Denny Hamlin led the Joe Gibbs Racing team to victory in the 2019 Daytona 500 last Sunday at the Daytona International Speedway (Florida). Behind him came his teammates Kyle Busch (#18) and Erik Jones (#20), completing the all-Toyota podium after checkered flag.

The three drivers were able to contain the attacks of current NASCAR champion Joe Logano on board his Ford #4. A resilient Michael McDowell onboard another Ford, the #34, closed the top 5. Ty Dillon, Kyle Larson, Ryan Preece, Jimmie Johnson and Ross Chastain completed the top 10.

2019 Daytona 500: An emotional win & tribute

All members of the Joe Gibbs Racing team, but especially Hamlin, paid an emotional tribute to J.D. Gibbs, founder of the team that bears his name together with his own father. Gibbs, who discovered  Hamlin and promoted other NASCAR stars, died in mid-January at just 49 years of age. In his memory, the 38-year-old driver, who also won the Daytona 500 in 2016, sports the number 11 on his car, as well as the name of his late mentor.

With this victory, Hamlin has not only added a much coveted second Daytona 500 win to his career but has also put an end to a 47-race winning draught within the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup. The last time he had climbed to the top of the podium was back in September 2017.

The driver from Tampa (Florida) knew he had to stay clear from the multiple incidents that prolonged the race to four hours and forty-five minutes. He soon learned that this, a race where only twenty of the forty contenders who took the start actually finished, would become a survival competition.

As expected from the American Great Race, this edition of the Daytona had all the ingredients that have made it so famous. These included nine different leaders, twelve yellow flags and one red one in the final phase, which caused the momentary interruption of the competition and had the 200 programmed laps increased to 207.

Also, reigning the asphalt were spectacular passes aplenty, vibrant duels and a few frightening accidents including a multiple collision at just ten laps from the finish line involving twenty-two cars. Among the wreckage was the car of  Mexican Daniel Suárez, #41 of the Telmex Telcel team. This exciting edition of the Daytona 500 marks the start of the new season of this spectacular American speciality.

‘2019 500 Millas de Daytona’: NASCAR  y Joe Gibbs Racing.