Cindric edges Wallace to win at Daytona

Bubba Wallace’s attempt to make history during the Great American Race ended in his biggest career disappointment to date.

NASCAR rookie Austin Cindric’s breakout win was a lifetime in the making.

Cindric spoiled Wallace’s bid to win last Sunday’s Daytona 500 during one of the closest finishes in race history.

Cindric, the son of Team Penske president Tim, ended Wallace’s chance to pair his historic win last October at Talladega Speedway with the sport’s ultimate prize.

Wallace’s second-place finish in 2018 as a rookie himself was cause for celebration. This time was demoralizing.

“What could have been, right?” Wallace, the only Black driver in the NASCAR’s Cup Series, said. “Just dejected. I was happy with the first second place we got a couple of years ago. This one sucks.”

Wallace was in the mix much of the night and led 12 laps. Cindric, though, held off Wallace by .036 for his first Cup Series victory.

Only two Daytona 500 finishes have been closer: Denny Hamlin’s 2016 win by .010 and Kevin Harvick by .020 in 2007.

Chase Briscoe finished third, Ryan Blaney fourth and Aric Almirola rounded out the top five during the 37-yearold Tampa native’s final Daytona 500 before retiring as a full-time driver at season’s end.

“That’s one good box checked,” an ecstatic Cindric said.

Cindric’s victory was the ultimate gift for owner Roger Penske, who turned 85 Sunday.

“It’s the only one you are confident you could regift,” Cindric said.

Penske was proud of a driver he has known since he was a small child.

“He didn’t make a mistake today,” Penske said. “He’s a star coming up.”

Cindric is the third Daytona 500 winner for Team Penske, joining Joey Logano (2015) and Ryan Newman (2008).

The winner of the 2020 Xfinity Series title, Cindric decided to delay his jump to full-time Cup Series driver until 2022. Last season, the 23-yearold from Mooresville, North Carolina, raced seven times in the sport’s top series, including a 15th-place showing in the Daytona 500.

On Sunday, Cindric’s No. 2 Ford Mustang ran near the front much of the day.

Cindric led 21 laps, while Blaney, his teammate, led 36, more than anyone but Brad Keselowski (67). Keselowski, at the center of two of the day’s major crashes, finished ninth.

Idyllic, dry conditions welcomed a crowd expected to exceed 120,000 a year after COVID restriction limited attendance to around 20,000 and a nearly 5-hour weather delay pushed the race into the early morning hours.

“Do you know what makes it all better? A packed house,” Cindric said. “A packed house at the Daytona 500.”

All eyes were on the newly designed Next Gen car’s performance with a full field of cars in superspeedway conditions. Kyle Larson earned pole position Wednesday night with the slowest qualifying time (181.159 mph) since 1967.