For most of the night it looked like Matt Kenseth would become the first driver in three decades to sweep both points-paying races at Daytona International Speedway in one season, but a bevy of last-lap action allowed Tony Stewart to sneak through for the victory in the Coke Zero 400. It is Stewart's third win of the year, his fourth in the summer Daytona 400-miler, and the 47th of his Sprint Cup career.
Jeff Burton finished second ahead of Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, and Ryan Newman. Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards, Michael Waltrip, Bobby Labonte, and David Reutimann completed the top-10.
Stewart and Kenseth were side-by-side ahead of Kasey Kahne and Greg Biffle starting the last lap. Kahne and Burton got together in turn one, breaking Kahne from behind Stewart and Biffle from Kenseth. Stewart cleared the dominant Roush Fords on the backstretch but they were closing back on him entering turn three. Kenseth, Biffle, and Kevin Harvick all came together, triggering a massive pileup that swept up Dale Earnhardt Jr., Aric Almirola, Carl Edwards, and others. Stewart held off Burton to the line to score his 18th win in any circuit at Daytona, second all-time to Dale Earnhardt. The winner started 42nd after failing post-qualifying inspection Friday.
Georgia's Bill Elliott had a solid run for most of the evening, but his race ended in a wild accident entering the pit lane on lap 124. Jimmie Johnson was bumped from behind by Martin Truex as Johnson slowed to head to pit lane. Elliott's car was collected by Truex and Regan Smith, sending the No. 50 Chevrolet sliding into Jeff Gordon and doing extensive front-end damage to Elliott's ride. Johnson slammed the inside wall after his bump from Truex, also ending his night in a fashion reminiscent of his lap 2 accident in the Daytona 500.
The true "Big One" - at least prior to the last-lap crash - broke loose exiting the tri-oval when Biffle and Hamlin touched, sending Hamlin's Toyota towards the inside of the track. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver over-corrected into traffic, slamming hard into Trevor Bayne and setting up a wild accident that wrapped up Clint Bowyer, Juan Pablo Montoya, Paul Menard, Marcos Ambrose, David Gilliland, and Kyle Busch.
Sam Hornish Jr., substituting for the suspended A.J. Allmendinger, had a shredded right-rear tire do extensive damage to his Dodge and limped to a 33rd-place finish.
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