Danny Eslick wins Daytona 200

TOBC Racing Yamaha rider Danny Eslick has won this year’s Daytona 200, taking a last lap slipstreaming victory over Cory West to win by 0.041, only for West be disqualified after the race for illegal air filters, handing second to last year’s winner Michael Barnes with Kyle Wyman third.

The win makes Eslick a three-time winner alongside names like Kenny Roberts and Mat Mladin, but he remains clear of Scott Russell and Miguel Duhamel’s shared record of five, after being denied the chance to move a step closer last year after being banned from last year’s race for assaulting a police officer in the days before the race.

The days of the once-prestigious race being one of the major on-championship events of the season are long past, though, with an entry list this year comprised almost entirely of Americans and the race becoming something of a non-event in recent years since it’s move from superbike to supersport machines.

Despite that, it does still enjoy a healthy prize purse, with Eslick taking home $25,000 for the win as well as a Rolex Daytona watch worth a further $10,000, from a total prize fund of $175,000.