Johnson Survives Daytona: Zach Thomas Johnson Wins the Regular-Season Finale
North Star Racing Cup Series | Daytona International Speedway | Race Recap
Daytona delivered exactly what everyone expected.
Different leaders. Constant movement. Big swings in track position. And a finish that remained undecided until the final lap.
When the smoke cleared, Zach Thomas Johnson was the one standing in Victory Lane.
Johnson started 10th, won Stage 2 and survived a frantic closing run to capture the North Star Racing regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway.
Joe Gibbons crossed the line only 0.684 seconds behind in second, while pole-sitter Caleb Sheets finished third. Joshua Pittman and Mike Wayne Robinson completed a top five filled with some of the biggest stories of the night.
The numbers tell the story of just how competitive Daytona was: 12 different leaders, 24 lead changes and five cautions for 15 laps across the 100-lap event.
Johnson led only five of those laps.
He made sure one of them was the one that mattered.
🏆 Johnson Gets His Daytona Moment
One week can change everything.
Johnson entered Daytona coming off a brutal New Hampshire race in which his night ended after only 37 laps.
At Daytona, the No. 45 responded in the biggest way possible.
Johnson started 10th and spent much of the opening stage working around the front half of the pack. He finished Stage 1 just outside the points in 11th before becoming a major factor during Stage 2.
That’s when Johnson made his first major statement.
The No. 45 moved to the front, led two laps and won Stage 2, collecting the maximum 10 stage points.
But there were still 60 laps remaining.
Johnson stayed in contention through the constantly changing Daytona draft and positioned himself for the final run.
When the checkered flag finally flew, the No. 45 was out front.
100 laps. Five laps led. 65 total points. One Daytona victory.
🏆 Stage 1: Stewart Harding Walker Strikes First
Stewart Harding Walker opened the night by putting himself right back where North Star Racing has seen him plenty of times before:
At the front.
Walker led 10 of the opening 20 laps and captured the Stage 1 victory.
Vince Mitchell finished only 0.076 seconds behind in second, with Caleb Sheets just 0.156 seconds back in third.
Joshua Pittman and Michael Deitch completed the top five.
Alex Rogers finished sixth, Joe Gibbons seventh, Matthew Boston Wheeler eighth, Cory Mott ninth and Joe T Wright grabbed the final stage point in 10th.
Walker had established himself as an early favorite.
Daytona had other plans.
🏆 Stage 2: Johnson Makes His Move
If Stage 1 belonged to Walker, Stage 2 belonged to Zach Thomas Johnson.
Johnson led two laps and won the stage in a finish that showed just how tight the racing had become.
Mike Wayne Robinson finished only 0.055 seconds behind Johnson.
Joe T Wright was another 0.001 seconds behind Robinson.
Three cars separated by just 0.056 seconds.
Zack Saunders finished fourth after leading 12 of the 20 stage laps, while Alex Rogers completed the top five.
Behind them came Cory Mott, Nic Vasquez, Caleb Sheets, Matthew Boston Wheeler and Stewart Harding Walker.
After 40 laps, Daytona had already produced multiple contenders.
There were 60 laps remaining to decide which one would finish the job.
🔥 Daytona Turns Into a Chess Match
No single driver controlled this race.
That was reflected perfectly by the final statistics.
Twelve different drivers led at least one lap.
The lead changed hands 24 times.
Cory Mott led a race-high 19 laps.
Zack Saunders led 18.
Stewart Harding Walker led 14.
Caleb Sheets led 11.
Alex Rogers led seven.
Johnson?
Five.
But Daytona isn’t necessarily about leading the most laps.
It’s about being in the correct position when the final move develops.
Johnson was.
🥈 Joe Gibbons Nearly Steals the Show
Johnson won the race, but Joe Gibbons came within less than a second of producing one of the night’s biggest surprises.
Gibbons started ninth and collected four points with a seventh-place finish in Stage 1.
He wasn’t among the Stage 2 points scorers.
But as the final stage unfolded, the No. 8 kept moving forward.
Gibbons eventually crossed the line second, only 0.684 seconds behind Johnson.
He scored 39 total points and finished ahead of several drivers who had controlled much larger portions of the race.
At Daytona, being there at the end is sometimes the most important accomplishment of all.
🥉 Caleb Sheets Turns the Pole Into a Podium
Caleb Sheets started exactly where every driver wants to start Daytona:
First.
He remained a factor throughout the night.
Sheets finished third in Stage 1, eighth in Stage 2 and led 11 laps before ultimately finishing third.
The No. 26 collected 11 stage points and 45 total points.
He didn’t leave Daytona with the victory, but after some difficult recent races, a podium was exactly the kind of result Sheets needed.
📈 Joshua Pittman Quietly Finishes Fourth
Joshua Pittman didn’t need to dominate the race to put together one of the strongest overall nights.
Pittman finished fourth in Stage 1 before falling outside the stage points in Stage 2.
When the finish approached, he was back near the front.
Pittman crossed the line fourth, only 1.328 seconds behind Johnson, and scored 40 total points.
On a night where several early contenders disappeared from the picture, Pittman stayed around long enough to capitalize.
🚀 Mike Wayne Robinson: 24th to Fifth
Perhaps the most impressive charge through the field belonged to Mike Wayne Robinson.
Robinson started 24th — dead last.
By the end of Stage 2, he was second.
By the end of the race, he was fifth.
That’s a gain of 19 positions.
Robinson also recorded the fastest lap of the race at 45.948 seconds and finished only 2.675 seconds behind Johnson.
From last on the grid to a Daytona top five, the No. 51 produced one of the drives of the night.
👑 Vasquez Survives Daytona
Nic Vasquez didn’t need to dominate Daytona to put together a respectable night.
The No. 22 started fifth and spent much of the race around the top 10.
Vasquez missed the Stage 1 points but recovered to finish seventh in Stage 2.
He ultimately crossed the finish line eighth, scoring 33 total points.
At a track where one mistake can completely destroy a race, Vasquez completed all 100 laps and escaped with another top-10 finish.
🔥 Mott Leads the Most, Finishes 11th
The final result won’t show how much of a factor Cory Mott was.
Mott led a race-high 19 laps, finished ninth in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2.
He also maintained an average running position of 5.7, one of the best marks in the field.
But when the race was decided, Mott found himself outside the top 10.
The No. 54 finished 11th.
After consecutive podium finishes at Richmond and New Hampshire, Daytona ends that streak — but the speed was once again there.
📉 Big Nights Turn Into Tough Finishes
Several drivers who spent significant portions of the race near the front didn’t get the finishes their performances suggested.
Zack Saunders entered Daytona fresh off his dominant New Hampshire victory and led 18 laps, including 12 in Stage 2. But the No. 60 ultimately finished 18th, eight laps down.
Alex Rogers scored points in both stages and led seven laps before disconnecting after 55 laps. He finished 21st.
Stewart Harding Walker won Stage 1 and led 14 laps but completed only 55 laps, leaving him 22nd.
Steven Carlile suffered one of the toughest nights in the field, disconnecting after 54 laps and finishing 23rd.
Vince Mitchell, who finished second in Stage 1, also completed only 54 laps and was credited with 24th.
Daytona gave several drivers an opportunity to lead.
It didn’t guarantee any of them would be around at the finish.
🚂 Difficult Daytona for Tyler Krawczyk
Tyler Krawczyk entered Daytona looking to rebound from his New Hampshire disappointment.
Instead, it became another difficult night.
Krawczyk started seventh but fell toward the back during Stage 1 and finished 23rd in the opening stage.
Stage 2 wasn’t much easier, with the No. 48 finishing 19th.
Unlike New Hampshire, however, Krawczyk made it to the finish.
He completed all 100 laps and was credited with 16th.
It wasn’t the result the Richmond winner wanted, but at Daytona, simply making it to Lap 100 is an accomplishment.
🏁 Daytona Top 10
- Zach Thomas Johnson — 5 laps led
- Joe Gibbons
- Caleb Sheets — 11 laps led
- Joshua Pittman
- Mike Wayne Robinson — 1 lap led
- Garry Wells
- Darren M Ingram — 3 laps led
- Nic Vasquez — 2 laps led
- Noah Nicholson
- Michael Deitch
📊 By the Numbers
Winner: Zach Thomas Johnson
Stage 1 Winner: Stewart Harding Walker
Stage 2 Winner: Zach Thomas Johnson
Most Laps Led: Cory Mott — 19
Fastest Lap: Mike Wayne Robinson — 45.948 seconds
Biggest Charge: Mike Wayne Robinson — 24th to 5th (+19)
Leaders: 12
Lead Changes: 24
Cautions: 5 for 15 laps
Race Distance: 100 laps
⭐ Driver of the Race: Zach Thomas Johnson
There were drivers who led more laps.
There were drivers who spent more time at the front.
There were drivers who looked like favorites at different points throughout the night.
But only one driver accomplished both of the things that mattered most.
Win a stage.
Win the race.
Zach Thomas Johnson did both.
Johnson took Stage 2, survived the chaos of the final 60 laps and put the No. 45 out front when it mattered most.
After the disappointment of New Hampshire, there couldn’t have been a better response.
Zach Thomas Johnson is a Daytona winner.
🏁 Final Word
Daytona didn’t belong to one driver for very long.
Walker controlled Stage 1.
Saunders controlled much of Stage 2.
Mott led more laps than anyone.
Sheets remained near the front.
Robinson charged from last to fifth.
And Gibbons nearly stole the victory at the end.
But when 100 laps of drafting, strategy and survival were complete, Zach Thomas Johnson had the one position everyone wanted.
First.
The regular season ends with 12 different leaders, 24 lead changes and a winner who led only five laps — the perfect reminder that at Daytona, controlling the race and winning the race are two very different things.
Zach Thomas Johnson survives the chaos and closes the North Star Racing regular season in Victory Lane at Daytona.