Drydene 400
Dover Motor Speedway, May 16, 2021
Alex Bowman
Winner
400
Laps
37
Entries
5
Leaders
Alex Bowman won the 2021 Drydene 400 at Dover Motor Speedway on May 16, 2021, leading 98 of 400 laps. Kyle Larson finished second; Chase Elliott rounded out the podium. The race featured 5 different leaders.
Race Details
Date
Sunday, May 16, 2021
Track
Season
2021
Winner
Leaders
5 drivers
| Pos | Start | +/- | Driver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | +15 | Alex Bowman |
| 2 | 4 | +2 | Kyle Larson |
| 3 | 8 | +5 | Chase Elliott |
| 4 | 3 | -1 | William Byron |
| 5 | 9 | +4 | Joey Logano |
| 6 | 5 | -1 | Kevin Harvick |
| 7 | 2 | -5 | Denny Hamlin |
| 8 | 12 | +4 | Tyler Reddick |
| 9 | 24 | +15 | Daniel Suarez |
| 10 | 30 | +20 | Cole Custer |
| 11 | 22 | +11 | Bubba Wallace |
| 12 | 7 | -5 | Ryan Blaney |
| 13 | 28 | +15 | Kurt Busch |
| 14 | 14 | — | Austin Dillon |
| 15 | 19 | +4 | Ross Chastain |
| 16 | 15 | -1 | Brad Keselowski |
| 17 | 10 | -7 | Chris Buescher |
| 18 | 25 | +7 | Ryan Preece |
| 19 | 1 | -18 | Martin Truex, Jr. |
| 20 | 20 | — | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 21 | 11 | -10 | Christopher Bell |
| 22 | 23 | +1 | Erik Jones |
| 23 | 13 | -10 | Ryan Newman |
| 24 | 18 | -6 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 25 | 21 | -4 | Michael McDowell |
| 26 | 26 | — | Corey LaJoie |
| 27 | 6 | -21 | Kyle Busch |
| 28 | 27 | -1 | Anthony Alfredo |
| 29 | 35 | +6 | Quin Houff |
| 30 | 29 | -1 | Josh Berry |
| 31 | 34 | +3 | Cody Ware |
| 32 | 36 | +4 | Garrett Smithley |
| 33 | 33 | — | James Davison |
| 34 | 37 | +3 | Josh Bilicki |
| 35 | 17 | -18 | Chase Briscoe |
| 36 | 31 | -5 | B.J. McLeod |
| 37 | 32 | -5 | Aric Almirola |
Stage Results
| Driver | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Larson | 1 | 1 | — | 20 |
| Chase Elliott | 4 | 2 | — | 16 |
| Denny Hamlin | 2 | 5 | — | 15 |
| William Byron | 6 | 4 | — | 12 |
| Alex Bowman | 8 | 3 | — | 11 |
| Kevin Harvick | 5 | 6 | — | 11 |
| Ryan Blaney | 3 | — | — | 8 |
| Joey Logano | 7 | — | — | 4 |
| Kurt Busch | — | 7 | — | 4 |
| Brad Keselowski | 10 | 8 | — | 4 |
| Austin Dillon | — | 9 | — | 2 |
| Chris Buescher | 9 | — | — | 2 |
| Tyler Reddick | — | 10 | — | 1 |
| Daniel Suarez | — | — | — | — |
| Cole Custer | — | — | — | — |
| Bubba Wallace | — | — | — | — |
| Ross Chastain | — | — | — | — |
| Ryan Preece | — | — | — | — |
| Martin Truex, Jr. | — | — | — | — |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | — | — | — | — |
| Christopher Bell | — | — | — | — |
| Erik Jones | — | — | — | — |
| Ryan Newman | — | — | — | — |
| Matt DiBenedetto | — | — | — | — |
| Michael McDowell | — | — | — | — |
| Corey LaJoie | — | — | — | — |
| Kyle Busch | — | — | — | — |
| Anthony Alfredo | — | — | — | — |
| Quin Houff | — | — | — | — |
| Josh Berry | — | — | — | — |
| Cody Ware | — | — | — | — |
| Garrett Smithley | — | — | — | — |
| James Davison | — | — | — | — |
| Josh Bilicki | — | — | — | — |
| Chase Briscoe | — | — | — | — |
| B.J. McLeod | — | — | — | — |
| Aric Almirola | — | — | — | — |
Model Performance
How well did the NR-Rating model predict this race? Across 28 matched drivers, the model averaged 6.4 positions off — better than the season average of 8.5. Good
| Pos | Driver | Predicted | Actual | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alex Bowman | 15.0 | 1 | +14.0 |
| 2 | Kyle Larson | 9.9 | 2 | +7.9 |
| 3 | Chase Elliott | 8.3 | 3 | +5.3 |
| 4 | William Byron | 12.0 | 4 | +8.0 |
| 5 | Joey Logano | 12.6 | 5 | +7.6 |
| 7 | Denny Hamlin | 6.8 | 7 | -0.2 |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick | 8.6 | 8 | +0.6 |
| 9 | Daniel Suarez | 15.6 | 9 | +6.6 |
| 10 | Cole Custer | 23.0 | 10 | +13.0 |
| 11 | Bubba Wallace | 14.0 | 11 | +3.0 |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | 6.8 | 12 | -5.2 |
| 14 | Austin Dillon | 15.6 | 14 | +1.6 |
| 15 | Ross Chastain | 13.8 | 15 | -1.2 |
| 16 | Brad Keselowski | 12.6 | 16 | -3.4 |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | 10.3 | 17 | -6.7 |
| 18 | Ryan Preece | 10.8 | 18 | -7.2 |
| 19 | Martin Truex, Jr. | 14.0 | 19 | -5.0 |
| 20 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 20.2 | 20 | +0.2 |
| 21 | Christopher Bell | 9.9 | 21 | -11.1 |
| 22 | Erik Jones | 17.7 | 22 | -4.3 |
(showing top 20 finishers)
Predicted finish from NR-Rating model. Delta = predicted − actual (positive = driver beat prediction). Confidence: High Confidence = low variance (stdDev ≤ 9), Moderate = medium variance, Coinflip = high variance.
Historical Context
- Alex Bowman: has 11 career starts at Dover Motor Speedway with a 9.8 avg finish (1 win) — the model may have underweighted this track history.
- Denny Hamlin: was the model’s top pick based on 14 career starts at Dover Motor Speedway with a 9.6 avg finish (4 wins), finishing P7 on the day.
Explore More
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won the 2021 Drydene 400?
Alex Bowman won the 2021 Drydene 400 at Dover Motor Speedway driving for Hendrick Motorsports.
Where was the 2021 Drydene 400 held?
The 2021 Drydene 400 was held at Dover Motor Speedway on May 16, 2021.