UPS driver Dale Jarrett posted a 16th place finish Sunday night in the historic 50th running of the Daytona 500. Jarrett, a three-time Daytona 500 winner, avoided several multi-car accidents in the closing circuits of the 200-lap event to complete his final run at Daytona International Speedway.
The road to the Daytona 500 was grueling for Jarrett and his #44 Michael Waltrip Racing Team. On Thursday, the North Carolina native was forced to race his Toyota Camry into the 500 field by earning a transfer spot in the second Duel qualifying race. A ninth place finish in that Duel race provided Jarrett with a 20th place starting position in Sunday's main event.
Under warm temperatures, Jarrett started the race mid-pack but quickly dropped to the back to pace himself during the early laps. A loose-handling condition and lack of grip provided Jarrett the biggest challenge in the opening stages of the race. Jarrett's team, under the direction of crew chief Bill Pappas, tuned on the UPS Toyota throughout the race but continued to battle a free handling condition.
The setting during the first 100 laps of the race was an unusual site at Daytona, a restrictor plate race track known for its nose-to-tail, three-wide style of racing. Instead of the familiar tight racing conditions fans have become accustomed to, they witnessed a field spread out evenly around the 2.5-mile track. It took 79 laps for the first caution flag of the race to fall, which was thrown for debris found on the backstretch.
In the closing 50 laps of the race, the Sprint Cup competitors more than made up for the lack of excitement that plagued the first half of the race. In a period of 25 laps, five yellow flags slowed the pace forcing the race to close with a three lap shootout. Jarrett took the final restart on lap 197 from the 19th position. When the checkered flag fell on lap 200, Jarrett crossed the stripe in the 16th finishing position.
"Our team did a great job this week but at the end, we needed a couple more adjustments to get this car running up front with the leaders," Jarrett said after climbing from his UPS Toyota at the close of the race. "At the end of the day we walked away with a 16th place finish for the #44 Team. This is the first step to put this team in a good position in the point standings which is a big goal of ours in the first five races."
"I didn't really think about the fact that it is my last run at this track until the checkered flag fell," Jarrett said. "After I realized we all weren't going to wreck on that last lap, I had a chance to really think about how much this track has meant to me and my career as I pulled into garage. It's strange to think that those are my last laps at Daytona."
Ryan Newman jumped to the front of the field on the final lap with a push from teammate Kurt Busch to win the 50th running of the Daytona 500. Newman's teammate Busch finished in the runner-up position followed by the Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch in the third and fourth spots. Reed Sorenson took the fifth spot to round out the top-five finishers.
Jarrett's teammates Michael Waltrip and David Reutimann also managed to miss the late race melees to complete the event on the lead lap. Waltrip, who started from the outside pole and led the first lap of the race, posted a 29th place finish in his #55 Toyota. Reutimann finished two spots behind Jarrett in the 18th position.
Next week Dale Jarrett and the #44 Team travel to the California Speedway for the Auto Club 500. Television coverage is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 24th followed by the green flag at 4 p.m. EST. Radio coverage will be broadcast by the Motor Racing Network (MRN).
