Austin Dillon wins at Daytona and goes to the Playoffs

Scheduled for Saturday evening, this second round of the season at Daytona could only finally be launched this Sunday at 10:00 a.m. local time due to a succession of storms which had already caused the cancellation of all the practice sessions. tests.

Only water in Daytona © Nascar

For this last event of the regular season at Daytona, the stakes were high with 2 places remaining to be allocated for the final stages after the withdrawal of Kurt Busch who had not sufficiently recovered from his accident at Pocono. Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex Jr. arrived in Florida in a strong position thanks to their points standings, but they remained under threat of any new winner this season. With Austin Dillon's victory, this improbable scenario played out, and for a handful of points Martin Truex Jr. will not be in the running this year for a new title after his 2017 coronation.

Black streak for Martin Truex Jr. © James Gilbert/Getty Images

From the 15th lap, the Daytona race lost one of its favorites while reigning champion Kyle Larson had to retire, engine at half mast. 15 laps later, Ryan Blaney, the overwhelming favorite for one of the last two places in the Playoffs, was hit by Christopher Bell and found himself thrown to the back of the pack with a badly damaged Ford Mustang. Everything then seemed lost for the Team Penske driver while Truex Jr. did not leave the front of the peloton, but it was at the end of the ball that the orchestra was paid.

Trouble on the backstretch…and @Blaney is involved! pic.twitter.com/pNnGqP4lKM

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 28

At the start of the last segment, walls of rain clearly visible in the background of the landscape at Daytona left no doubt that rain would arrive before the end of the race. It therefore became essential to place yourself at the front and inevitably on the first lap a collective crash involved several drivers including Martin Truex Jr. who nevertheless managed to stay on the leader's lap despite a badly damaged Chevrolet. At this point in the race, Truex had a slight points advantage over Blaney, stuck in last place, 5 laps behind the leader.

On the 138th lap of the race, a deluge of rain fell on the Daytona Speedway, trapping all of the race leaders! A real carnage from which Austin Dillon was the first to emerge while he occupied the 16^rd place before this Big One.

Here's a look at the incident on Lap 138 at @DAYTONA. pic.twitter.com/6CySgUxG2r

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 28

The race had been exciting so far, with the leading position changing hands 37 times, until that disastrous 138th lap. While the red flag was being waved, many drivers expressed their anger, considering it abnormal that the event had not been neutralized as soon as the first drops appeared a lap earlier. The technical teams at the Daytona circuit then set about trying to dry the track, but lightning flashed one after the other in the Florida sky, each time postponing a possible restart by 30 minutes as required by American rules.

A wild race at Daytona © James Gilbert/Getty Images

More than 3 hours were needed at Daytona to let the storms pass and dry the track before the race could be restarted by Austin Dillon. The number of damaged cars and a decimated peloton testified to the intensity of the start of the race. While Truex started the final with a 6-point lead, Blaney grabbed precious points as he dropped out and with 5 laps to go took back virtual 15th place in the general classification! Truex's last hope lay in the fact that Austin Dillon, then in the lead, did not win. Unfortunately for him, the Richard Childress Racing driver did not tremble and cleared his path towards victory at Daytona, notably thanks to a daring bump at more than 300 km/h on Austin Cindric.

For some, seeing the finish is already an achievement © Chris Graythen/Getty Images

This totally crazy regular season ends with a round in his image. There are now 16 drivers who can compete for the supreme title during the Playoffs which start next Saturday at Darlington:

• Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
• Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
• Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
• Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
• William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
• Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
• Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
• Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
• Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
• Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
• Kyle Busch, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
• Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
• Daniel Suárez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
• Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
• Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
• Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Ranking of Coke Zero Sugar 400 Nascar at Daytona:

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