NASCAR: NextEra 250 at Daytona results

Not a bad start to his first fulltime NASCAR season.

Tyler Reddick held off a late charge from Erik Jones to win Friday night’s NextEra 250 Truck series season opener at Daytona International Speedway. Reddick, 19, is running fulltime this season in Brad Keselowski Racing’s No. 4 Ford.

Scott Lagasse Jr. finished third and Reddick’s teammate at BKR, rookie Austin Theriault was fourth.

Turning point

While NASCAR was about to throw a caution after Jennifer Jo Cobb’s truck burst into flame on pit road, a 12-truck wreck erupted on Lap 49, sending several contenders for the win to the garage.

Three who mattered

Reddick: Before his win Friday, Reddick’s best finish in 17 career starts was fourth, on three occasions.

Theriault: Reddick’s teammate remained lined up behind him as the last lap unfolded and worked feverishly to prevent Jones and Lagasse from getting a shot at a pass for the win.

Matt Crafton: The reigning series champion kicked off his quest for a third title with a top-10 finish.

Observations

They said it

“This feels amazing. We got here to Victory Lane in Daytona. It’s unbelievable.” – race winner, Reddick.

Next race

Atlanta 200

Where: Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Ga.

When: 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Fox Sports 1.

This story was originally published February 20, 2015 at 11:02 PM.