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The 2024 Daytona 500 finish was not without controversy. A multi-car accident as the white flag waved forced NASCAR to throw the caution, ending the race. But at that same moment, Alex Bowman was in a virtual dead heat with William Byron. NASCAR declared Byron the winner, but Bowman appeared to be ahead when the caution lights came on. So, what gives? Did NASCAR SCREW Alex Bowman?
Before we analyze the scenario itself, we need to know what the rules are. What happens if NASCAR throws a caution on the white flag lap?
First off, if a caution is thrown after the white flag, the race ends. Everyone must maintain the position they held at the moment of caution and come back around to cross the line at a cautious pace. This happened in 2023 at Talladega.
That’s pretty cut and dry, and it’s been NASCAR’s procedure since racing back to the caution flag was outlawed in 2003. Where the controversy comes in is when NASCAR determines the “Moment of caution” is.
In the past, NASCAR used the moment the caution lights came on as the “Moment of caution”, but that has now changed. NASCAR determines the “Moment of caution” as the moment that the button is pressed to trigger the caution lights, which is slightly before the caution lights come on. This is what determined the finish of the 2023 Daytona 500, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was deemed to be ahead at the moment of caution.
Obviously, the modern interpretation of the “Moment of Caution” is impossible for the average fan and viewer to know exactly because they’re not in the control tower. It may be a bit controversial, but it’s the rule.
Now back to the 2024 Daytona 500. When did NASCAR throw the caution flag?
Mike Forde, of NASCAR Racing Communications, explained exactly when this occurred. He elaborated that NASCAR waited until Austin Cindric came back across the track in front of traffic to bring out the yellow, in hopes that he would stay low and allow the race to end under green. He attached a photo that shows the exact moment NASCAR determined the caution came out, and while incredibly close, Byron appears to be slightly ahead of Bowman.
Where the controversy brews is that fans noticed that when the caution lights came on Bowman was actually ahead of Byron. This can be seen in the tweet by SP Designs below.
However, that’s not how the rules are anymore. At the moment that NASCAR determined they pressed the button to throw the caution flag, Byron was out front. Under 2010s rules, Bowman would likely have won the Daytona 500, but, that’s not what the drivers are playing under.
It’s also worth noting that Bowman told Fox Sports’ Regan Smith after the race, “I was pretty sure William [Byron] had us, but, you’re gonna let them debate it right. I think a couple hundred more feet and we had the run.”
It seems like a classic example of being in the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time. If NASCAR waited maybe half a second longer to throw the flag, Bowman probably wins. Unfortunately for Bowman and fortunately for Byron, NASCAR threw the caution flag at exactly the moment they did.
Another controversial topic is whether or not NASCAR should have thrown the caution when they did. Cindric and Chastain spun out before the white flag was displayed, and, if NASCAR had simply thrown the caution, the race would have gone into Overtime to finish under green.
NASCAR has made close calls like this before at Daytona. One such example came in 2022 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race, where a multi-car crash happened in the tri-oval, and NASCAR determined the caution flag came out a few feet before the white flag was displayed. The specific instance is time-stamped below.
Now, let’s look back what what Mike Forde had to say about the end of the 2024 Daytona 500. He said that NASCAR elected to wait to throw the caution flag because they were hoping Chastain and Cindric were going to stay in the grass. That obviously did not happen, so the caution flag had to be displayed.
It’s not uncommon for NASCAR to allow drivers to race around to the checkered flag even if there is an accident. Examples in the Daytona 500 specifically include 2007, 2010, 2013, 2014, and 2018. The scenario NASCAR hoped would happen is probably most similar to the last lap of the 2002 Daytona 500, where Dale Jarrett spun into the infield grass, so, that example to featured below.
Could NASCAR have thrown the caution flag immediately when the spin happened? Maybe they could have, but, the 2024 incident all unfolded within a matter of about 5 seconds. NASCAR had to make multiple split-second decisions within that time frame, and it just happened to be as the leaders were taking the white flag.
NASCAR couldn’t let them race back to the line because the accident happened too close to the finish line. Drivers would be racing hard for the finish of the Daytona 500 with damaged cars scattered all over the race track. If you look at the other instances mentioned above, all of the accidents happened either behind the leaders as they were heading to the checkered flag far enough after the finish line to allow the leaders to slow down as they head into the accident scene.
So, did NASCAR screw Alex Bowman? No, but, if they made their decision just a teeny bit later, the result is different. It was an incredibly close call and Bowman was on the wrong side of it.
