Austin Dillon put the No. 3 back in victory lane at Daytona International Speedway. Dillon won in the car number made famous by Dale Earnhardt, and he won 17 years to the day after the Hall of Fame driver was killed in a last-lap accident at NASCAR’s famed track.
“It was so awesome to take the 3 car back to victory lane,” Dillon said. “This is for Dale Earnhardt Sr. and all those Senior fans.”
Dillon even replicated the slide Earnhardt did in 1998 and did a burnout in the shape of a 3 in the infield grass.
Dillon is just the second driver to win the Daytona 500 after leading only the final lap, following Kurt Busch last year, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Darrell Wallace Jr. finished second, followed by Denny Hamlin, Joey Loganoand Chris Buescher.
Wallace’s second-place finish is the best by an African-American driver in the Daytona 500; he is just the second black driver to run in the Daytona 500.
Wendell Scott is the only other African-American driver to run in the race. He finished 13th in 1966.
