William Byron survived to win the 66th Daytona 500.
The Great American Race came down to a four-lap shootout with Byron and Chastain side-by-side. Byron ultimately cleared Chastain with Austin Cindric and Lajoie in tow. Byron faded high to cover Chastain.
Simultaneously, Chastain darted low right as Cindric got tagged by Lajoie. Chastain and Cindric went spinning into the infield grass and the race ended under caution right as Alex Bowman nearly carried momentum to the win.
NASCAR deemed Byron was the leader at the exact moment of caution. Alex Bowman finished second ahead of Christopher Bell, Corey LaJoie and Bubba Wallace, AJ Allmendinger, John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, Erik Jones and Noah Gragson.
Ryan Blaney, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, finished 30th after being involved in a 22-car pile-up with nine laps to go in the race that also involved a dominant Joey Logano and other contenders like Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
There was also a crash on the sixth lap that eliminated Carson Hocevar, Harrison Burton and Kaz Grala.
- William Byron (24), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Alex Bowman (48), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Christopher Bell (20), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Corey LaJoie (7), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
- A.J. Allmendinger (16), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
- Bubba Wallace (23), 23XI Racing Toyota
- John Hunter Nemechek (42), Legacy Motor Club Toyota
- Chase Briscoe (14), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Erik Jones (43), Legacy Motor Club Toyota
- Noah Gragson (10), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Kyle Larson (5), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Kyle Busch (8), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- Zane Smith (71), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
- Chase Elliott (9), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Martin Truex Jr. (19), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Daniel Hemric (31), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
- Ty Gibbs (54), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Chris Buescher (17), RFK Racing Ford
- Denny Hamlin (11), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- David Ragan (60), RFK Racing Ford
- Ross Chastain (1), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
- Austin Cindric (2), Team Penske Ford
- Ryan Preece (41), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Riley Herbst (15), Rick Ware Racing Ford
- Josh Berry (4), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Justin Haley (51), Rick Ware Racing Ford
- Anthony Alfredo (62), Beard Motorsports Chevrolet
- Jimmie Johnson (84), Legacy Motor Club Toyota
- Tyler Reddick (45), 23XI Racing Toyota
- Ryan Blaney (12), Team Penske Ford
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47), JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
- Joey Logano (22), Team Penske Ford
- Brad Keselowski (6), RFK Racing Ford
- Daniel Suárez (99), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
- Todd Gilliland (38), Front Row Motorsports Ford
- J.J. Yeley (44), NY Racing Team Chevrolet
- BJ McLeod (78), Live Fast Motorsports Ford
- Michael McDowell (34), Front Row Motorsports Ford
- Austin Dillon (3), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- Kaz Grala (36), Front Row Motorsports Ford
- Harrison Burton (21), Wood Brothers Racing Ford
- Carson Hocevar (77), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Matt Weaver is a Motorsports Insider for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter.