Defending champion William Byron made the most of a weather-shortened Daytona 500 practice session on Friday evening, setting the fastest lap at 194.923 mph (46.172s). The Hendrick Motorsports driver was closely followed by teammate Chase Elliott, who logged the second-fastest time at 194.763 mph before rain cut the session short after just 31 minutes of on-track action.
With only one scheduled practice session on Friday, teams were left with limited track time to fine-tune their setups for Sunday’s Great American Race.
Top 10 Fastest Drivers in Friday’s Practice
| Position | Driver | Speed (mph) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Byron | 194.923 |
| 2 | Chase Elliott | 194.763 |
| 3 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 194.679 |
| 4 | Kyle Busch | 194.393 |
| 5 | Austin Dillon | 194.032 |
| 6 | Zane Smith (Fastest Ford) | 193.665 |
| 7 | Todd Gilliland | 193.395 |
| 8 | Joey Logano | 193.278 |
| 9 | Kyle Larson | 193.245 |
| 10 | Ryan Blaney | 193.237 |
Zane Smith led the way for Ford at sixth, while Toyota’s best performance came from John Hunter Nemechek in 14th.
Limited Track Time & Different Strategies
With rain halting the session after just 31 minutes, only 30 drivers turned a lap. Some teams, including Kaulig Racing, chose to skip practice entirely, while others—Cody Ware, Shane van Gisbergen, Helio Castroneves, and Daniel Suárez—opted to sit out due to repairs and preparation of backup cars following Thursday night’s Duel crashes.
As is often the case during Speedweeks, teams experimented with different drafting strategies. Toyota drivers ran in small packs, while Chevrolet and Ford drivers executed an 11-car draft early in the session to test setups for Sunday’s 500-mile battle.
What’s Next?
Teams will get their final tune-up session before Sunday’s Daytona 500 with a final practice set for 3:05 p.m. ET on Saturday. With rain already impacting Speedweeks, every lap in Saturday’s session will be critical for teams still making adjustments.
