory.
Cindric’s Thoughts: “Oh, my God. Do you know what makes it all better? A packed house. A packed house at the Daytona 500. I’ve got so many people to thank. First and foremost Roger Penske, happy birthday. Oh, my gosh. Appreciate Ryan (Blaney) being a great teammate. Obviously, he wants to win this one, but I’m so pumped for Discount Tire, Menards, Ford. Everybody works so hard with this Next Gen car, through this whole process, and damn, I am so excited. This makes up for losing a championship last race I did.”
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No. 12 Menards/BlueDEF/PEAK Ford Mustang – Ryan Blaney
Race Stats:
Start: 7th
Race Finish: 4th
Stage 1 Finish: 20th
Stage 2 Finish: 11th
Laps Led: 36
Point Standings: 6th (-13)
Race Rundown: Ryan Blaney started seventh and finished fourth in the No. 12 Menards/Blue DEF/Peak Ford Mustang in Sunday’s Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Blaney ran up front all day long and led for 36 laps on his way to the fourth-place finish. The former Daytona winner was in position to win, battling teammate and eventual race winner Austin Cindric down to the wire after drafting together a majority of the event. Blaney and the No. 12 Ford team find themselves in the sixth points position as the series heads to Auto Club Speedway next weekend.
Blaney’s Thoughts: “Yeah, the last lap I got good pushes on the bottom from the 23 and then I was able to get Austin (Cindric) in front and off of four where we were good enough to make a move I got blocked and I ended up getting fenced. I’m happy for Roger Penske, winning the 500 on his birthday. I’m happy for Jeremy Bullins and everyone that works on that 2 car. It’s just one of those things. It didn’t work out. We still ended up fourth, but I don’t know another perfect position we could have put ourselves in to win the race. It just didn’t work out.”
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No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang – Joey Logano
Race Stats:
Start: 20th
Race Finish: 21st
Stage 1 Finish: 5th
Stage 2 Finish: 2nd
Laps Led: 1
Point Standings: 11th (-21)
Race Rundown: Joey Logano officially started 20th, but had to drop to the rear of the field to begin Sunday’s Daytona 500 after the team had to go to a backup car following a crash in Thursday night’s Duel event. Logano wasted little time moving forward, spending time racing inside the top-10. In the third stage, Logano was collected in a multi-vehicle wreck and sustained a flat tire, resulting in him getting stuck in the infield grass and dropping the Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang three laps down. Logano continued to battle, surviving multiple late race incidents to finish 21st.
Logano’s Thoughts: “Certainly happy for Austin (Cindric) and the No. 2 Ford team, and for Roger Penske winning the Daytona 500 on his birthday. Obviously not the day we were looking for on the Shell-Pennzoil Ford. We had a great car and the guys worked really hard all week, appreciate all of their efforts. The flat tire and getting stuck in the infield sort of ended our day.”
Penske Racing PR
