who drove the pace car for the daytona 500
Daytona 500 history The table below summarizes the pace cars,[1] Grand Marshals,[2] Honorary Starters,[3] and performers of the national anthem[4] at the Daytona 500. Since 2006, the pace car has been driven by a celebrity guest at the start of the race (mirroring the tradition used the Indy 500). During the race, however, a NASCAR official drives the pace car during caution periods. Since 2004, Brett Bodine has served as the official pace car driver. Previously, Robert "Buster" Auton and Elmo Langley were pace car drivers.
Denny Hamlin James Dennis Alan "Denny" Hamlin (born November 18, 1980)[1][2] is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 20 Camry for JGR. He has won 30 NASCAR Cup Series races, including the Daytona 500 in 2016, where he also posted the smallest winning margin in that race's history.