Good morning! As we bid farewell to Daytona, the 2023 racing season is now in full swing! F1 testing is set to commence this week, while NASCAR is all set to launch its west coast swing at Auto Club. Start your day off by catching up on the latest results and exciting storylines from Daytona and other motorsports competitions around the globe.

Who holds the current track record at Daytona International Speedway?

*Answer at the bottom

As always, at the bottom, we'd appreciate your feedback in our poll.

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NASCAR

Daytona 500

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the 65th running of the Daytona 500, claiming victory in the longest Daytona 500 in history after the race went 30 miles past the scheduled distance due to multiple late-race incidents. Stenhouse's win marks his third career win, all on superspeedways, and his first in nearly six years. JTG-Daugherty Racing, the one-car operation that Stenhouse races for, hasn't won a Cup race since August 2014.

Brad Keselowski won the opening stage, Ross Chastain won Stage 2, and Travis Pastrana impressed on debut, finishing 11th despite being at the heart of the incident on the final lap.

Check out the full results here

Ricky Waffle-House Jr.

Daytona Extended Results

Xfinity Series

Austin Hill won his second consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Daytona, with John Hunter Nemechek second and Justin Allgaier third. Hill was declared the leader at the time of a last lap pile-up involving Sam Mayer, who flipped his car and brought out the yellow flag. Hill started the race on the pole but had to battle back from the rear of the field as he was forced to pit for a radio issue early on in the event.

Truck Series

Zane Smith won the rain shortened NASCAR Truck Series race at Daytona after 79 of 100 laps were completed. Smith took the lead on Lap 65 when he passed Corey LaJoie, who fell into the middle lane and subsequently dropped back. Tanner Gray was in second position battling for the lead when the race was halted. Christian Eckes finished third, Colby Howard fourth and Grant Enfinger rounded out the top five.

ARCA

Greg Van Alst won the ARCA Menards Series season opener at Daytona by passing Jason White in Turn 3 on the last lap with the help of Connor Mosack. Van Alst held off Mosack to take his first series victory in 32 career starts. American actor Frankie Muniz finished 11th in his first series start. The race was plagued by several caution flags due to debris and accidents, but Van Alst managed to secure the victory dedicating the win to small teams and short track racers across the country.

Garage 56 Scheme Livery Revealed

NASCAR's "Diamond" Anniversary

NASCAR has launched a new creative campaign to celebrate its 75th "diamond" anniversary with three commercial spots showcasing the sport's past, present, and future. The first ad, called "Anthem," focuses on NASCAR's 75-year journey from humble beach beginnings to America's top motorsport, with a No. 75-branded car that transforms to reveal race cars from different eras. The 60-second spot combines original footage, historical highlights, reenactments, and CGI to recreate some of the sport's most memorable moments, ending with the campaign line "Always Forward."

Following the release of "Anthem," NASCAR will unveil a "Present" spot in the spring that highlights the stories of young stars in the sport. A creative "Future" spot, which will focus on the potential for NASCAR's future, is set to launch later in the summer.

Petty not Pleased with New Role

Richard Petty, the other seven-time NASCAR Cup series champion at Legacy Motor Club, has expressed his annoyance at the downsizing of his role at the Cup team that used to bear his name before Jimmie Johnson became a minority owner last year. Petty GMS Racing was renamed Legacy Motor Club for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, and “The King” has no ownership stake in the organization that includes the No. 43 he made famous.

Petty, 85, explained (during a media availability Saturday morning at Daytona International Speedway) that Johnson and his management team are in charge of all major decisions. Johnson said he was “disappointed to hear and read through the press that his feelings were bruised because he’s not expressed them to me, for starters."

Read the full interview here

F1

Lance Stroll to Miss Pre-Season Testing

Aston Martin has announced that Lance Stroll will not be participating in the pre-season test at Bahrain International Circuit due to a minor accident during his training that resulted in injuries. While the team expects Stroll to make a quick recovery, his fitness will be assessed daily, and an update will be given before the Bahrain Grand Prix. It is unclear if the team will turn to their reserve drivers, Stoffel Vandoorne and/or Felipe Drugovich, or let Fernando Alonso complete the full test in Stroll's absence. Stroll said that he is eager to get back to driving and bounce back from this setback as quickly as possible.

Honda Contemplates Future in F1

Honda has revealed that several Formula 1 teams have expressed interest in partnering with the Japanese manufacturer for the 2026 season, but it has not yet decided if it will continue to participate in the sport. Honda currently partners with Red Bull and AlphaTauri, and while Red Bull will be partnering with Ford from 2026, Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) has registered as a manufacturer for the new set of regulations.

HRC President Koji Watanabe stated that while there are no firm plans at this stage, being involved in F1 would help with the company's technological development. Honda has not reached an agreement with Red Bull to continue their partnership beyond 2025, but Watanabe hinted that they would have been open to doing so.

Ricciardo Ready to Relax in New Role

In an interview with Speed Cafe, Australian racing driver Daniel Ricciardo stated that he is planning to take a lighthearted approach to his career this year and focus on figuring out what he wants to do next. Despite the fact that he has confirmed he could make a cameo appearance in some sort of race, Ricciardo said he is looking forward to having downtime and focusing on adventure activities, such as riding dirt bikes with friends or traveling across the US. He said the break would give him good headspace, clarity and life experience. The 33-year-old also said he enjoyed having a more relaxing winter than in previous years.

IndyCar

'100 Days to Indy' Premieres on April 27th

The CW Network will debut its new docuseries "100 Days To Indy" on April 27 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Co-produced by VICE Media and Penske Entertainment, the series will follow the lives of drivers and their teams as they compete in the Indianapolis 500, from pre-season testing through to the race itself. The series will offer fans an inside look into the drivers' lives, including footage from their homes and events.

GLOBAL MOTORSPORT

Take a trip to far away motorsport lands

🏍 Eli Tomac wins Supercross Round #2 in Oakland... He ties Ricky Carmichael for 3rd in all time wins

📺 WRC launches new 24/7 platform... Rally.TV will broadcast every stage of the European Rally Championship and races from the WRC

🚧 Hydrogen-Powered Le Mans class won't debut in 2025... The new class will be delayed until at least 2026

Memes

ONBOARD OF THE DAY

Kévin Estre Onboard Nürburgring 2021

Watch Kévin Estre effortlessly navigate one of the most challenging race tracks in the world during a rainy lap in last year's 24-hour race at the Nürburgring. Enjoy the footage from his second place qualifying effort!

TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS

*Answer

Bill Elliott set the current track record at Daytona with a time of 42.783 and a speed of 210.364mph while qualifying for the 1987 Daytona 500.

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