The annual qualifying races have produced some thrilling finishes and made a bit of history themselves.
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The races, which set the field and starting lineup for the Daytona 500, were 100-mile races from 1959-68, and then 125 miles from 1969-2004. Now called the Budweiser Duels, they are now 150-mile races.
Eight drivers have won a qualifying race and the Daytona 500 in the same years.
Dale Earnhardt won a record 12 qualifying, including an amazing 10 in a row.
Surprisingly, Richard Petty won only one qualifying race, despite winning the Daytona 500 a record seven times.
There also have been a handful of upsets over the years, including Jeff Gordon’s win as a rookie in 1993 in his first trip to Daytona. Other upsets include: Earl Balmer (1966), Coo Coo Marlin (1973), Mike Skinner (2001), Robby Gordon (2003) and Elliott Sadler (2004).
Here’s a look at the winners of the Daytona qualifying races over the years:
1959 — Bob Welborn, Shorty Rollins 1960 — Fireball Roberts, Jack Smith 1961 — Fireball Roberts, Joe Weatherly 1962 — Fireball Roberts, Joe Weatherly 1963 — Junior Johnson, Johnny Rutherford 1964 — Junior Johnson, Bobby Isaac 1965 — Darel Dieringer, Junior Johnson 1966 — Paul Goldsmith, Earl Balmer 1967 — LeeRoy Yarbrough, Fred Lorenzen 1968 — N/A (Rain) 1969 — David Pearson, Bobby Isaac 1970 — Cale Yarborough, Charlie Glotzbach 1971 — Pete Hamilton, David Pearson 1972 — Bobby Isaac, Bobby Allison 1973 — Buddy Baker, Coo Coo Marlin 1974 — Bobby Isaac, Cale Yarborough 1975 — Bobby Allison, David Pearson 1976 — Dave Marcis, Darrell Waltrip 1977 — Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough 1978 — A.J. Foyt, Darrell Waltrip 1979 — Buddy Baker, Darrell Waltrip 1980 — Neil Bonnett, Donnie Allison 1981 — Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip 1982 — Cale Yarborough, Buddy Baker 1983 — Dale Earnhardt, Neil Bonnett 1984 — Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison 1985 — Bill Elliott, Cale Yarborough 1986 — Bill Elliott, Dale Earnhardt 1987 — Ken Schrader, Benny Parsons 1988 — Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip 1989 — Ken Schrader, Terry Labonte 1990 — Geoff Bodine, Dale Earnhardt 1991 — Davey Allison, Dale Earnhardt 1992 — Dale Earnhardt, Bill Elliott 1993 — Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt 1994 — Ernie Irvan, Dale Earnhardt 1995 — Sterling Marlin, Dale Earnhardt 1996 — Dale Earnhardt, Ernie Irvan 1997 — Dale Jarrett, Dale Earnhardt 1998 — Sterling Marlin, Dale Earnhardt 1999 — Bobby Labonte, Dale Earnhardt 2000 — Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd 2001 —Sterling Marlin, Mike Skinner 2002 — Jeff Gordon, Michael Waltrip 2003 — Robby Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2004 — Dale Earnhardt Jr., Elliott Sadler 2005 — Michael Waltrip, Tony Stewart 2006 — Elliott Sadler, Jeff Gordon 2007 — Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon 2008 — Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin 2009 — Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch 2010 — Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne 2011 — Kurt Busch, Jeff Burton 2012 — Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth 2013 — Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch