The 2020 Busch Clash was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on February 9, 2020 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Contested over 88 laps — extended from 75 laps due to an overtime finish, it was the first exhibition race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. The race was won by Erik Jones, one of only six cars still running after a series of crashes late in the race, gaining the race the nickname of "Busch Crash" for that reason.[8]
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 2 exhibition races in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | February 9, 2020 | ||
| Location | Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4 km) | ||
| Distance | 88 laps, 220 mi (352 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 75 laps, 187.5 mi (300 km) | ||
| Average speed | 134.9 miles per hour (217.1 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Roush Fenway Racing | ||
| Time | N/A | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | |
| Laps | 33 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | FS1 | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy and Jeff Gordon | ||
| Nielsen Ratings | 2.455 million[7] | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth Announcers | Alex Hayden, Jeff Striegle, and Rusty Wallace | ||
| Turn Announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2), Mike Bagley (Backstretch) and Kyle Rickey (3 & 4) | ||
This ended up being the last Clash race in its traditional form; the event moved to the road course for 2021 (originally planned as the last race for the Generation 6 car; the car was used for the entire season instead) and then to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2022.
Report
editBackground
edit
The track, Daytona International Speedway, is one of six superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the others being Michigan International Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Pocono Raceway, and Talladega Superspeedway. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four–turn superspeedway that is 2.5-mile (4.0 km) The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.
Format and eligibility
editThe race is 75 laps in length, and is divided into two segments; the first is 25 laps and the second is 50 laps. The race is open to those drivers who won a pole in the 2019 season or had won "The Clash" previously.
The 2020 Busch Clash will not be a predetermined number of cars; rather, the field is limited to drivers who meet more exclusive criteria. Only drivers who were 2019 Pole Award winners, former Clash race winners, former Daytona 500 champions, former Daytona 500 pole winners who competed full–time in 2019 and drivers who qualified for the 2019 Playoffs are eligible.
Entry list
editEighteen drivers were confirmed to be participating in this event. Although Daniel Hemric and Daniel Suárez were eligible to run the event, they chose not to run with Hemric moving back to the NASCAR Xfinity Series and Suarez focusing in preparing for the 2020 Daytona 500.[9]
Practice
editErik Jones was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 45.055 seconds and a speed of 199.756 mph (321.476 km/h).[10]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 45.055 | 199.756 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 45.060 | 199.734 |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 45.067 | 199.703 |
| Official final practice results | ||||||
Starting lineup
editThe lineup was determined by random draw, with Ryan Newman drawing the top spot.
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | ||
| 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | ||
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | ||
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | ||
| 5 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | ||
| 6 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | ||
| 7 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | ||
| 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | ||
| 9 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | ||
| 10 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | ||
| 11 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | ||
| 12 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | ||
| 13 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | ||
| 14 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | ||
| 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | ||
| 16 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | ||
| 17 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | ||
| 18 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | ||
| Official starting lineup | ||||||
Race summary
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2020) |
Race Results
editBox score
edit| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota Camry | 88 | 1:37:51 |
| 2 | 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet Camaro | 88 | -.697 seconds |
| 3 | 6 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford Mustang | 88 | Running |
| 4 | 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet Camaro | 88 | Running |
| 5 | 1 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford Mustang | 88 | Running |
| 6 | 18 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota Camry | 87 | -1 lap |
| 7 | 11 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet Camaro | 82 | Accident |
| 8 | 14 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford Mustang | 78 | Accident |
| 9 | 13 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford Mustang | 78 | Accident |
| 10 | 5 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford Mustang | 77 | Accident |
| 11 | 16 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet Camaro | 77 | Accident |
| 12 | 17 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet Camaro | 77 | Accident |
| 13 | 10 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford Mustang | 77 | Accident |
| 14 | 7 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet Camaro | 74 | Accident |
| 15 | 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet Camaro | 74 | Accident |
| 16 | 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota Camry | 72 | Accident |
| 17 | 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford Mustang | 66 | Accident |
| 18 | 9 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota Camry | 65 | Accident |
| Official race results | |||||||
Statistics
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Media
editFS1 covered the race on the television side; Mike Joy and Jeff Gordon handled the call in the booth for the race; Michael Waltrip, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum handled pit road for the television side.
Television
editA total of 2.46 million people watched the race, which earned it a 1.57 rating. This rating was 15% higher than the 2019 Clash.[11]
| FS1 | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon |
Michael Waltrip Vince Welch Matt Yocum |
Radio
edit| MRN Radio | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace |
Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody Backstretch: Mike Bagley Turns 3 & 4: Kyle Rickey |
Winston Kelley Steve Post Dillon Welch Kim Coon |
References
edit- ^ "2020 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- ^ "Daytona International Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. February 4, 2020. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ "Final Practice Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. February 8, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Starting Lineup". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. February 8, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Busch Clash Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. February 9, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
- ^ "Busch Clash ratings". ShowBuzzDaily. Mitch Metcalf. Archived from the original on 12 February 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
- ^ "Erik Jones wins Busch Clash on crash-filled day at Daytona". ESPN.com. February 10, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "FAQ: Facts, info about Busch Clash at Daytona". The Official Site Of NASCAR. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ Utter, Jim (February 8, 2020). "Erik Jones, Toyotas lead only Busch Clash practice at Daytona". Motorsport.com. Daytona Beach, Florida: Motorsport Network. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "SKEDBALL: Weekly Sports TV Ratings 2.3-2.9.2020 | Showbuzz Daily". www.showbuzzdaily.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-12. Retrieved 2020-02-11.