There’s nothing greater in the Cup Series than the feeling of not knowing which driver is going to take victory on the last lap, owing to the immense competition. But while the community had to rely on team briefings and news sources to understand which driver performed the best overall, that would all change in 2005.

With the introduction of Loop Data, NASCAR began giving fans insight into each driver’s performance throughout the race. From average race position to the number of laps led during the race as well as the number of laps in the top 10 and 15s, the community could get a detailed breakdown of how the race unfolded for each driver. And in 2012, this very source of data revealed just how dominant Greg Biffle was at the Daytona 500 that year.

Loop Data from the 2012 Great American Race reveals Greg Biffle’s superiority

As the Great American Race kicked off on February 27th, 2012, the community was in for a race filled with the biggest names, from Kevin Harvick and Jeff Gordon to Dale Earnhardt Jr and Mark Martin. Evidently, with so many icons lining up the grid, the lead was changed 44 times under the green flag. From Dale Earnhardt Jr to Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin, it was quite a fierce battle at the front. Continuing to battle it out with only a few laps remaining, Kenseth defended against Greg Biffle, who had been running closely in contention for the lead.

But when the checkered flag was raised, it was Kenseth who had outclassed the field. And adding insult to injury, Biffle failed a last-ditch effort to defend his second place from a charging Earnhardt Jr. However, despite losing that position to Junior, it would be the Washington native who would dominate the Loop Datasheet. In a recent tweet, NASCAR’s popular stats insider, Trey Ryan, shared with his community, “In the 2012 Daytona 500, Greg Biffle spent EVERY lap in the top 10. He is the only driver since NASCAR started tracking loop data (2005) to do this.”

Out of the 202 laps of the race, Greg Biffle was present in the top 10 for each lap, as revealed by the score of 100% laps led in the top 15 on the loop data sheet. But that’s not the only impressive stat about Biffle from that race. With the lowest race position of 10, Biffle managed to maintain an average racing position of 3, which is a significant feat considering that this stat is seldom affected by the choices in team strategy. Which means it paints a perfect picture of Biffle’s raw pace.

Adding to his impressive pace, the Loop Datasheet also tells us a lot about the craftsmanship behind Biffle’s overtakes, since he achieved the highest percentage of quality passes throughout the race out of any driver. And if all of that wasn’t enough reason to claim Biffle was the most dominant man that evening, he also brought home the highest driver rating with 126.2. When compared to race winner Kenseth’s 100.9 and Junior’s 99.5, it’s safe to say Biffle was indeed the best man out there on raw performance.

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After taking a look at how much there is to analyze about the Great American Race, the community can certainly expect February 18th to be a grand opener. But when does the action kick-off?

Here’s the overall schedule for the 2024 Daytona 500

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Speaking of action at the Daytona 500, the media shenanigans are all set to begin on the 14th of February, with the media day giving fans insight into the teams’ and drivers’ expectations. The following day will also be equally entertaining, with the 60-lap qualifying sessions for the Cup Series taking place throughout the day. While the 16th of February will be practice time for Cup Series contenders, fans can tune in to the ARCA series and Truck Series qualifying that will run at 1:30 pm and 3 pm EST, respectively.

As the weekend kicks off, February 17th will prepare fans with the final Cup Series practice session at 10:30 a.m. EST, followed by the Xfinity Series qualifying session at 11:30 a.m. Saturday evening will be the perfect setup for the Daytona 500, giving fans racing action with the Xfinity and ARCA series races. But the main event will be saved for Sunday, with the Daytona 500 expected to kick off at 2:30 p.m. EST for 200 laps of glorious racing.

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So with Bubba Wallace, Ryan Blaney, and a list of other drivers all aiming to take victory lane at the 2024 Daytona 500, who do you think will dominate the Loop Datasheet this time around?