History and the future will meet today at Daytona International Speedway. Not only is the Daytona 500 the start of another NASCAR season, it's also the 50th running of the sport's biggest race.

When Bill France Sr. built a 2½-mile superspeedway at Daytona Beach, Fla., in 1959, he ushered in a new era for NASCAR. No longer were cars running on a half-beach, half-asphalt track where it was difficult for fans to see. The huge track allowed the cars to go faster and the fans to enjoy it more. And the biggest race at the biggest track became the Daytona 500.

So as drivers, crews, owners and fans prepare for the 50th running of the Daytona 500, let's look at some of the memorable people and races:

No one was quite sure who had won the first edition of the Great American Race. Lee Petty (No. 42 Oldsmobile) and Johnny Beauchamp (No. 73 Thunderbird) crossed the finish line at the same time. Actually, so did Joe Weatherly, who was two laps down. Petty and Beauchamp were given the same time (long before the days of electronic scoring) of 3 hours, 41 minutes, 22 seconds. There was no camera mounted at the finish line as there are at horse tracks. Race officials declared Beauchamp the winner.

But several others, including fellow driver Glenn "Fireball" Roberts, who was standing near the finish line, thought Petty won. So did Petty.

"I had Beauchamp by a good two feet," Petty said after the race. "In my mind, I know I won."

France delayed making the result official until he and officials could look over still photographs and news footage of the race. Three days later, evidence showed Petty was the winner. His son, Richard, who at age 21 was out of the race early with a blown engine, said it was the best thing for the speedway and the race that there was confusion, because the sport was talked about and written about for days after the event ended.

The winner of the 1963 Daytona 500 was picked from a hospital bed. Marvin Panch, recovering from injuries sustained during a test run 10 days before the big race, asked the Wood Brothers, owners of his No. 21 Ford, to put his friend, Tiny Lund, in the car. Lund was given the chance and won, running the entire event on the same set of tires.

Open-wheel star Mario Andretti was racing in just his second Daytona 500, coming off Indy car championships in 1965 and '66. He was so short that he needed a longer gas pedal, but he didn't have any trouble using it in 1967, leading 112 of 200 laps.

The decade had a list of great champions besides Andretti, including Junior Johnson (1960), Fireball Roberts (1962), Richard Petty (1964, 1966), Fred Lorenzen (1965) and Cale Yarborough (1968).

Richard Petty and David Pearson staged perhaps the most remarkable finish in the history of the Daytona 500 in 1976. One of them was in front for 45 of the last 46 laps. On the final lap, they drove side by side, banging and bumping in an effort to edge in front. The two cars wrecked coming out of Turn 4, sending Petty into the infield grass where his car stalled about 50 yards from the finish. Pearson wound up near the pit entrance but kept his engine running and coasted through the infield grass and across the finish line. No other cars were on the lead lap, so Pearson was the winner. Petty eventually crossed the line after his crew pushed him. That wasn't allowed under the rules, but NASCAR still gave Petty a second-place finish.

"Most people know more about that race than the seven I won," Petty said.

The race was broadcast in its entirety for the first time in 1979, and viewers saw a big win for Richard Petty and a big fight after the checkered flag waved. Donnie Allison, his brother Bobby, and Cale Yarborough got into a scrum seen by a national audience, many of whom were snowed in by a major storm. Donnie Allison and Yarborough were leading before wrecking on the final lap, sliding into the infield grass. When Bobby Allison went over to check on both drivers, Yarborough started yelling at him because he felt Bobby (who was a lap down) was blocking him on the final lap. Shortly thereafter, helmets and arms were flying from all three. Meanwhile, Petty was doing a victory lap and celebrating a fifth Daytona 500 win.

Janet Guthrie became the first female to qualify for the Daytona 500, starting 39th and finishing 12th in 1977. Richard Petty became the first driver to win consecutive Daytona 500s (1973-74). And four-time Indy 500 champion A.J. Foyt won his first and only Daytona 500 in 1972.

Bobby Allison became the oldest driver to win when he took the checkered flag in 1988at age 50. Right behind him was his son, Davey. It was Bobby's third Daytona 500 victory and the last time he ran in the race. His career ended four months later from injuries suffered in a crash at Pocono.

Darrell Waltrip, who had had tough luck in the Daytona 500, finally won the race in 1989 on his 17th try. He was emotional in Victory Lane, saying with disbelief during a television interview: "I just won the Daytona 500!" More famous than the win might be his dance, which Waltrip called the "Tide Slide."

"Ickey Woods was doing his celebration then," Waltrip said last summer. "I told the guys if I won, I'd do something. I had to do it. It's ridiculous. My kids are tired of watching it. It seemed like a good idea at the time."

Buddy Baker won the race in 1980, driving his Oldsmobile nicknamed "The Grey Ghost," with an average speed of 177.602 mph, still a record. Bill Elliott took the 1987 pole with the fastest qualifying lap ever at Daytona, 210.364 mph (42.783 seconds). He won the race as well. Restrictor plates were introduced the following year.

Dale Earnhardt appeared poised to win his elusive first Daytona 500 in 1990. He had led more than 150 laps and was coming toward the checkered flag when his right rear tire blew in Turn 3. That gave the win to unheralded Derrike Cope. He held off Corpus Christi native Terry Labonte to win.

After 20 years of trying to win the Daytona 500, Dale Earnhardt crossed the finish line first in 1998. All of the pit crews gathered on pit road to salute him as he slowly drove by in the black No. 3. It was the seventh time Earnhardt led with 20 laps to go and the first time he'd actually won.

The 1990s saw some sons of racing fathers make their mark in the Daytona 500. Davey Allison (Bobby's son) won in 1992. Dale Jarrett took the checkered flag in 1993 as his father, Ned, called the race on television. Jarrett held off Dale Earnhardt to win as Ned said, "You know which Dale I'm pulling for." Jarrett also won in 1996 and 2000.

Dale Earnhardt wasn't going to win the Daytona 500 in 2001. But it appeared he tried to hold off a very fast Sterling Marlin and the rest of the field behind him so his son, Dale Earnhardt Jr., or Dale Earnhardt Inc. driver Michael Waltrip could win. But just before Waltrip took the checkered flag, Earnhardt's car went head-on into the wall in Turn 4, killing the legendary driver. "We've lost Dale Earnhardt," NASCAR president Mike Helton said three hours after the accident. Earnhardt's death spurred many safety measures in the sport.

Last year's 500 produced one of the closest, most exciting finishes. Mark Martin, a four-time Cup series runner-up who has never won the 500, led as the cars headed toward the final two turns. But Kevin Harvick, who wasn't even in the top five on the previous lap, got a great run on the outside and nipped Martin by 0.020 seconds (closest since the 1959 race) at the finish line as cars slid all over the track from a wreck behind them.

The 2000s have seen some crazy things. Clint Bowyer crossed the finish line upside down in 2007. Ward Burton won in 2002 after Sterling Marlin got out of his car and tried to work on his fender under a red flag, an illegal move. And Michael Waltrip's car was found to have an illegal substance in its fuel before the 2007 race, earning him severe penalties.

■ The winner gets the Harley J. Earl trophy, named after one of the first car designers, called by some the "da Vinci of Detroit."

■ Richard Petty, the King, reigns over the Daytona 500 with seven victories (1964, '66, '71, '73, '74, '79, '81).

■ Corpus Christi native Terry Labonte has completed the most miles in the race, 12,490. His best finish in 27 tries was second in 1986, '90 and '97.

■ There's a 29-acre lake at Daytona International Speedway – Lake Lloyd – because construction workers used the dirt to make the banking at the track. The lake hosts powerboat racing events.

■ Jeff Gordon, a three-time winner, is the youngest Daytona 500 champion. He won in 1997 at 25.

■ NASCAR first used restrictor plates at Daytona in 1988 to slow the cars down for safety reasons.

It's a wide-open race, but here are five who could drive to Victory Lane (in alphabetical order):

■ Dale Earnhardt Jr.: He won the Bud Shootout and is one of the best restrictor-plate drivers on the circuit. He won in 2004.

■ Jeff Gordon (right): The three-time Daytona 500 champion knows how to stay out of trouble early and make a bold move late.

■ Jimmie Johnson: The two-time defending Cup champion won the race in 2006, has the best crew chief and has been fast leading into the race (he's also sitting on the pole).

■ Tony Stewart: He's won just about everything in the sport but the Daytona 500, and he's come close. He'll be a threat in his Toyota.

■ Michael Waltrip: This might seem like a surprise pick, but he was second-best in qualifying. He has won two Daytona 500s and understands how to succeed at Daytona.