# 2020 Go Bowling 235

The 2020 Go Bowling 235 was a NASCAR Cup Series raced on August 16, 2020, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Contested over 65 laps on the 3.61-mile (5.81 km) road course, it was the 23rd race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, which was a replacement race for the Watkins Glen round because of government restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The race had three stages: the first two stages at 15 laps each, and 35 for the final.

## Background

The race was held at Daytona International Speedway, a race track located in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since its opening in 1959, the track has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts ARCA, AMA Superbike, USCC, SCCA, and Motocross races. It features multiple layouts including the primary 2.5 miles (4.0 km) high speed tri-oval, a 3.56 miles (5.73 km) sports car course, a 2.95 miles (4.75 km) motorcycle course, and a .25 miles (0.40 km) karting and motorcycle flat-track. The track's 180-acre (73 ha) infield includes the 29-acre (12 ha) Lake Lloyd, which has hosted powerboat racing. The speedway is owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation.
The track was built in 1959 by NASCAR founder William "Bill" France, Sr. to host racing held at the former Daytona Beach Road Course. His banked design permitted higher speeds and gave fans a better view of the cars. Lights were installed around the track in 1998 and today, it is the third-largest single lit outdoor sports facility. The speedway has been renovated three times, with the infield renovated in 2004 and the track repaved twice — in 1978 and in 2010. On January 22, 2013, the track unveiled artist depictions of a renovated speedway. On July 5 of that year, ground was broken for a project that would remove the backstretch seating and completely redevelop the frontstretch seating. The renovation to the speedway was done by Rossetti Architects. The project, named "Daytona Rising", was completed in January 2016, at a cost of US $400 million, placing emphasis on improving fan experience with five expanded and redesigned fan entrances (called "injectors") as well as wider and more comfortable seating with more restrooms and concession stands. After the renovations, the track's grandstands included 101,000 permanent seats with the ability to increase permanent seating to 125,000. The project was completed before the start of Speedweeks.
On July 30, it was revealed after simulation testing revealed concerns of high speeds entering turn 1 (a turn already considered to be difficult among road racers), a temporary chicane was added in between the 4th turn of the oval and the entrance to pit road (similar to the Charlotte ROVAL). NASCAR further announced that it would use the high-downforce aero package used for the road course races in 2019 (in 2020, road courses were scheduled to use a low-downforce package similar to what was used in 2018 and what is used on ovals 1-mile or shorter in 2020). The addition of the chicane increased the length of the course from 3.56 to 3.61 miles and added a 13th and 14th turn to the original 12-turn layout.

## Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Kaz Grala (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 27 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | James Davison | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 77 | Stanton Barrett | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota |
| 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota |
| Official entry list ||||

## Qualifying

Kevin Harvick was awarded the pole for the race as determined by a new formula that NASCAR officials announced on August 6. The formula will use three performance metrics, which will be weighted and averaged to determine the lineup and pit selection order. The metrics are Finishing position from the previous race (weighted 50%), Ranking in team owner points standings (35%), and Fastest lap from the previous race (15%). The success of this system led to NASCAR replacing the traditional rules for determining starting positions of owner points, then race winners, and then most qualifying attempts (with owner points as the tiebreaker) in the 2021 season if qualifying cannot be held because of inclement weather in the eight races where practice and qualifying cannot be conducted, and expanded in the 2022 season to determining practice and qualifying groups for all races.
Kaz Grala replaced Austin Dillon, who was medically disqualified by NASCAR after a positive virus test. NASCAR further restricted drivers from participation in more than one race during the weekend, which meant typical Xfinity drivers who would substitute would not be permitted to participate in the Cup race. NASCAR did allow an Xfinity Series driver who was still on premises to relieve for a Cup driver in Sunday's event who fell ill.

### Starting Lineup

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 4 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 6 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 7 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 8 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 10 | 3 | Kaz Grala (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 11 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 12 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 13 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 14 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 15 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota |
| 16 | 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 17 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 18 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 19 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 22 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 23 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 24 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 25 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 26 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 27 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 28 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 29 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 30 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 31 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota |
| 32 | 27 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 33 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 34 | 77 | Stanton Barrett | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 35 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 36 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 37 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 38 | 51 | James Davison | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 39 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| Official starting lineup |||||

## Race
### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 15
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||
Stage Two Laps: 15
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 35
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 7 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 54 |
| 2 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 65 | 45 |
| 3 | 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 65 | 37 |
| 4 | 11 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 41 |
| 5 | 21 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 65 | 32 |
| 6 | 12 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 65 | 47 |
| 7 | 10 | 3 | Kaz Grala (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 0 |
| 8 | 13 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 40 |
| 9 | 5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 65 | 37 |
| 10 | 30 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 65 | 27 |
| 11 | 20 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 65 | 31 |
| 12 | 27 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 25 |
| 13 | 17 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 65 | 24 |
| 14 | 8 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 25 |
| 15 | 9 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 65 | 28 |
| 16 | 25 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 27 |
| 17 | 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 65 | 23 |
| 18 | 18 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 19 |
| 19 | 14 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 65 | 18 |
| 20 | 23 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 17 |
| 21 | 15 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota | 65 | 16 |
| 22 | 26 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 65 | 17 |
| 23 | 22 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 20 |
| 24 | 6 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 65 | 13 |
| 25 | 19 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 12 |
| 26 | 16 | 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 11 |
| 27 | 31 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 65 | 10 |
| 28 | 33 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 65 | 9 |
| 29 | 37 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 65 | 0 |
| 30 | 38 | 51 | James Davison | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 65 | 7 |
| 31 | 24 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 65 | 14 |
| 32 | 29 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 65 | 6 |
| 33 | 35 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 64 | 4 |
| 34 | 32 | 27 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 64 | 0 |
| 35 | 28 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 62 | 2 |
| 36 | 36 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 60 | 0 |
| 37 | 4 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 53 | 1 |
| 38 | 34 | 77 | Stanton Barrett | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49 | 1 |
| 39 | 39 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 46 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

#### Notes

* ↑ Bayley Currey took over the car before the end of the second stage after Yeley suffered from heat exhaustion when the car's cooling system failed.

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 13 among 6 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 4 for 7 laps
* Red flags: 1 for 31 minutes and 14 seconds (lightning policy)
* Time of race: 2 hours, 37 minutes and 30 seconds
* Average speed: 89.39 miles per hour (143.86 km/h)

## Media
### Television

NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and four-time Daytona winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. covered the race from the booth at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman and Dillon Welch handled the pit road duties on site, and Rutledge Wood handled the features from his home during the race.
NBC :
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | Features reporter |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte Color-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dave Burns Parker Kligerman Dillon Welch | Rutledge Wood |

### Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
MRN Radio :
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace | Road Course Infield: Dave Moody NASCAR 1/2: Mike Bagley LM Chicane-NASCAR 3/4: Kurt Becker | Winston Kelley Steve Post |
| Source: |||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Kevin Harvick | 939 |
| 1 | 2 | Denny Hamlin | 821 (–118) |
| 1 | 3 | Brad Keselowski | 803 (–136) |
| 1 | 4 | Chase Elliott | 775 (–164) |
| 1 | 5 | Ryan Blaney | 755 (–184) |
| | 6 | Joey Logano | 754 (–185) |
| | 7 | Martin Truex Jr. | 753 (–186) |
| | 8 | Aric Almirola | 682 (–257) |
| 1 | 9 | Kurt Busch | 673 (–266) |
| 1 | 10 | Kyle Busch | 652 (–287) |
| 1 | 11 | Clint Bowyer | 618 (–321) |
| 1 | 12 | Alex Bowman | 610 (–329) |
| | 13 | Matt DiBenedetto | 596 (–343) |
| | 14 | William Byron | 577 (–362) |
| 1 | 15 | Jimmie Johnson | 552 (–387) |
| 1 | 16 | Erik Jones | 542 (–397) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Ford | 860 |
| 2 | Toyota | 805 (–55) |
| 3 | Chevrolet | 765 (–95) |