Joey Logano wins NASCAR's Daytona 500 in overtime finish

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Joey Logano, right, celebrates with team owner Roger Penske after winning the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

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NASCAR driver Joey Logano celebrates in victory lane while holding his steering wheel after winning the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

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Joey Logano celebrates on top of his car after winning the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

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NASCAR driver Joey Logano celebrates his win in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22. (Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

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Joey Logano performs burnouts after winning the Daytona 500 on Sunday. (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

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A pack races during the early stages of the Daytona 500. (Robert Laberge / Getty Images)

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Jeff Gordon leads the field at the start of the Daytona 500. (David Graham / Associated Press)

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Daytona 500 pole-sitter Jeff Gordon, bottom, races alongside Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson. (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

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Jeff Gordon, right, and Jimmie Johnson line up behind the pace car before the start of the Daytona 500. (Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

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Cars are lined up on the grid before the start of the Daytona 500. (Brian Lawdermilk / Getty Images)

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Fans gather on the track before the start of the Daytona 500. (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

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Kid Rock performs before the start of the Daytona 500. (Terry Renna / Associated Press)

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Actor Vince Vaughn looks on during a drivers’ meeting before the start of the Daytona 500. Vaughn was the race’s grand marshal. (Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

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Jeff Gordon climbs into his car before the start of the Daytona 500. (Terry Renna / Associated Press)

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Carl Edwards, top, races next to Kasey Kahne during the Daytona 500. (Robert Laberge / Getty Images)

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Ryan Newman, top, races alongside Matt Crafton in the early stages of the Daytona 500. (Robert Laberge / Getty Images)

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Smoke pours out of Brad Keselowski’s car during the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Phelan M. Ebenhack / Associated Press)

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Carl Edwards leads a pack of cars during the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Sean Gardner / Getty Images)

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Crew members work on Joey Logano’s car during a pit stop at the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

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Pole-sitter Jeff Gordon races during the Daytona 500. (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

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Fire and smoke engulfs Landon Cassill’s car as he drives down pit road during the Daytona 500. (Jim Topper / Associated Press)

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Tony Stewart hits the wall just before being involved in a five-car crash. (Phelan M. Ebenhack / Associated Press)

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Crew members service Danica Patrick’s car during a pit stop at the Daytona 500. (Reinhold Matay / Associated Press)

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Justin Allgaier slides off the track after hitting a wall during the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (John Raoux / Associated Press)

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Joey Logano crosses the finish line under caution to win the Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 2015. (Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

Feb. 22, 2015 1:58 PM PT

Reporting from Daytona Beach, Fla. —

Joey Logano held off Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in an overtime finish to win the Daytona 500 on Sunday.

It was the first time that Logano won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ most celebrated race.

“I can’t believe it,” Logano, who drives for Team Penske, told a television audience. “This is absolutely amazing. I was so nervous the whole race pretty much.”

The race ended under caution. During the second lap of a two-lap overtime finish, several cars behind the lead group crashed, bringing out the yellow flag.

Those involved in the wreck included Jeff Gordon, who started on the pole in hopes of winning his fourth Daytona 500 in his final attempt. The four-time Cup champion has said this will be his last season.

Gordon led a race-high 87 laps but the wreck left him with a 33rd-place finish.

Logano’s No. 22 Ford was leading with only three laps left in the 200 scheduled laps when another crash involving Justin Allgaier and Ty Dillon caused the race to be stopped, or red-flagged, until the track could be cleaned.

That set up the two-lap overtime finish.

Harvick finished second, Earnhardt was third and Denny Hamlin finished fourth.

Before Logano pulled ahead near the end, the field raced in an astonishing pack in which each of the leading seven rows of cars were three wide. Even more astonishing, none of them crashed.

An earlier incident ruined the day of three-time Cup champion Tony Stewart, who was attempting to win his first Daytona 500 in his 17th attempt.

Stewart’s No. 14 Chevrolet crashed into the wall on lap 42, forcing Stewart to the garage for lengthy repairs. He finished next to last in the 43-car field.

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Joey Logano wins NASCAR’s Daytona 500 in overtime finish

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