Sports

Inside the battle that decided the Daytona 500

February 16, 2026

Story byMatt WeaverMon, February 16, 2026 at 2:08 AM UTC·4 min readMotorsport photoIn sequential order, this is how Tyler Reddick won the Daytona 500. Michael McDowell leads the field back to green. Carson Hocevar takes the lead and holds it at the white. Hocevar gets turned into the wall, contact with Erik Jones and spins across the field, taking Jones and McDowell with him.

Inside the battle that decided the Daytona 500

Credit: Yahoo

Key Highlights

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Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
took the lead with Chase Elliott to his outside and Reddick to his inside.
A damaged William Byron, seeking a third consecutive win, lost the nose and drifted backwards and stalled out Bubba Wallace.
Zane Smith sucked up to Elliott and gave him a shove out to the lead.

Daytona International Speedway Sport NASCAR Cup Car Daytona 500

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Inside the battle that decided the Daytona 500

This quick summary is automatically generated using AI based on reports from multiple news sources. The content has not been reviewed or verified by humans. For complete details, accuracy, and context, please refer to the original published articles.

Inside the battle that decided the Daytona 500

Key Highlights

Sources

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