# 2021 Drydene 400

The 2021 Drydene 400 was a NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on May 16, 2021, at Dover International Speedway in Dover, Delaware. Contested over 400 laps on the 1-mile (1.6 km) concrete speedway, it was the 13th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.
All of Hendrick Motorsports's cars finished in the top four with Alex Bowman taking the checkered flag, the first team to do so since Roush Racing at the 2005 Ford 400.

## Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick | 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 |
| 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 77 | Josh Berry (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| Official entry list ||||

## Qualifying

Martin Truex Jr. was awarded the pole for the race as determined by competition-based formula.

### Starting Lineup

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 1 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 3 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 4 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 6 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 7 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 8 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 10 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 11 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 12 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 13 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 14 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 15 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 16 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 17 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 18 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 19 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 21 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 22 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 23 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 24 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| 25 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 26 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 27 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 28 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 29 | 77 | Josh Berry (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 30 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 31 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 32 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 33 | 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 34 | 51 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 35 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 36 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 37 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| Official starting lineup |||||

## Race
### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 120
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||
Stage Two Laps: 120
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 160
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 16 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 51 |
| 2 | 4 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 55 |
| 3 | 8 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 50 |
| 4 | 3 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 45 |
| 5 | 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 36 |
| 6 | 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 42 |
| 7 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 45 |
| 8 | 12 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 30 |
| 9 | 24 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet | 400 | 28 |
| 10 | 30 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 27 |
| 11 | 22 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 400 | 26 |
| 12 | 7 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 33 |
| 13 | 28 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 28 |
| 14 | 14 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 25 |
| 15 | 19 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 22 |
| 16 | 15 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 25 |
| 17 | 10 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 400 | 22 |
| 18 | 25 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 399 | 19 |
| 19 | 1 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 399 | 18 |
| 20 | 20 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 399 | 17 |
| 21 | 11 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 396 | 16 |
| 22 | 23 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 396 | 15 |
| 23 | 13 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 396 | 14 |
| 24 | 18 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 395 | 13 |
| 25 | 21 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 395 | 12 |
| 26 | 26 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 11 |
| 27 | 6 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 393 | 10 |
| 28 | 27 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 392 | 9 |
| 29 | 35 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 388 | 8 |
| 30 | 29 | 77 | Josh Berry (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 388 | 0 |
| 31 | 34 | 51 | Cody Ware (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 387 | 0 |
| 32 | 36 | 53 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 383 | 0 |
| 33 | 33 | 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 382 | 4 |
| 34 | 37 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 381 | 3 |
| 35 | 17 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 335 | 2 |
| 36 | 31 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford | 334 | 0 |
| 37 | 32 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 300 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 10 among 5 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 7 for 41
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 3 hours, 19 minutes and 55 seconds
* Average speed: 120.05 miles per hour (193.20 km/h)

## Media
### Television

Fox Sports covered the race on the television side. Mike Joy, five-time Dover winner Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer called the race from the broadcast booth. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.
FS1 :
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | In-race analyst |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon Color-commentator: Clint Bowyer | Jamie Little Regan Smith | Larry McReynolds |

### Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race and was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
MRN Radio :
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle | Backstretch: Mike Bagley | Kim Coon Steve Post |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Denny Hamlin | 574 |
| 1 | 2 | William Byron | 473 (–101) |
| 1 | 3 | Martin Truex Jr. | 472 (–102) |
| | 4 | Joey Logano | 442 (–132) |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | 440 (–134) |
| 1 | 6 | Ryan Blaney | 438 (–136) |
| 1 | 7 | Chase Elliott | 432 (–142) |
| 1 | 8 | Kevin Harvick | 427 (–147) |
| | 9 | Brad Keselowski | 404 (–170) |
| | 10 | Kyle Busch | 383 (–191) |
| 1 | 11 | Austin Dillon | 341 (–233) |
| 1 | 12 | Christopher Bell | 336 (–238) |
| 1 | 13 | Alex Bowman | 332 (–242) |
| 1 | 14 | Chris Buescher | 309 (–265) |
| 1 | 15 | Tyler Reddick | 298 (–276) |
| 1 | 16 | Michael McDowell | 290 (–284) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| | Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 1 | Chevrolet | 467 |
| 1 | 2 | Ford | 460 (–7) |
| | 3 | Toyota | 452 (–15) |