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78-481: The original premise behind the sponsorship was that each driver who won a pole position in the previous Cup Series season was entered in The Clash at Daytona at Daytona International Speedway a week before the season-opening Daytona 500 . The Pole Award was not given at events where pole qualifying was rained out and the line-up had to be determined by owner's points. Initially sponsored by Anheuser-Busch's Busch Beer,

156-523: A "fun-filled" atmosphere that breaks fans away from the confines of grandstand seating without sacrificing the view. Below the porch was an interactive fan zone featuring amusement rides, a go-kart track, show cars and merchandise trailers. After the 2015 racing season, the Party Porch was torn down with the backstretch grandstands as part of the DAYTONA Rising project. As of August 2024, track records on

234-468: A 20-lap/50-mile, "all-out sprint" for the previous season's pole position winners (considered the de facto "fastest drivers on the circuit") and added previous Daytona Pole Award winners, former Clash race winners, former Daytona 500 pole winners, and drivers who qualified for the preceding season's NASCAR playoffs . Any driver in the field had to have competed full-time in the Cup Series in 2016. The race

312-532: A 2005 Award for Excellence from Design-Build Institute of America. Following the success of the UNOH Fanzone at Daytona, Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway each built a similar infield fanzone. On December 9, 2016, the speedway announced that the University of Northwestern Ohio purchased entitlement rights to the fanzone, and that the area will be named 'UNOH Fanzone'. On January 25, 2024, it announced

390-592: A Pole Award sponsor. This was later followed by Busch being designated as one of NASCAR Cup Series' Premier Partners and the sponsor of the Clash in 2020, reuniting the connection. When Sprint replaced Budweiser as the sponsor of the Clash in 2013, Pole Award winners were once again given a berth in The Clash. When Coors Light Pole Qualifying is rained out, the polesitter would not be given the Coors Light Pole Award and

468-479: A desire to bring football back to the track. On July 2 and 3, 2022, the track hosted Daytona Soccer Fest, a 2 day event highlighted by a friendly match between heated Colombian rivals América de Cali and Deportivo Cali and a NWSL regular season match between the Orlando Pride and Racing Louisville FC . In 1994, Sega released an arcade game called Daytona USA , using their Model 2 Arcade hardware. It

546-449: A final length of 3.560 mi (5.729 km) for the complete road course. In 2003, the backstretch chicane was modified once again. The middle leg was repaved and widened, and now cars would enter through the first leg, and exit out of the second leg. The existing third leg was abandoned. This allowed cars a cleaner entry into oval turn three. After favorable results, in 2010 the third leg was demolished and removed permanently. In 2005,

624-412: A live entertainment stage, additional food and drink areas and various other activities and displays. The 2004 renovation of the infield, headed by design firm HNTB , was the first major renovation of the infield in the history of the track. In addition to the fanzone, a new vehicle and pedestrian tunnel was built under turn 1. The tunnel posed a challenge to engineers because it was to be built under

702-460: A new circuit coming in three layouts. In addition to the oval and Rolex 24 Hour layouts in Gran Turismo , there also exists a Daytona 200 layout in the game. Forty-one people have been fatally injured in on-track incidents: 24 car drivers, twelve motorcyclists, three go-kart drivers, one powerboat racer, and one track worker. The most notorious death was that of Dale Earnhardt , who was killed on

780-449: A part of Ontario Motor Speedway . His experiences led him to believe that racing fans were loyal brand followers. The initial format was set up as a 50-mile sprint race, with no pit stops, with a field consisting of the previous season's pole position winners. Inviting the fastest drivers from the previous season headlined the event as the "fastest race" of the season. The race established an incentive for drivers to earn pole positions during

858-463: A second infield road course configuration was constructed, primarily for motorcycles . Due to fears of tire wear on the banked oval sections, oval turns 1 and 2 were bypassed giving the new course a length of 2.950 mi (4.748 km). The Daytona SportBike that runs the Daytona 200 however, uses the main road course except for the motorcycle Pedro Rodríguez Hairpin (tighter than the one used for cars;

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936-539: A substantial sum of money from the Pepsi company after attempting to obtain the money to finish construction from the Coca-Cola Company and being turned down. For years from when the track opened to France's death, France never allowed Coca-Cola to be sold as a concession at any of the tracks he owned as a result. The first practice run on the new track was on February 6, 1959. On February 22, 1959, 42,000 people attended

1014-499: Is 2.500 mi (4.023 km) long with 31° banking in the turns and 18° banking at the start/finish line. The front straight is 3,800 ft (1,200 m) long and the back straight (or "superstretch") is 3,000 ft (910 m) long. The tri-oval shape was revolutionary at the time as it greatly improved sight lines for fans. It is one of the three tracks on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit that are considered "drafting tracks",

1092-621: Is a race track in Daytona Beach , Florida , United States , about 50 mi (80 km) north of Orlando . Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500 , the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. The venue also hosts the 24 Hours of Daytona , one of three IMSA races that make up the Triple Crown of endurance racing . In addition to NASCAR and IMSA,

1170-538: Is held near the summer solstice , Daytona's endurance race is held in winter (meaning more of the race is run at night). The track's lighting system is limited to 20% of its maximum output for the race to keep cars dependent on their headlights. The 3.810 mi (6.132 km) road course was built in 1959 and first hosted a three-hour sports car race called the Daytona Continental in 1962. The race length became 2,000 km (1,200 mi) in 1964, and in 1966

1248-500: The AMA Grand National Championship , before it was moved in 2017 to the tri-oval section and became a TT course. There is also a short paved kart/autocross track in the infield just inside of turn 3. The SCCA holds autocross on this track in addition to hosting sprint karting races during KartWeek. In February 2012, it was announced that a 0.400 mi (0.644 km) paved short track would be constructed along

1326-567: The Busch Clash . In 2021, the race was run on the road course layout, originally intended as a temporary effort in order to have teams use a sixth-generation chassis when the seventh-generation chassis was to have debuted at the Daytona 500 that year. Teams would not have had enough seventh-generation cars available for the Daytona 500, so NASCAR intended to use the sixth-generation road course car (which can be repurposed into an Xfinity Series chassis) at Daytona for cost savings. Originally, it

1404-626: The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , meaning the event would be held away from Daytona for the first time, and during the NFL's off-week between the conference championship games and Super Bowl LVI , which was held in nearby Inglewood for the first time. In June 2022, NASCAR announced that the Clash at the Coliseum would return for 2023 and in September 2023, NASCAR announced again that the Clash at

1482-739: The PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 game Gran Turismo 7 . Daytona International Speedway is also featured in Forza Motorsport 6 and Forza Motorsport 7 for the Xbox One and Windows 10. The circuit returned to the Forza series in Forza Motorsport (2023) for Xbox Series X/S and Windows. Real Racing 3 ' s second NASCAR update featured the Daytona International Speedway as

1560-435: The "International Horseshoe") closer to its preceding turns. Also, the chicane on the backstretch was modified. A new entry leg was constructed approximately 400 ft (120 m) earlier, resulting in a longer, three-legged, "bus stop" shape. Cars would now enter in the first leg, bypass the second leg, and exit out of the existing third leg. Passing would now be possible inside the longer chicane. The construction resulted in

1638-445: The "World Center of Racing". Lights were installed around the track in 1998, and today it is the third-largest single-lit outdoor sports facility. The speedway has been renovated four times, with the infield renovated in 2004 and the track repaved in 1978 and 2010. On January 22, 2013, the fourth speedway renovation was unveiled. On July 5, 2013, ground was broken on "Daytona Rising" to remove backstretch seating and completely redevelop

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1716-499: The 2.500 mi (4.023 km) tri-oval are followed as: 183.165 mph (294.775 km/h) As of March 2024, the fastest official race lap records at the Daytona International Speedway are listed as: Daytona has a humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cfa ), which enables year-round use of the facility. Light frosts are in theory possible, but unlikely, during the 24-hour event's nighttime under clear conditions, but general racing conditions are mild also during winter. With

1794-507: The 29-acre (12 ha) Lake Lloyd, which has hosted powerboat racing. The track was built in 1959 by NASCAR founder William "Bill" France Sr. to host racing that was held at the former Daytona Beach Road Course . His banked design permitted higher speeds and gave fans a better view of the cars. The speedway is operated by NASCAR pursuant to a lease with the City of Daytona Beach on the property that runs until 2054. The venue describes itself as

1872-464: The Coliseum would return for 2024. The 2024 Clash was bumped up from the traditional Sunday race and moved to Saturday due to weather projections, thus making it general admission. The race consisted of a single twenty-lap (50-mile) green flag sprint with no pit stops required. Caution flag laps would not count. A development series race, the Automobile Racing Club of America series, usually

1950-645: The Duel races in 2016) returned for a second stint as the title sponsor, and the Busch Clash name was brought back. After being held on the Daytona oval for its entire history, the event was moved to the Daytona Road Course in 2021 as a result of logistics issues relating to both Super Bowl LV and the planned launch of the seventh-generation chassis (which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic ). The following year,

2028-568: The NASCAR season, which up to that time, still offered relatively tiny cash prizes. Likewise, at no time have pole winners earned bonus championship points. The event was also seen as a way to expand the Speedweeks activities leading up to the Daytona 500 . Previously, the weekend before the Daytona 500 featured only minor support events, and the Winston Cup competitors ordinarily would not have taken to

2106-455: The Pole Award, the car must be affixed with the designated sponsor decal. Affixing the decal to the car was optional. (As a comparison, each respective series' decals are required by rules). If a car did not have the decal affixed, the car/driver would be still scored as the fastest qualifier, and lines up on race day in position 1. The Clash at Daytona berth, unlike in the past, would also go to

2184-609: The award was transferred over to the Budweiser brand in 1998 (although it reverted back to Busch brand from 2004 to 2007 for the Busch Series, as the Busch brand was at the time the second-tier series' entitlement sponsor). Molson replaced Anheuser-Busch in 2008 as the official beer sponsor, renaming it the Coors Light Pole Award in 2008 after the Canadian brewer's signature beer brand. This ended

2262-689: The backstretch of the Speedway's main course, for NASCAR's lower-tier series to compete at during Speedweeks called the UNOH Battle at the Beach , which is similar to the Toyota All-Star Showdown , formerly held at Irwindale Speedway . The first races were held on that track in February 2013. The track was shortened to a 0.375 mi (0.604 km) oval in 2014 by shorter straightaways. The future of racing at

2340-482: The berth for the Daytona invitational race, the same protocol followed by Budweiser at the time when they gave away a position in the Bud Shootout. However, with the multi-round qualifying format being used starting in 2014, the Coors Light Pole Award and the Clash berth are given out as long as at least one round is completed. An example of this contrast is that at the 2014 Toyota Owners 400 , Coors Light Pole Qualifying

2418-465: The car allowed for a two-tire change without additional delay. The first segment was expanded to 25 laps, followed by the 50-lap second segment. The total race distance was 75 laps (187.5 miles). The race was divided into three segments (30 laps, 25 laps, 20-laps), with online fan voting deciding certain aspects of the race specifics (lengths of the segments, requirements for mandatory pit stops, number of drivers eliminated, etc.) The total race distance

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2496-487: The car version is used as an acceleration lane for motorcycles). On September 26 and 27, 2006, the IndyCar Series held a compatibility test on the 10-turn, 2.73 mi (4.39 km) modified road course, and the 12-turn 2.950 mi (4.748 km) motorcycle road course with 5 drivers. The drivers who tested at the track were Vítor Meira , Sam Hornish Jr. , Tony Kanaan , Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon . This marked

2574-529: The city announced the stadium was replacing its entire surface with FieldTurf , and thereby eliminating the flat-track racing at the stadium. To continue racing, speedway officials built the Daytona Flat Track, a new quarter-mile dirt track outside of turns 1 & 2 of the main superspeedway. It seats 5,000 in temporary grandstands and opened in December 2009 for WKA KartWeek. From 2010 to 2016, it also hosted

2652-517: The connection between the Pole Award and the Shootout, which continued to be sponsored by Budweiser until 2012. Coors Light also did not buy air time during qualifying broadcasts as Budweiser had, so Coors Light has never been the title sponsor for qualifying telecasts as Budweiser had been from 2001–2007. Busch returned as the Pole Award sponsor in March 2018, with several early season races that year ran without

2730-413: The driver, since that is determined by NASCAR. The trophy and cash prize goes to the next-fastest driver, provided they carry the decal, who will earn the trophy and cash prize. The decal issue is seldom an issue except for Petty Enterprises , but not its successor Richard Petty Motorsports / Petty GMS Motorsports , who traditionally refuse to allow alcohol sponsorship on their cars. The #43 did not carry

2808-410: The event was moved out of Daytona International Speedway for the first time in its history, where it was held inside of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum as part of launching the seventh-generation chassis. It was NASCAR's first race inside a sports stadium since a 1956 race at Soldier Field . The 2022 race also marked the first year that it was not an invitation-only event. For 2025, NASCAR announced

2886-464: The event will be moved to the Bowman Gray Stadium . The event was first known as the Busch Clash and was the brain child of Monty Roberts. Roberts was the brand manager of the newly formed Busch Beer (formerly Busch Bavarian Beer ) and the race was seen as a way to promote the new brand. Roberts had been successful introducing Mercury into racing while working at Ford , and had also been

2964-530: The event, but its popularity continued to wane. Again, the Clash was the support race for paying fans, as the ARCA 200 was usually held after the Clash. The event was renamed the Bud Shootout, and consisted of two 25-lap (62.5-mile) races, the Bud Shootout Qualifier at 11 am, and the Bud Shootout itself at 12 pm. One two-tire pit stop was required for each race. The winner of the qualifier advanced to

3042-461: The final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 on February 18, 2001. Earnhardt is still Daytona International Speedway's most successful driver, with a total of 34 career victories (12 Daytona 500 qualifying races, 7 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, 6 Busch Clash races, 6 IROC races, 2 Pepsi 400 July Races and the 1998 Daytona 500 ). The Hard Rock Bet Fanzone is an access package similar to pit passes for fans to get closer to drivers and race teams. The fanzone

3120-620: The first time since 1984 that open wheel cars have taken to the track at Daytona. On January 31 – February 1, 2007, IndyCar returned for a full test involving 17 cars. On July 8, 2020, NASCAR announced that it would race the Daytona road course in all of its national series for the first time in mid-August (with the Cup Series racing the Go Bowling 235 ), due to current COVID-19 pandemic health restrictions in New York state (requiring 14 days self-isolation on arrival from other states) preventing

3198-441: The format for the 2022 Clash was announced: On December 21, 2022, NASCAR made further changes to the Busch Clash by expanding transfer positions from four to five cars in each heat, thereby expanding the field from 23 to 27 cars. On August 17, 2024, it was announced that the Busch Clash will move to Bowman Gray Stadium on February 2, 2025. Daytona International Speedway Former: Daytona International Speedway

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3276-451: The frontstretch seating. The renovation was by design-builder Barton Malow Company in partnership with Rossetti Architects. The project was completed in January 2016, and cost US $ 400 million. It emphasized improved fan experience with five expanded and redesigned fan entrances (called "injectors"), as well as wider and more comfortable seats, and more restrooms and concession stands. After

3354-548: The high banking, crews had to excavate over a million square yards of soil from the track's infield. Because of the high water table in the area, the excavated hole filled with water to form what is now known as Lake Lloyd , named after Joseph "Sax" Lloyd, one of the original six members of the Daytona Beach Speedway Authority. (The lake was stocked with 65,000 fish, and France arranged speedboat races on it.) 22 tons of lime mortar had to be brought in to form

3432-500: The inaugural Daytona 500. Its finish was as startling as the track itself: Lee Petty beat Johnny Beauchamp in a photo finish that took three days to adjudicate. When the track opened it was the fastest race track to host a stock car race, until Talladega Superspeedway opened 10 years later. On April 4, it hosted a 100 mi (160.9 km) Champ Car event which saw Jim Rathmann beat Dick Rathmann and Rodger Ward , at an average speed of 170.26 mph (274.01 km/h), at

3510-644: The kickoff events for Daytona Speedweeks . The event is one of two non-points races on the Cup Series schedule, the other being the NASCAR All-Star Race . The event has been sponsored by Anheuser-Busch (which owns the Busch Beer and Budweiser brands) for most of its history. In 2013 , Anheuser-Busch moved their Daytona Speedweeks race sponsorship to the Duel races after the departure of longtime Duel title sponsor Gatorade . Cup Series title sponsor Sprint became

3588-551: The main event. The event was renamed the Budweiser Shootout and expanded to a new distance, 70 laps (175 miles). Caution laps would be counted, but the finish had to be under green, with the Truck Series green-white-checker rule used if necessary. A minimum of one two-tire green flag pit stop was required. The Bud Shootout Qualifier was discontinued because second round qualifying for Cup races had been eliminated. The race

3666-471: The naming rights had been purchased by Hard Rock Cafe and named 'Hard Rock Bet Fanzone' after their sports betting service. The Budweiser Party Porch was a 46-foot-high (14.0 m) porch located along the backstretch of the track. It was built on top of a portion of the backstretch grandstands and includes a 277-foot-wide (84.4 m), 33-foot-tall (10.1 m) sign, the largest sign in motorsports. The porch featured tables, food and drinks, offering fans

3744-425: The others being Talladega Superspeedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway . On July 15, 2010, repaving of the track began. This came almost a year earlier than planned due to the track coming apart during the 2010 Daytona 500 . The project used an estimated 50,000 tons of asphalt to repave 1.4 million square feet (130,000 m ) including the racing surface, apron, skid pads and pit road. Because of good weather,

3822-492: The pavement from a flat straightaway to a banked corner. France took the plans to the Daytona Beach city commission, who supported his idea and formed the Daytona Beach Speedway Authority. The city commission agreed to lease the 447-acre (180.9  ha ) parcel of land adjacent to Daytona Beach Municipal Airport to France's corporation for $ 10,000 a year over a 50-year period. France then began working on building funding for

3900-463: The project and found support from a Texas oil millionaire, Clint Murchison, Sr. Murchison lent France $ 600,000 along with the construction equipment necessary to build the track. France also secured funding from Pepsi-Cola , General Motors designer Harley Earl , a second mortgage on his home and selling 300,000 stock shares to local residents. Ground broke on construction of the 2.500 mi (4.023 km) speedway on November 25, 1957. To build

3978-479: The project was completed ahead of schedule. On October 9, 2013, Colin Braun drove a Daytona Prototype car prepared by Michael Shank Racing to set a single-lap record on the tri-oval configuration of 222.971 mph (358.837 km/h). During NASCAR events, it takes less than a minute for the cars to complete a lap around the 2.500 mi (4.023 km) tri-oval course. While the more famous 24 Hours of Le Mans

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4056-536: The renovations were complete, the track's grandstands had 101,500 permanent seats with the ability to increase permanent seating to 125,000. The project was finished before the start of Speedweeks in 2016. NASCAR founder William France Sr. began planning for the track in 1953 as a way to promote the series, which at the time was racing on the Daytona Beach Road Course . France met with Daytona Beach engineer Charles Moneypenny to discuss his plans for

4134-488: The results of fan voting into certain aspects of the race. In 2017, the race was renamed the Advance Auto Parts Clash after Advance Auto Parts signed a multi-year deal to sponsor the event. The 2017 race was delayed to Sunday due to persistent rain, marking the first time the race has been run during the day since 2006. In 2020, Busch Beer returned to assume naming rights for the race, once again dubbing it

4212-728: The same session, every entrant in the IMSA GTP class broke the course lap record previously set by Oliver Jarvis in a Mazda RT24-P in 2019. During Daytona Beach Bike Week , a supercross track is built between the pit road and the tri-oval section of the track. Historically the track has used more sand than dirt, providing unique challenges to riders. The 2008–2013 track configurations were designed by former champion, Ricky Carmichael . Daytona has hosted an AMA Supercross Championship round uninterruptedly since 1971. Popular dirt-track races in karting and flat-track motorcycle racing had been held at Daytona Beach Municipal Stadium but in 2009,

4290-496: The season-opening Daytona 500 . The event was held each year at Daytona International Speedway from the race's inception in 1979 until 2021 , after which it was moved to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2022 until 2024 , when it was announced the Clash would be moved to Bowman Gray Stadium in 2025. Previously at Daytona, the race, along with the ARCA Menards Series ' season-opening Hard Rock Bet 200 , served as

4368-688: The short track became uncertain after 2015 with the grandstands on the back straightaway being demolished as a part of the Daytona Rising project. In the fall of 1959, the track hosted several high school football games for the Father Lopez Green Wave in the first year of the school's football program. The track hosted four college football games featuring the Daytona-based Bethune–Cookman Wildcats in 1974 and 1975. In early 2014 track president Joie Chitwood expressed

4446-475: The speedway. He wanted the track to have the highest banking possible to allow the cars to reach high speeds and to give fans a better view of the cars on track. Moneypenny traveled to Detroit , Michigan to visit the Ford Proving Grounds which had a high-speed test track with banked corners. Ford shared their engineering design of the track with Moneypenny, providing the needed details of how to transition

4524-447: The sticker. However, hard alcohol later appeared on other (non-#43) cars from the successor teams. The return of Anheuser-Busch in 2018 coincided with NASCAR moving contingency sponsorship away from the race cars; as such, the Pole Award decal was discontinued that season. The Clash at Daytona The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium is an annual non-championship pre-season NASCAR Cup Series exhibition event held in February before

4602-467: The time the fastest motor race ever. It was the occasion of Daytona's first fatality: George Amick , attempting to overtake for third late in the race, hit a wall and was killed. April 5, a scheduled 1,000 km (620 mi) sports car event (shortened to 560 mi (900 km) by darkness) was won by Roberto Mieres and Fritz d'Orey , who shared a Porsche RSK , which proved more durable than more potent competition. Lights were installed around

4680-443: The time) would not be potentially destroyed in crashes during the event after the previous season's Clash ended with incidents that few cars were remaining, to curb the blocking that created massive crashes. A 200 kilometer (126.35 miles to be exact) race, the segments were 15 and 20 laps, respectively. On September 14, 2021, NASCAR announced that the Busch Clash would move to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum . On November 9, 2021,

4758-448: The title sponsor for this race, which was renamed from "The Shootout" to "The Unlimited" (to promote Sprint's cell phone unlimited plan). When Sprint left NASCAR after the 2016 season, Advance Auto Parts became the title sponsor in 2017 and the event was renamed to its original name of "The Clash". Advanced Auto Parts did not return as the title sponsor in 2020 , which opened the door for Anheuser-Busch (which dropped its sponsorship of

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4836-418: The track also hosts races of ARCA , AMA Superbike , SCCA , and AMA Supercross . The track features multiple layouts including the primary 2.500 mi (4.023 km) high-speed tri-oval , a 3.560 mi (5.729 km) sports car course, a 2.950 mi (4.748 km) motorcycle course, and a 1,320 ft (400 m) karting and motorcycle flat-track. The track's 180-acre (73 ha) infield includes

4914-509: The track in 1998 to run NASCAR's July race, the Coke Zero 400 at night. The track was the world's largest single lighted outdoor sports facility until being surpassed by Losail International Circuit in 2008. Musco Lighting installed the lighting system, which took into account glare and visibility for aircraft arriving and departing nearby Daytona Beach International Airport, and costs about $ 240 per hour when in operation. Daytona's tri-oval

4992-481: The track until Wednesday. The Busch Clash allowed the Winston Cup regulars to kick off the week live on CBS . The 1987 race, won by Bill Elliott , was completed at an average speed of 197.802 mph. It stands as the fastest sanctioned race in the history of NASCAR (though it was not an official points-paying event). The 2013 race (renamed the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona ) introduced a new format incorporating

5070-615: The track's binding base , over which asphalt was laid. Because of the extreme degree of banking, Moneypenny had to come up with a way to pave the incline. He connected the paving equipment to bulldozers anchored at the top of the banking. This allowed the paving equipment to pave the banking without slipping or rolling down the incline. Moneypenny subsequently patented his construction method and later designed Talladega Superspeedway and Michigan International Speedway . By December 1958, France had begun to run out of money and relied on race ticket sales to complete construction. He also received

5148-429: The use of Watkins Glen International . On July 30, a modification of the course to add a chicane near the exit of Turn 12 (Oval Turn Four) was announced, lengthening the course to 3.570 mi (5.745 km). On January 21, 2024, Pipo Derani set the fastest ever recorded lap of the modern Daytona road course, with a 1:32.656 driving a Cadillac V-Series.R during qualifying for the 2024 24 Hours of Daytona . During

5226-421: The water table. Another challenge came during construction when three named hurricanes passed by the track, flooding much of the excavation work. The infield renovation involved landscaping and hardscaping, such as a new walkway along the shore of Lake Lloyd, and the construction of 34 new buildings, including garages and fueling stations, offices and inspection facilities, and a club. The renovation project received

5304-428: Was 75 laps (187.5 miles). For 2013, the vote resulted in a mandatory four-tire pit stop, and no cars were eliminated. For 2014, voting set the starting lineup per final practice speeds and required mandatory pit stops after the second segment. The race still kept its 75-lap distance, and returned to the 2003 format with one exception; the first segment was now 25 laps instead of 20 laps. The race originally consisted of

5382-414: Was broken up into two segments: a 20-lap segment, followed by a ten-minute intermission, concluding with a 50-lap second segment. While a pit stop was no longer required by rule, a reduction in fuel cell size (from 22 gallons to 13.5 gallons) made a fuel stop necessary. (In 2007, fuel cells were expanded to 18.5 gallons.) Many drivers also changed two tires during their fuel stop, as the time required to fuel

5460-400: Was built in 2004 as part of a renovation of the track's infield. Fans are able to walk on top of the garages, known as the "fandeck", and view track and garage activity. Fans can also view race teams working in the garage, including NASCAR technical inspection, through windows. The garage windows also include slots for fans to hand merchandise to drivers for autographs. The fanzone also includes

5538-427: Was completely rained out, giving Kyle Larson the pole position, however he was not given the Coors Light Pole Award or a berth in the 2015 Sprint Unlimited. However, later in the year at the Coke Zero 400 , David Gilliland was fastest in round 1 of qualifying, and was given the pole after rounds 2 and 3 were rained out. Because one round of qualifying had been completed, the session was declared official and Gilliland

5616-444: Was developed by their famed "AM2" development team. It featured a fully detailed 3D model of the circuit for the very first time. The soundtrack for the game included vocals by Takenobu Mitsuyoshi . It is widely considered to be one of the most successful and influential racing games of all time. Daytona USA spawned many sequels, both in the arcades and on various home video game consoles. The latest version, Daytona Championship USA ,

5694-457: Was extended to a 24-hour endurance race known as the Rolex 24 at Daytona . It was shortened again to six hours in 1972 and the 1974 rendition of the race was cancelled entirely. In 1973, a very sharp chicane was added at the end of the backstretch, approaching oval turn three. In 1984 and 1985, the layout was modified, re-profiling road course turns 1 and 2, and moving what is now turn 3 (nicknamed

5772-408: Was featured as part of the event. The race was broken into two ten-lap, green flag segments. The field was then inverted for the second ten-lap segment. Prize money was awarded for both segments for all positions. The race was broken up into two segments mainly because it had been lacking competitiveness since restrictor plates were introduced in 1988. The inversion rule added some needed excitement to

5850-635: Was given the Coors Light Pole Award and the berth in the 2015 Sprint Unlimited, but Gilliland did not participate in that year's race. The berth became irrelevant in 2022 when the race's venue was moved to the Los Angeles Coliseum and the format was changed so that it no longer relied on polesitters. That year, the Busch Pole Award was rebranded to the Busch Light Pole Award. As a contingency sponsorship , in order to fully be eligible for

5928-431: Was planned that the 2022 Clash would return to a standard schedule (the 2021 Speedweeks schedule was shortened because of Super Bowl LV in nearby Tampa), taking place with sixth-generation cars on the road course. That changed when the 2021 -22 NFL year moved Super Bowl LVI back a week and into the traditional Speedweeks date after the 2022 Daytona 500 date was announced. NASCAR then moved the renamed Busch Light Clash to

6006-417: Was planned with the seventh-generation car changeover happening at the Daytona 500, which was postponed a year by supply chain and development issues from the pandemic lockdowns that severely altered the previous season. As a result, the race was moved to the road course using the previous sixth-generation cars to save teams resources and ensure the single-source new chassis (which teams did not have enough at

6084-462: Was released to arcades in 2017. iRacing.com have laser-scanned the facility twice. The first in 2008, and 2011 once the repave was completed. Both are available in official racing series. There has been no word to when and if it will be re-scanned now that the Daytona Rising project has now been completed. Both the oval layout and Rolex 24 Hour layout are available in both PlayStation 3 video games Gran Turismo 5 and Gran Turismo 6 , and in

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