After starting Thursday night’s qualifying Duel race in 10th, Trevor Bayne shuffled through the field and gained six positions in the last two laps to finish eighth. The driver of the No. 6 AdvoCare Ford Fusion takes the green flag in Sunday’s 60th Annual Daytona 500 from 18th.
Bayne’s 2018 debut at Daytona International Speedway came in a 60-lap race with only one caution. The yellow flag waved at Lap 11, just after the driver adjusted his track bar with reports of a free car. Bayne and the No. 6 team pitted for fuel only with the caution and restarted sixth. For the duration of the race, he toggled between lanes, ultimately settling on the bottom lane. After dropping as low as 14th and even losing the draft, Bayne was able to catch the field with 34 to go. He ultimately finished the race in eighth, inside the top-10.
“We were trying, but we just couldn’t go anywhere,” Bayne said. “I tried working the bottom, we just didn’t have the help or the momentum. Early on we kind of got there and after the pit stop we were there, but once we got rooted to the middle we just dropped and it’s hard to get your track position back.”
Bayne looks to add a second Daytona 500 victory to his achievements on Sunday, Feb. 15 at 2:30 p.m. EST.
RFR PR/Photo Jerry Markland/Getty Images
