Chase Elliott underlined his qualifying speed to win the opening qualifying Duel race, while the defending Daytona 500 champion Denny Hamlin took the second Duel.
The results of the races now sets the field for the Daytona 500 with Elliott and Dale Earnhardt Jr. to share the front row thanks to time trials last Sunday.
Elliott didn’t need to win his race, but he was keen to show his pace at the front of the pack to take the opening duel.
“I’m just more excited about how this thing ran tonight and keeping it in one piece,” said Elliott.
“I know it’s just a Duel win and it doesn’t count towards a win in the playoffs, but it still means a lot to me and it means a lot to our team.
“This is a great way to start the season.”
Hamlin used a push from Austin Dillon to pass race leader Earnhardt Jr. for the victory in the second duel.
“Got a great push there from Austin,” said Hamlin.
“We worked really well together that entire race. I’ll keep that in mind in the 500. It looked like our cars were really good together. I can’t thank this team enough for a great job by Wheels (Mike Wheeler, crew chief). FedEx announced their renewal today so that’s a great sign of a great year hopefully to come.”
Earnhardt, who led Duel 2 to green to start the 60-lap event, led a race-high 53 laps around the superspeedway to finish sixth.
The results basically set the field with the duel #2 position showing the outside positions, while Duel #2 set the inside row.
The duels also carried championship points with both Elliott and Hamlin claiming 10 points. Then a reduction of one point for each spot down to 10th.
The driver wearing the biggest smile was Canadian racer DJ Kennington who edged his car to a 15th place finish and a spot in Daytona 500; just his second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race
“To be in the Daytona 500, that’s a dream come true for me,” said Kennington.
The drivers to miss the race are Reed Sorenson and Timmy Hill.
RESULTS: Duel Race #1
| Pos | # | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps |
| 1 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 2 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Ford | 60 |
| 4 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | 60 |
| 5 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | 60 |
| 6 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | 60 |
| 7 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Toyota | 60 |
| 8 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 60 |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | 60 |
| 10 | 72 | Cole Whitt | Ford | 60 |
| 11 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford | 60 |
| 12 | 19 | Daniel Suarez | Toyota | 60 |
| 13 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 60 |
| 14 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Ford | 60 |
| 15 | 37 | Chris Buescher | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 16 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Ford | 60 |
| 17 | 23 | Joey Gase | Toyota | 60 |
| 18 | 83 | Lajoie Corey | Toyota | 60 |
| 19 | 75 | Brendan Gaughan | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 20 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | 59 |
| 21 | 55 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | 48 |
RESULTS: Duel Race #2
| Pos | # | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps |
| 1 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 2 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Ford | 60 |
| 4 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | 60 |
| 5 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | 60 |
| 6 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | 60 |
| 7 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Toyota | 60 |
| 8 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 60 |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | 60 |
| 10 | 72 | Cole Whitt | Ford | 60 |
| 11 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford | 60 |
| 12 | 19 | Daniel Suarez | Toyota | 60 |
| 13 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 60 |
| 14 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Ford | 60 |
| 15 | 37 | Chris Buescher | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 16 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Ford | 60 |
| 17 | 23 | Joey Gase | Toyota | 60 |
| 18 | 83 | Lajoie Corey | Toyota | 60 |
| 19 | 75 | Brendan Gaughan | Chevrolet | 60 |
| 20 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | 59 |
| 21 | 55 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | 48 |
| START | DRIVER | TEAM |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 2. | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 3. | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 4. | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 5. | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 6. | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 7. | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske |
| 8. | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 9. | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 10. | AJ Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 11. | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 12. | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing |
| 13. | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing |
| 14. | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 15. | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 16. | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing |
| 17. | Joey Logano | Team Penske |
| 18. | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 19. | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports |
| 20. | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing |
| 21. | Daniel Suarez | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 22. | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports |
| 23. | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 24. | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing |
| 25. | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 26. | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 27. | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing |
| 28. | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 29. | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports |
| 30. | D.J. Kennington* | Gaunt Brothers Racing |
| 31. | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 32. | Michael Waltrip | Premium Motorsports |
| 33. | Joey Gase | BK Racing |
| 34. | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group |
| 35. | Corey LaJoie* | BK Racing |
| 36. | Erik Jones | Wood Brothers Racing |
| 37. | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing |
| 38. | Ryan Blaney | Premium Motorsports |
| 39. | Brendan Gaughan* | Beard Motorsports |
| 40. | Elliott Sadler* | Tommy Baldwin Racing |
* denotes Open team
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