Last night the NASCAR Cup Series ran an exhibition race on the Daytona Road Course. This race was the first time the Clash was not run on the speedway and this race did not disappoint. It was a wild race with plenty of strategy and wild finishes. Even though it was an exhibition drivers had nothing to lose. The drivers laid it all on the line for a chance for the first victory of the 2021 season.
The Race Had An Odd Start
The start of the race had quite an interesting start. Each and every driver was faced with a challenge nobody saw coming. Dirt was a problem in the backstretch bus stop causing visibility issues for the driver. This caused drivers to make some early pit stops to clean the grills and force a few windshield tears. As a result of this NASCAR was forced to throw out the caution in order to clean the bus stop. This set up a new strategy for drivers to work with.
A Tough Night For A Select Few
On lap three, Kevin Harvick’s bad luck at the Daytona Road course continued when Kevin Harvick spun out while driving through the dirt. Following this, Harvick spun out again on a restart which caused more issues for him. After his tough night, he had a 15th place finish. Following this Cole Custer had issues when his car caught fire underneath his 41 machine. He would continue the race finishing 20th, while being three laps down. With eight laps remaining, the leader crashed. Exiting the bus stop Martin Truex Jr. spun out and smacked the wall. As a result, Truex Jr finished last being the only car knocked out of the race.
A Wild Ending
Following the caution that knocked out Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott took the lead. This lead would not last as Ryan Blaney passed Chase Elliott for the lead. There was a lot of beating and banging as Chase Elliott would not let Ryan Blaney run away with the race. Entering the final chicane Chase Elliott dove into the corner and took out his best friend Ryan Blaney. This obviously slowed Chase Elliott down and Kyle Busch came out of nowhere to steal the Busch Clash victory, This is the second time Kyle Busch won the Clash on a last-lap pass after he did the same thing in the 2012 race.
Following the race, Chase Elliott stated, “Obviously, I’m thinking that I can pass him and win the race or I wouldn’t do it”. Ryan Blaney had no issue with what happened as he said, “Obviously, he didn’t mean to wreck me,” Blaney said. “Of course he didn’t mean to do that, but I ended up wrecked. It’s kind of just what it is.”
The Aftermath
This race was a great race. This race was filled with action and craziness. In the end, Kyle Busch was able to defeat the “Road Course King” Chase Elliott. Even though this was only an exhibition race it was filled with plenty of storylines. Next up for the NASCAR Cup Series will be qualifying for tomorrow’s Duels at Daytona. This can be seen tonight at 7 pm on Fox Sports One.
