DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP Feb 24, 2013) — A big first for Danica Patrick, but an even bigger second for Jimmie Johnson.

Patrick made history out front at the Daytona 500, only to see five-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson reclaim his spot at the top in the end.

Johnson won his second Daytona 500 with a late push on Sunday, grabbing the spotlight from Patrick as she faded on the final lap. Patrick became the first woman in history to lead laps in ”The Great American Race” and was running third on the last lap, but slipped to eighth in the late push for position.

Her fall began when Dale Earnhardt Jr. made his move, but his last-ditch effort wasn’t enough to catch his Hendrick Motorsports teammate.

There were several crashes during the day, none approaching the magnitude of the wreck that injured more than two dozen fans a day earlier in a second-tier race on the same track.

Johnson, who raced past defending NASCAR champion Brad Keselowski on the final restart, had pulled out to a sizable lead and nobody could catch him. He wasn’t challenged over the final six laps and cruised and added another 500 title to go with his 2006 victory.

This time crew chief Chad Knaus can enjoy it – he was suspended by NASCAR for the first victory.

Earnhardt Jr. settled for second as Hendrick drivers went 1-2 in the new Chevrolet SS. Mark Martin was third in a Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota.

Keselowski, who overcame two accidents earlier in the race, wound up fourth in the new Ford that Penske Racing is fielding this year.

Patrick, the first woman to start from the pole at NASCAR’s top level, was clearly disappointed with her finish. But she admitted she wasn’t sure what move to make if she was going to try for the win.

”You know I kept thinking about it the whole time,” she said. ”You spend a lot of time thinking about what you’re going to when that opportunity.”

Patrick became the first woman in history to lead laps in the 500 when she passed Michael Waltrip on a restart on Lap 90. She stayed on the point for two laps, then was shuffled back to third. Still, it was another groundbreaking moment for Patrick, who in 2005 as a rookie became the first woman to lead laps in the Indianapolis 500.

Janet Guthrie was the first woman to lead laps at NASCAR’s top Cup Series, in 1977 at Ontario, where she led five laps under caution.

The field was weakened by an early nine-car accident that knocked out race favorite Kevin Harvick and sentimental favorite Tony Stewart.

Harvick had won two support races coming into the 500 to cement himself as the driver to beat, but the accident sent him home with a 42nd-place finish.

Stewart, meanwhile, dropped to 0-for-15 in one of the few races the three-time NASCAR champion has never won.

”If I didn’t tell you I was heartbroken and disappointed, I’d be lying to you,” Stewart said.

That accident also took Daytona 500 winner Jamie McMurray, his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Juan Pablo Montoya, and Kasey Kahne out of contention.

The next accident – involving nine cars – came 105 laps later and brought a thankful end to Speedweeks for Carl Edwards. He was caught in his fifth accident since testing last month, and this wreck collected six other Ford drivers.

The field suddenly had six Toyota drivers at the front as Joe Gibbs Racing and Michael Waltrip Racing drivers took control of the race. But JGR’s day blew up – literally – when the team was running 1-2-3 with Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch setting the pace.

Kenseth went to pit road first with a transmission issue, and Busch was right behind him with a blown engine. Busch was already in street clothes watching as Hamlin led the field.

Results

1 Jimmie Johnson  48 Chevrolet 9 200 17 0  Running 47/4 View Race 
2 Dale Earnhardt Jr  88 Chevrolet 19 200 0 0  Running 42/0 View Race 
3 Mark Martin  55 Toyota 14 200 0 0  Running 41/0 View Race 
4 Brad Keselowski  2 Ford 15 200 13 0  Running 41/1 View Race 
5 Ryan Newman  39 Chevrolet 34 200 3 0  Running 40/1 View Race 
6 Greg Biffle  16 Ford 5 200 0 0  Running 38/0 View Race 
7 Regan Smith  51 Chevrolet 40 200 1 0  Running 0/0 View Race 
8 Danica Patrick  10 Chevrolet 1 200 5 0  Running 37/1 View Race 
9 Michael McDowell  98 Ford 38 200 0 0  Running 35/0 
10 J.J. Yeley  36 Chevrolet 41 200 0 0  Running 34/0 
11 Clint Bowyer  15 Toyota 10 200 1 0  Running 34/1 View Race 
12 Ricky Stenhouse Jr  17 Ford 28 200 0 0  Running 32/0 View Race 
13 Aric Almirola  43 Ford 26 200 0 0  Running 31/0 View Race 
14 Denny Hamlin  11 Toyota 35 200 33 0  Running 31/1 View Race 
15 Bobby Labonte  47 Toyota 23 200 0 0  Running 29/0 
16 David Reutimann  83 Toyota 42 200 0 0  Running 28/0 
17 Dave Blaney  7 Chevrolet 30 200 0 0  Running 27/0 
18 Marcos Ambrose  9 Ford 24 200 0 0  Running 26/0 View Race 
19 Joey Logano  22 Ford 21 200 2 0  Running 26/1 View Race 
20 Jeff Gordon  24 Chevrolet 2 200 31 0  Running 25/1 View Race 
21 Paul Menard  27 Chevrolet 16 200 1 0  Running 24/1 
22 Michael Waltrip  26 Toyota 29 200 4 0  Running 23/1 View Race 
23 Scott Speed  95 Ford 31 200 2 0  Running 22/1 View Race 
24 Martin Truex Jr  56 Toyota 37 200 0 0  Running 20/0 
25 Travis Kvapil  93 Toyota 43 199 1 0  Running 20/1 
26 Terry Labonte  32 Ford 39 199 0 0  Running 18/0 
27 Trevor Bayne  21 Ford 33 198 0 0  Running 0/0 View Race 
28 Kurt Busch  78 Chevrolet 11 195 0 0  Running 16/0 View Race 
29 Casey Mears  13 Ford 17 181 0 0  Running 15/0 
30 Jeff Burton  31 Chevrolet 18 176 0 0  Accident 14/0 View Race 
31 Austin Dillon  33 Chevrolet 8 175 0 0  Running 0/0 View Race 
32 Jamie McMurray  1 Chevrolet 20 161 0 0  Running 12/0 View Race 
33 Carl Edwards  99 Ford 36 159 0 0  Running 11/0 View Race 
34 Kyle Busch  18 Toyota 4 151 0 0  Engine 10/0 
35 David Ragan  34 Ford 22 150 0 0  Accident 9/0 View Race 
36 Kasey Kahne  5 Chevrolet 6 150 0 0  Running 8/0 View Race 
37 Matt Kenseth  20 Toyota 12 149 86 0  Engine 9/2 View Race 
38 David Gilliland  38 Ford 25 144 0 0  Accident 6/0 
39 Juan Pablo Montoya  42 Chevrolet 7 144 0 0  Running 5/0 View Race 
40 Josh Wise  35 Ford 32 137 0 0  Accident 0/0 
41 Tony Stewart  14 Chevrolet 13 118 0 0  Running 3/0 View Race 
42 Kevin Harvick  29 Chevrolet 3 47 0 0  Accident 2/0 View Race 
43 Joe Nemechek  87 Toyota 27 42 0 0  Engine 0/0

Standings

1 Hendrick MotorsportsJimmie Johnson  0  48 47 0 1 1 1 1 0
2 Hendrick MotorsportsDale Earnhardt Jr  0  88 42 5 0 1 1 1 0
3 Michael Waltrip RacingMark Martin  0  55 41 6 0 1 1 1 0
4 Penske RacingBrad Keselowski  0  2 41 6 0 1 1 1 0
5 Stewart-Haas RacingRyan Newman  0  39 40 7 0 1 1 1 0
6 Roush Fenway RacingGreg Biffle  0  16 38 9 0 1 0 1 0
7 Stewart-Haas RacingDanica Patrick  0  10 37 10 0 1 0 1 0
8 Phil Parsons RacingMichael McDowell  0  98 35 12 0 1 0 1 0
9 Tommy Baldwin RacingJ.J. Yeley  0  36 34 13 0 1 0 1 0
10 Michael Waltrip RacingClint Bowyer  0  15 34 13 0 1 0 0 0
11 Roush Fenway RacingRicky Stenhouse Jr  0  17 32 15 0 1 0 0 0
12 Richard Petty MotorsportsAric Almirola  0  43 31 16 0 1 0 0 0
13 Joe Gibbs RacingDenny Hamlin  0  11 31 16 0 1 0 0 0
14 JTG Daugherty RacingBobby Labonte  0  47 29 18 0 1 0 0 0
15 BK RacingDavid Reutimann  0  83 28 19 0 1 0 0 0
16 Tommy Baldwin RacingDave Blaney  0  7 27 20 0 1 0 0 0
17 Richard Petty MotorsportsMarcos Ambrose  0  9 26 21 0 1 0 0 0
18 Penske RacingJoey Logano  0  22 26 21 0 1 0 0 0
19 Hendrick MotorsportsJeff Gordon  0  24 25 22 0 1 0 0 0
20 Richard Childress RacingPaul Menard  0  27 24 23 0 1 0 0 0
21 Michael Waltrip RacingMichael Waltrip  0  26 23 24 0 1 0 0 0
22 Leavine Family RacingScott Speed  0  95 22 25 0 1 0 0 0
23 Michael Waltrip RacingMartin Truex Jr  0  56 20 27 0 1 0 0 0
24 BK RacingTravis Kvapil  0  93 20 27 0 1 0 0 0
25 FAS Lane RacingTerry Labonte