2016 Daytona 500 Rankings

NASCAR driver beats teammate in a photo finish

Paige Hope

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Denny Hamlin  beats out Martin Truex Jr. at the finish line.
(Associated Press).

Denny Hamlin beats out Martin Truex Jr. at the finish line. (Associated Press).

NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin won the closest Daytona 500 in history on Sunday, Feb. 21. In the final lap, Hamlin was able to beat Toyota teammate Martin Truex Jr. by only a one-hundredth of a second. Hamlin also led the most laps for the day: 95.

“You couldn’t have written a better ending,” Hamlin said in an interview with ESPN. “It’s the pinnacle of my career, for sure. I don’t know where that came from, I don’t know what happened. I can’t even figure out what I did. It all just came together.”

Toyota won the top three spots in this race with Kyle Busch finishing in third. Kevin Harvick finished behind him in fourth. Despite the damage that Carl Edwards’ car received earlier in the race, he still managed to finish in fifth place. Joey Logano, the 2015 Daytona 500 champion, placed sixth.

Hendricks Motorsports was not as successful in today’s race. Kasey Kahne finished 13th with Jimmie Johnson a few spots behind him in 16th. Chase Elliott, the driver who took over for the #24 car after Jeff Gordon’s retirement, tore up his car during the race and finished in 37th. Teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. experienced similar struggles as Elliott as his car hit an interior wall and bounced out into the grass; he placed 36th.

Stewart-Haas Racing team had a mix of results. Although Harvick placed fourth and Kurt Busch 10th, teammate Brian Vickers, who drove the #14 car for injured Tony Stewart, finished 26th. Danica Patrick finished 35th.

With the Toyota team racing as well as they did in the Daytona 500, the season is off to a great start for them. As for the others, they’ll have to step up their game if they want to compete with Toyota.