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Winner of every Daytona 500 in history

The Daytona 500 race is the biggest in NASCAR. We run through the history of winners dating back to 1959.

NASCAR icon Richard Petty takes the checkered flag signaling his victory in the 1981 Daytona 500. Photo by ISC Archives/CQ-Roll Call Group via Getty Images

The Daytona 500 is the biggest race in stock car racing and features some of the most significant history in the sport. The Great American Race is 500 miles long and runs across 200 laps of the Daytona International Speedway. It runs in February and has opened the NASCAR season every year since 1982.

Richard Petty is the most prolific winner of the race, claiming seven checkered flags in 1964, 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, and 1981. The next closest is Cale Yarborough, who won the race in 1968, 1977, 1983, and 1984. Petty was the first driver to win the race in consecutive years, and has been followed by three other drivers. Yarborough, Sterling Marlin (1994-1995), and Denny Hamlin (2019-2020) all accomplished the feat. No driver has won the race three straight years.

Bobby Allison is the oldest driver to win the race, capturing his third checkered flag in 1988 at the age of 50. Trevor Bayne is the youngest driver to win the race, doing so at the age of 20 when he claimed the checkered flag in 2011.

Nine drivers have won the race after starting in the pole position. The last pole-sitter to win the race was Dale Jarrett in 2000. Matt Kenseth has the honor of the worst starting position to win the race. In 2009, he started in 39th, but had to drop back to the last position at No. 43 due to changing to a backup car after he crashed in qualifying.

Here’s a look at every winner of the Daytona 500 dating back to the inaugural race in 1959.

Every Daytona 500 winner

Year Driver Grid No.
Year Driver Grid No.
1959 Lee Petty 15th 42
1960 Junior Johnson 9th 27
1961 Marvin Panch 4th 20
1962 Fireball Roberts Pole 22
1963 Tiny Lund 12th 21
1964 Richard Petty 2nd 43
1965 Fred Lorenzen 4th 28
1966 Richard Petty Pole 43
1967 Mario Andretti 12th 11
1968 Cale Yarborough Pole 21
1969 LeeRoy Yarbrough 19th 98
1970 Pete Hamilton 9th 40
1971 Richard Petty 5th 43
1972 A. J. Foyt 2nd 21
1973 Richard Petty 7th 43
1974 Richard Petty 2nd 43
1975 Benny Parsons 32nd 72
1976 David Pearson 7th 21
1977 Cale Yarborough 4th 11
1978 Bobby Allison 33rd 15
1979 Richard Petty 13th 43
1980 Buddy Baker Pole 28
1981 Richard Petty 8th 43
1982 Bobby Allison 7th 88
1983 Cale Yarborough 8th 28
1984 Cale Yarborough Pole 28
1985 Bill Elliott Pole 9
1986 Geoffrey Bodine 2nd 5
1987 Bill Elliott Pole 9
1988 Bobby Allison 3rd 12
1989 Darrell Waltrip 2nd 17
1990 Derrike Cope 12th 10
1991 Ernie Irvan 2nd 4
1992 Davey Allison 6th 28
1993 Dale Jarrett 2nd 18
1994 Sterling Marlin 4th 4
1995 Sterling Marlin 3rd 4
1996 Dale Jarrett 7th 88
1997 Jeff Gordon 6th 24
1998 Dale Earnhardt 4th 3
1999 Jeff Gordon Pole 24
2000 Dale Jarrett Pole 88
2001 Michael Waltrip 19th 15
2002 Ward Burton 19th 22
2003 Michael Waltrip 4th 15
2004 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3rd 8
2005 Jeff Gordon 15th 24
2006 Jimmie Johnson 9th 48
2007 Kevin Harvick 34th 29
2008 Ryan Newman 7th 12
2009 Matt Kenseth 43rd1 17
2010 Jamie McMurray 13th 1
2011 Trevor Bayne 32nd 21
2012 Matt Kenseth 4th 17
2013 Jimmie Johnson 9th 48
2014 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 9th 88
2015 Joey Logano 5th 22
2016 Denny Hamlin 11th 11
2017 Kurt Busch 8th 41
2018 Austin Dillon 14th 3
2019 Denny Hamlin 10th 11
2020 Denny Hamlin 39th2 11
2021 Michael McDowell 17th 34
2022 Austin Cindric 5th 2