An event meant for thrill and joy can easily descend into darkness. The NASCAR Cup Series season opener, the Daytona 500, was a much-awaited event for fans. Especially after the weather debacle faced during the Clash race at the Bowman Gray Stadium, the Daytona event felt like a fresh start to 2026. However, one fan could not share the same buoyant feeling, as he brushed with death in a harrowing incident.

A spine-chilling crime off NASCAR’s Daytona track

“A young man named Sullivan Clarke, 13, was visiting Daytona for the races this weekend when a man he didn’t know walked up and cut his throat while he was walking with his parents—the only reason Clarke survived is because he happened to look up at the Boardwalk, which shifted his neck and saved him from a fatal wound,” a fan posted on X.

According to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Department, the youngster survived the unprovoked attack on the Daytona Beach Boardwalk on February 14. He was on a stroll with his parents when Jermaine Long allegedly used a boxcutter on the teenager’s neck. Authorities arrested the 44-year-old, who now faces a felony charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

The Clarke family was returning to their hotel around 10 p.m. after spending the day watching NASCAR’s festivities for the Daytona 500. Sullivan was using his phone and walking a few feet behind his parents when the suspect approached him. He claimed that he happened to look up at a Boardwalk ride. And this head movement saved him from incurring a fatal wound during the spine-chilling incident.

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“I turned at the perfect time…I happened to be looking up at the slingshot, and I turned. And that’s why he got the side of my neck,” Sullivan said.

“I could see his neck gashed wide open. I could see all the way down to the meat,” the victim’s father said.

Such a harrowing incident is not new to NASCAR history. Back in 2022, NASCAR driver Bobby East fell prey to a stabbing attack outside Los Angeles and sadly could not survive it. The primary suspect, Trent William Millsap, allegedly fled the area before police arrived. However, during a later encounter, Milsap was shot down when he became confrontational.

Even during this year’s Daytona 500, a Florida man was arrested for posting a threatening video.

Such incidents paint a grim picture of the background in which NASCAR’s Daytona race takes place. On a brighter note, things were hunky-dory inside the Daytona track.

The brighter side of the day

NASCAR had a tumultuous season in 2025. Ranging from constant outrage about the championship format to almost losing a lawsuit trial, the sport went through an upheaval. Yet the Daytona 500 last Sunday marked the first step away from those troubles. Many factors contributed to the buoyant reactions and NASCAR’s chance to say, “Hell yeah!”

First was the weather factor, crucial for fans after Bowman Gray’s snowy disaster. For the first time in three years and just the third time in the 2020s, inclement weather did not touch the Daytona 500 and came an hour after the checkered flag.

Ratings for the prestigious race have yet to be released. However, NASCAR said Sunday there were 150,000 people “on the property” for the race. This figure is comparable to 15 years ago and upholds NASCAR’s in-person success.

What’s more, the sight of six-time NBA champion Michael Jordan shaking hands with NASCAR CEO Jim France was the ultimate sign that all is well. After being embroiled in a fierce NASCAR lawsuit, Jordan’s team, 23XI Racing, won the Daytona 500 with Tyler Reddick.

Clearly, NASCAR had a lot going on inside the track. The unfortunate and harrowing incident off the track was shocking; hopefully, actions will be taken to prevent such crimes in the future.