55th Daytona 500 Race Report

Event:             55th Daytona 500 (Round 1 of 36)Series:             NASCAR Sprint Cup SeriesLocation:        Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (2.5-mile oval)Winner:           Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)SHR Finish:    Ryan Newman (Started 34th, Finished 5th / Running, completed 200 of 200 laps)Danica Patrick (Started 1st, Finished 8th / Running, completed 200 of 200 laps)Tony Stewart (Started 13th, Finished 41st / Running, completed 118 of 200 lapsSHR Points:    Ryan Newman (5th with 40 points, seven points out of first) Danica Patrick (7th with 37 points, 10 points out of first)Tony Stewart (37th with three points, 44 points out of first)Ryan Newman led the way for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) Sunday at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway by finishing fifth in the 55th Daytona 500. Newman, driver of the No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS and winner of the 2008 Daytona 500, led twice for three laps in the season-opening NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished eighth after leading three times for five laps around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. Patrick earned the highest finish for a woman in the Great American Race. The previous best finish for a woman in the Daytona 500 was 11th by Janet Guthrie in 1980.Patrick made history a week ago by becoming the first woman to win a Sprint Cup pole when she set the fastest time in qualifying for the Daytona 500. She wrote another chapter of Daytona 500 history by leading laps 90-91, becoming the first female to lead NASCARs most prestigious race. Patrick made similar history in the IZOD IndyCar Series when she led 19 laps as a rookie in the 2005 Indianapolis 500, becoming the first woman to lead open-wheel racings premier event. She finished fourth that year at Indy.Patrick is one of only 13 drivers to have led the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500, joining A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, Bobby Allison, Jim Hurtubise, Johnny Rutherford, Tim Richmond, John Andretti, Robby Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya and Tony Stewart.Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 41st after getting caught in an accident early in the 200-lap race. Stewart, who has 19 overall victories at Daytona, remains winless in 15 Daytona 500 starts.Jimmie Johnson won the Daytona 500 to score his 61st career Sprint Cup victory and his second in the Daytona 500, with the other in 2006. He became the 10th driver to win multiple Daytona 500s.

Johnsons Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished .129 of a second behind in the runner-up spot. Mark Martin, Brad Keselowski and Newman took spots three through five. The rest of the top-10 consisted of Greg Biffle, Regan Smith, Patrick, Michael McDowell and JJ Yeley.

There were six caution periods for 24 laps, with eight drivers failing to finish.With round one of 36 complete, Newman leads the SHR contingent in the championship point standings. He is fifth, seven points behind series leader Johnson. Patrick stands seventh, 10 points out of first. Stewart is 37th, 44 points behind Johnson.Patrick, who is competing for Rookie of the Year honors against Ricky Stenhouse Jr., finished four spots ahead of Stenhouse (12th).The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Subway Fresh Fit 500k Sunday, March 3 at Phoenix International Raceway. The race starts at 3 p.m. EST, with live coverage provided by FOX beginning with its pre-race show at 2:30 p.m.