The Daytona 500 was made official with no penalties affecting any drivers in the field, as NASCAR didn’t announce any punishments on Tuesday.
Despite multiple wrecks and debatable moments, the race went off without a hitch.
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The only instance of a penalty came during the Daytona Duels earlier in the week. That forced the disqualification of Anthony Alfredo from the Daytona 500 as an Open car.
Other key moments of unrest featured Justin Allgaier and Denny Hamlin, who wrecked in Stage One. On the final lap, Riley Herbst got on the nerves of Brad Keselowski with his three-wide move. However, neither of these was against the rules or blatant.
Testy Moments of the Daytona 500
Justin Allgaier and Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series drivers crash during the 68th running of the Daytona 500.Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
(Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
As Hamlin made a huge late run to Stage One, he came to the bumper of Allgaier. The issue was clearly on Allgaier, and he later took full responsibility for it. Allgaier failed to commit to the middle or outside lane in the tri-oval. This squeezed Hamlin’s run to the wall, and they collided — some harm, but no foul.
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Riley Herbst and Brad Keselowski
Lap 200 of the Daytona 500 got tensions high, but mainly on the receiving end of the wreck. In the tri-oval on the final lap, Herbst checked up just slightly behind Chase Elliott. He then served to the outside lane, and a fraction of a second too late, he nailed the bumper of a surging Keselowski car at 192 mph.
This was a split-second decision by Herbst to hopefully get lucky and rush past Elliott for the win. Keselowski stated in his post-race interview that Herbst had no chance and that it was all his fault. This was a last resort for everyone involved, so it is hard to knock anyone for wrongdoing.
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Reddick was the beneficiary as Keselowski’s run was ruined, despite its long-shot chances to get to the line in 1st place. No move was on purpose of foul, so it will just keep Keselowski angry at Herbst for a little while.
Daytona Duels — Anthony Alfredo
The sole penalty of the weekend would happen in Duel No. 2 back on Thursday night. Alfredo became the highest open car finisher of the three in the race. Following the post-race technical inspection, Alfredo failed due to multiple loose or disconnected hoses in the car.
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The beneficiary was the No. 78 of BJ McLeod. However, that would result in a last-place finish after a part snapped off the lower body of his car. McLeod only ran four complete laps.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Feb 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the Racing section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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