Ryan Preece went airborne in the closing laps of the 2025 Daytona 500
After extensive weather delays, the 67th running of the Daytona 500 finally came to an end hours after it began, with William Byron taking the Great American Race for the second year in a row.
But one of the major moments from this season’s Daytona 500 was a scary crash involving Ryan Preece, coming in the closing laps. With the field bunched up Christopher Bell got a big bump from behind by Cole Custer, sending Bell’s No. 20 Toyota to the right, and then into the outer wall.
As Bell’s Toyota turned, it made contact with Preece’s No. 60 Ford, which was running alongside the No. 43 of Erik Jones. Those two cars touched, and the front end of Preece’s Ford then lifted into the air, before sending Preece on an absolutely wild ride:
Another look at Ryan Preece’s scary wreck. #NASCAR #DAYTONA500 pic.twitter.com/nQ2RcqGUNY
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 17, 2025
Up in the FOX Sports commentary booth former drivers Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick expressed amazement at seeing Preece’s car go airborne in such a manner.
Preece was able to walk away from the incident, and was released from the medical center after a brief evaluation.
Here is another look at the incident from Jones’ No. 43:
This view of Ryan Preece’s car flipping. Goodness. pic.twitter.com/o1dFgsUBuz
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 17, 2025
Interviewed after being released from the care center, Preece admitted that as the wreck was happening “…it got real quiet and all I thought about was my daughter.”
“When the car took off like that, it got real quiet and all I thought about was my daughter.”
–@RyanPreece_ after a scary moment where his car flipped in the final laps of the #Daytona500 pic.twitter.com/4xGrNY22jX
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 17, 2025
This is not Preece’s first terrifying moment at Daytona International Speedway. During the 2023 Coke Zero Sugar 400 he again went airborne, flipping ten times before his car came to a rest on the infield:
That incident led NASCAR, which owns the Daytona track, to conduct a safety review. The results of that review led to NASCAR paving the backstretch grass after last year’s Daytona 500, and making alterations to the previous curbing and concrete pads.
Still, as Preece noted this was another scary incident, one that he was lucky to walk away from.
“I’m lucky to walk away, but we’re getting really close to somebody not being able to, so I’m very grateful,” added the driver.
