2014 Subway Firecracker 250

The 2014 Subway Firecracker 250 was a NASCAR Nationwide Series race held at on July 4, 2014 Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The race was the 16th of the 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series and the 13th iteration of the event. It would also be the last Daytona race for the title sponsor Nationwide and the last Daytona race to be broadcast on ESPN. The pole was a surprise as rookie Dakoda Armstrong won the pole while Regan Smith led the most laps at 47 but it was Kasey Kahne who made a last lap pass to win the race and beat Smith by .020 seconds in a very close finish.

Background
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races for ARCA, AMA Superbike, IMSA, SCCA, and Motocross. The track features multiple layouts including the primary 2.500 mi high-speed tri-oval, a 3.560 mi sports car course, a 2.950 mi motorcycle course, and a 1320 ft karting and motorcycle flat-track. The track's 180 acre infield includes the 29 acre Lake Lloyd, which has hosted powerboat racing. The speedway is operated by NASCAR pursuant to a lease with the City of Daytona Beach on the property that runs until 2054. Dale Earnhardt is Daytona International Speedway's all-time winningest driver, with a total of 34 career victories (12- Daytona 500 Qualifying Races) (7- NASCAR Xfinity Series Races) (6- Busch Clash Races) (6- IROC Races) (2- Pepsi 400 July Races) (1- The 1998 Daytona 500).

Entry List

 * (R) denotes rookie driver
 * (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points

Qualifying
A surprise won the pole for the race. Rookie Dakoda Armstrong won the pole with a time of 46.845 and a speed of 192.123 mph.

* – Qualified via owners points

** – Qualified via Past Champion

*** – Eric McClure, Mike Bliss, Robert Richardson Jr., Scott Lagasse Jr., Ryan Sieg, Joey Gase, Ross Chastain, and Joe Nemechek all had to start at the rear of the field. Bliss, Richardson Jr., Lagasse Jr., and Chastain had backup cars and McClure, Sieg, Gase, and Nemechek had unapproved adjustments.

Race
Outside pole sitter Trevor Bayne took the lead from pole sitter Dakoda Armstrong and led the first lap. On lap 8, Elliott Sadler took the lead from Bayne as the Joe Gibbs cars in Sadler, Kyle Busch, and Bubba Wallace were running in first, second, and third. Green flag pitstops began on lap 36 and Dakoda Armstrong was the new leader as Sadler went to pit. Armstrong came to pit the next lap and gave the lead to Brendan Gaughan. Gaughan soon pitted on lap 40 and gave the lead to Brian Scott. After everything cycled through, Kyle Busch was the new race leader. On lap 47, Kyle Larson took the lead.

Final laps
With 49 laps to go, Regan Smith took the lead. At the same time. The first caution flew for debris. Regan Smith won the race off of pit road to keep his lead. The race restarted with 43 laps to go. With 31 to go, Kyle Busch tried to take the lead and led that lap but could not pass Smith. Busch tried again multiple times with a push from Trevor Bayne but could not pass Smith and they fell back in the pack with 23 to go. Smith also had his teammate behind him in second in the young rookie sensation Chase Elliott and it looked like either Smith or Elliott might be able to win depending on the final laps. But with 8 laps to go, the second caution flew when Brendan Gaughan got turned out of turn 4 by Bubba Wallace and overcorrected up and collected rookie Dylan Kwasniewski giving Kwasniewski some damage. The race turned into a fuel strategy race as cars began saving fuel during the caution period. The race restarted with 3 laps to go. But on the restart, Chase Elliott's car ran out of gas as soon the green flag dropped which caused a stack up on the inside lane and a four car crash that brought out the third and final caution of the race involving Elliott Sadler and David Ragan spinning and giving Trevor Bayne and J. J. Yeley damage. The caution would set up a green-white-checkered finish. On the restart, Smith and Kyle Larson were side by side for the lead with Smith getting pushed by Joey Logano and Larson getting pushed by Ryan Reed. In turns 3 and four, the third car on the outside line in David Starr pushed up the race track and hit the wall in a very close call as it almost wrecked the field. No caution was thrown. Regan Smith led coming to the white flag. On the final lap, Smith got out in front of Larson with a push by Logano, Kasey Kahne, and Ryan Sieg. Down the backstretch, Logano peaked to the outside of Smith but Smith blocked Logano and Logano fell back giving Kahne a side by side battle for second with Larson. Coming out of turn 4, Smith got so far ahead it gave the pack a chance to catchup which they would. Larson peaked to the outside of Smith with Kahne right beside him but could not get up there. Kahne got a big run on the outside with a push from Ryan Sieg and Kahne would beat Smith by .020 seconds to take home his first and only win of the season. It would be the only lap Kahne would lead all race. This was the second time in a row Smith was involved in a drag race to the checkered flag at Daytona after Smith beat Brad Keselowski by .013 seconds in the previous Daytona race but this time Smith finished second. Ryan Sieg, Ryan Reed, and Kyle Larson rounded out the top 5 while Joey Logano, Bubba Wallace, Jeremy Clements, Trevor Bayne, and Mike Wallace rounded out the top 10. This would be Ryan Sieg and Ryan Reed's first career top 5 finish in their Nationwide Series careers as Sieg and Reed finished 3rd and 4th.