On February 17, in car No. 17, on his 17th attempt, three-time NASCAR champion Darrell Waltrip finally won the Great American Race. When he climbed out of his race car, Waltrip performed the "Ickey Shuffle" in Victory Lane and then spiked his helmet like a football.

Two full Disneylands would fit inside Daytona International Speedway's 180-acre infield.

Because of America's energy crisis at the time, the 1974 Daytona 500 was actually the "Daytona 450."

During his qualifying run for the 1987 Daytona 500, Ford driver Bill Elliott turned a lap of 42.78 seconds at an average speed of 210.36 mph (338 km/h). The following year NASCAR instituted the restrictor plate rule for Daytona, reducing engine horsepower to keep speeds down.

Originally scheduled to be run on Sunday, February 26, constant rain postponed the start of the race until 7pm the following day.

Marcis competed in the Daytona 500 every year from 1968 until 1999, finishing with a record 33 starts.

Trevor Bayne won the 2011 Daytona 500 at the age of 20 years and 1 day.

20 of the 59 cars in the 1959 Daytona 500 were convertibles.

While the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. is tied for the all-time NASCAR lead with seven career championships, it took him 20 years before he won his first and only Daytona 500 in 1998.

Patrick's eighth-place finish in the 2013 Daytona 500 was the best-ever by a female driver.