Byron wins Daytona 500 under caution to end Hendrick drought - ESPN

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — William Byron launched Hendrick Motorsports' 40th anniversary season by snapping the team's nine-year Daytona 500 losing streak with a win Monday in the rain-delayed «Great American Race.»

Byron crossed under the white flag denoting the final lap at the exact moment a crash broke out behind him. The caution flag was thrown and he wasn't quite sure if he was the official winner as he circled Daytona International Speedway one final time.

«That was a long lap and a half,» Byron admitted. «My crew chief tried to speak up and he was all emotional, so I thought, 'Man, I hope he knows because I don't know if we won this race.'»

The last Hendrick driver to win the Daytona 500 was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2014. The 26-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, is the sixth different driver to win the 500 for Rick Hendrick, the winningest team owner in NASCAR history who made his way to victory lane on the actual 40th anniversary of his first Cup win.

«The first time we came here, we didn't think we had any business even being here,» Hendrick said in victory lane. «We felt way out of our league. Now here we are 40 years later. You couldn't write the script any better. To win this on the 40th, to the day, it's just awesome.»

The ninth Daytona 500 win for Hendrick Motorsports tied the team with Petty Enterprises for most in NASCAR history.

«William Byron was already a superstar, and I mean, he just went to another level of being superstar,» said Hendrick vice chairman Jeff Gordon, himself a three-time Daytona 500 winner in the No. 24 Chevrolet.

«I wasn't driving the car, but I felt like I was making every lap out there with him. We're going to celebrate. This is a huge win.»

Byron, who had never finished higher