Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum

The Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum (formerly known as the Busch Clash at Daytona is an annual NASCAR Cup Series  annual pre-season exhibition race held at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.

This race is not part of the championship but is a preparation for the Daytona 500 which takes place a few days later at Daytona International Speedway.

The event was held each year at Daytona International Speedway since the race's inception in 1979 until 2022, when it was moved to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. At Daytona, the race, along with the ARCA Menards Series' season-opening Lucas Oil 200, served as the kickoff events for Daytona Speedweeks. The event is one of two non-points races on the Cup Series schedule, the other being the NASCAR All-Star Race.

The official name of the event The Clash at Daytona varies depending on the sponsorship of the name. It was the company, which sponsored the race since the 2017 season giving at the time at the event the official name of the Advance Auto Parts Clash. The 2017 race was postponed to Sunday due to uninterrupted rain of Saturday. It was the first time since 2006 that the race took place during the day.

Since the 2020 running, the race has been sponsored by the company and it has been renamed Busch Clash.

The format of the 2021 edition has been modified since it takes place, for the first time in its history, partly on the infield road course and the oval. It is contested over an overall distance of 126.35 mi and has two segments of 15 and 20 laps respectively.

For the 2022 running, the race leaves Daytona for Los Angeles and the stadium Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The race is marked by the very first appearance in competition of 7th generation NASCAR cars. It is also the 1st race in a stadium since the 1956 race contested in, The 2022 running is also the first with qualifications and not an invitation-only race and the number of cars there limited to 23.

The defending winner of the Busch Clash is Kyle Busch, after winning it in 2021.

Daytona Road Course in 2021
In 2020, The speedway hosted on the Go Bowling 235 on August 16, 2020 which took place on the road course layout of the Daytona International Speedway following the having led to the cancellation of the race initially scheduled for this date at Watkins Glen International. As sanitary conditions have not improved, with the race scheduled at Watkins Glen in August 2021 remaining uncertain (although scheduled in the calendar), NASCAR has decided that the 2021 Clash will take place on a road course in preparation for the race scheduled on this same road course on February 21, 2021} and counting for the championship.

The race
Originally, The Clash at Daytona was known as Busch Clash, and it consisted of a sprint of 20 of circuit (for a total of 50 mi, contested between all the drivers who had a pole position during the previous season. These drivers were considered the "de facto fastest drivers on the circuit ".

Until 2016, the race consisted of three parts (segments) (30 laps, 25 laps, 20 laps) ending with a sprint of 20 laps.

From 2017 to 2020, the 75 laps with a total length of 187.5 mi are divided into 2 segments separated by 25 laps (neutralization under yellow flag). The first segment was 25 laps and the second was 50 laps.

Race eligibility
2017–2018: The minimum number of cars rule and the outside pole winners for the Daytona 500 were removed. The field consisted of pole winners, former Clash race winners, former Daytona 500 pole winners, and drivers who qualified for the NASCAR Playoffs. Similar to the 2009 format based on teams, NASCAR gave a special exemption for rookie Daniel Suárez since Joe Gibbs Racing already had a car prepared for Carl Edwards who surprisingly retired just a month before the race.
 * 1979–2008: Pole position winners from the previous season clinched automatic berths. From 1979 to 2000, qualifying consisted of two rounds, one driver based on the second round qualifying format was automatically admitted.
 * 1979-1997, 2001: The drivers that were the fastest qualifiers for the previous year's races' during Busch Second Round Qualifying (except for those who had won awards for first round qualifying had their names omitted) were eligible for one wild card spot. The wild card driver was selected by blind draw during the week of the January media tour (until 1981), or at NASCAR's end of season prizegiving banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria in December (1982-1997).
 * 1995-96: The winner of the most pole positions in the secondary NASCAR Busch Series won an entry into the Busch Clash as a wild card, driving a Busch-sponsored car. David Green won the right both times.
 * 1998–2000: Drivers eligible from Second Round Qualifying participated in the Bud Shootout Qualifier, with the winner advancing to the main event Bud Shootout.
 * 2002–2008:' All former winners of the event not already qualified received automatic berths.
 * 2009: With the 2008 season being the first where Coors replaced Anheuser-Busch as the series' pole award sponsor, pole winners were no longer part of qualifying formats. The field consists of 28 cars. The top six teams from each manufacturer (Ford, Chevrolet, Dodge, and Toyota) based on owners' points from the previous season clinch berths, for a total of 24 cars. Unlike previous formats, the entry (team) receives the berth, not the driver. In addition, each of the four manufacturers receive one "" berth for a car/driver not already qualified, to bring the grand total to 28 cars. The other four "entries" were for previous champions and past Shootout winners. This system was discarded after only one year as it was largely unpopular.
 * 2010–2011: A new qualifying format was introduced, which expanded the field, with no size limitations:
 * The 12 drivers from the previous season's NASCAR Playoffs
 * Previous Budweiser Shootout winners
 * Previous points-paying race winners at Daytona (Daytona 500 or Coke Zero 400)
 * Previous Sprint Cup champions
 * The last 10 Rookies of year (in 2010, it was only the reigning rookie of the year)
 * 2012: The field was once again expanded. Automatic bids went to the top 25 in series points (every driver from defending series champion Tony Stewart through 25th place Brian Vickers), as well as any Daytona race winner who was not otherwise qualified and who competed in at least one race in 2011 (which enabled Bill Elliott, Geoff Bodine, Derrike Cope, Michael Waltrip, Jamie McMurray, Trevor Bayne, Terry Labonte, and Ken Schrader to make the race if they decide to run).
 * 2013–2014 With now taking over sponsorship of the race, the Speedway reverted to the 2002-08 format where all drivers who won pole positions via time trials (does not include winners of practice one, should qualifying not be held because of inclement weather) and previous winners of the event that have attempted to qualify for any of the 36 points races in the previous season are eligible. The driver does not have to win the then-Coors Light Pole Award (which could happen if the driver does not have a beer sticker) in order to claim an Unlimited seat, just set the fastest time in pole qualifying. The beer sticker mandate was also eliminated by the track.
 * 2015–2016: Eligibility was once again changed, with a minimum of 25 eligible entries. In addition to the traditional pole winners and former race winners, additional eligibility was added. These additional slots were awarded to:
 * The 16 drivers who made the Playoffs.
 * Previous Daytona 500 front row starters (both inside and outside polesitters) if they did not win a pole position at any of the other 35 races during the previous season.
 * To ensure the field was 25 cars, if there were fewer than 25 drivers eligible, any remaining spots are filled by the highest drivers in the previous season's final point standings to not be automatically entered into the Unlimited on any of the other qualifications.
 * 2019–2020: Daytona 500 s were also eligible to participate in the Clash. In addition, drivers in categories other than the traditional pole winners from the previous season (former Clash, Daytona 500 pole, and race winners, in addition to playoff drivers) must have participated full-time in the previous season.
 * 2021: Due to the in 2020 where only five races (Daytona 500, Auto Club, and the first races at Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Charlotte) had pole qualifying, the eligibility requirements for the 2021 Clash were changed to the following:
 * Busch Pole Award winners from the five races where it was held.
 * Busch Clash winners who raced full-time in the previous season
 * Daytona 500 winners who raced full-time in the previous season
 * Daytona 500 Busch Pole Award winners who raced full-time in the previous season
 * Playoff drivers of the previous season
 * Race winners of the previous season
 * Stage winners of the previous season
 * 2022: As part of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum race, the 36 chartered teams will participate, and up to four open teams (if more than 40 cars enter, it is uncertain if it will be determined by which teams on the entry list finished higher in 2021 owner points or if all cars on the entry list will be allowed in qualifying) will participate in the heat races. The heat races will be determined by qualifying, where times are calculated and drivers are assigned into one of four heats. The four fastest qualifiers (1-4) will each get the pole-position in each of the four heat races. The next four fastest (5-8) will get the second position in each of the four heats, and so on. The 150-lap main event consists of a 23-car field:
 * Top four from each of four heat races
 * Ten cars in each 25-lap heat race.
 * Those that fail to advance in the first and third heat races are allocated to one B Main, while the others from the second and fourth are assigned to the other B Main.
 * Top three from each of two Last Chance Qualifying (LCQ) races ("B Main").
 * Twelve cars in each 50-lap LCQ, B Main.
 * Highest ranked driver in 2021 NASCAR Cup Series not yet qualified. (This means that only 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson is guaranteed to race in the main event.)

Race history

 * 1979: The race debuted on Sunday, broadcast live on CBS. Pole position qualifying for the Daytona 500 would start Sunday at 10 am, followed by the ARCA 200. The Busch Clash would be held after the ARCA race at 3 pm.
 * 1980: Heavy winds during Daytona 500 pole qualifying delayed the proceedings and the ARCA 200 began 90 minutes later than scheduled. As 3 pm approached, the ARCA race was red flagged and halted so that the Busch Clash could be held as scheduled and be shown on live television. After the Clash was finished, the ARCA race resumed.
 * 1981: Morning rain washed out Daytona 500 pole qualifying, which was rescheduled for the following day. After the track dried Sunday, the ARCA race began at 2:30 pm. The Busch Clash, scheduled for 3 pm, was held following the delayed ARCA race.
 * 1983: Rain washed out all scheduled activities for Sunday. The Busch Clash was rescheduled and run the following day, Monday.
 * 1984: Ricky Rudd was spun off the track at turn four at a very high speed, resulting in a blowover, then a series of violent flips. Ricky suffered a concussion, and his eyes were so swollen that he had to tape them open so he could race in that Thursday's UNO Twin 125 and subsequent races.
 * 1985: Track officials reorganized the schedule for track activities for the weekend. Daytona 500 pole qualifying was moved from Sunday to Saturday, and the Busch Clash was moved from 3 pm to 12 pm on Sunday. The ARCA 200 was then held after the Busch Clash rather than before.
 * 1992: For one year, Daytona 500 pole qualifying and the Busch Clash swapped days. The Busch Clash was held Saturday, and qualifying was held Sunday. This move was made at the request of CBS, who wanted the additional time on Sunday for their coverage of the 1992 Winter Olympics.
 * 1995: Morning rain delayed the start by 30 minutes.
 * 2001: FOX broadcasts the race for the first time. It also marked the first race televised on Fox. The start time was shifted to 2 pm on Sundays.
 * 2002: TNT broadcast the race for the first time.
 * 2003: The race was run at night for the first time.
 * 2004: A crash at the final lap resulted in controversy. A 2003 incident at Loudon involving Dale Jarrett and Casey Mears had resulted in the banning of racing back to the caution. In this case, NASCAR did not wave the caution at the end of the race despite a crash involving Ryan Newman and Jamie McMurray, and allow the race to run to the finish, creating a potentially dangerous situation. Ironically, Dale Jarrett won the race.
 * 2005: The ARCA race was stopped for 45 minutes because of repairs to the catchfencing, and was stopped 15 laps short in order to prepare for the Budweiser Shootout.
 * 2006: The event was postponed from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon due to rain. This was also the first shootout to feature the green-white-checkered finish. Denny Hamlin became the first rookie to win the event in 2006 in his #11 car.
 * 2007: Tony Stewart won the race for the third time driving his No. 20 car. It was the second win in a row for Joe Gibbs Racing because Denny Hamlin won in 2006.
 * 2008: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the race for the second time, and won in his first start with Hendrick Motorsports. He also made the record of leading the most laps, 47, during the shootout.
 * 2009: Kevin Harvick, won the race for the first time on a last-lap pass reminiscent of his 2007 Daytona 500 last-lap pass on Mark Martin. This time however Harvick passed Jamie McMurray in Turn 3 for the win as an accident would occur behind Harvick, also the same scenario happened in the 500 for Harvick.
 * 2010: All Daytona 500 qualifying weekend activity was moved to Saturday, as not to conflict with Super Bowl XLIV. Daytona 500 qualifying started at 12 noon, then the ARCA Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at 4:30 pm, and the Budweiser Shootout was held at 8 pm. Kevin Harvick won the race for the second time in a row, becoming the first driver to win it consecutively since Tony Stewart. A crash caused by Jeff Gordon during the one attempt at the green-white-checkered finish led the race to finish under caution.
 * 2011: After the track was repaved in the off-season, teams found tandem drafting to become prevalent at the restrictive plate tracks during the preseason. During the final laps, the lead pack of four cars ran single file, with Ryan Newman in the lead, followed by Denny Hamlin, then Kurt Busch, and then Jamie McMurray. Coming out of Turn 4 on the final lap, Busch and McMurray pulled to the outside, while Denny Hamlin pulled to the inside. Hamlin exceeds track limits in passing Newman for the win, with Busch and McMurray passing Newman legally. Upon as review, Hamlin was dropped to the last car on the lead lap, in 13th, for exceeding track limits and all other drivers on the lead lap gained a position, giving Busch the win.
 * 2012: Kyle Busch won the race after passing Tony Stewart at the finish line. It was the closest finish in Bud Shootout history. The race itself, being the first Sprint Cup event under a new rules package designed to break up the controversial two-car tandem drafting of the previous year, was marked by three multi-car crashes during the race caused by drivers getting into the left-rear quarter panel of another car. The first crash happened in the first 25 lap segment when Paul Menard got into David Ragan in turn 2, starting an eight car crash. The drivers involved were: Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, Paul Menard, Jeff Burton, David Ragan, Juan Pablo Montoya and Michael Waltrip. The second one happened on lap 55, also in turn 2. This one started when Marcos Ambrose turned Joey Logano loose. Several other drivers were collected trying to avoid Logano, including Kenseth, Martin Truex, Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Kevin Harvick. Harvick's brakes failed, and he ended up coasting down the apron with flames coming out from under his car, though they extinguished themselves before Harvick reached the garage. A third crash happened with two laps to go within regulation, when Jeff Gordon got into the back of eventual winner Kyle Busch on turn 4. While Kyle retained control of his car, Gordon shot up the banking and collected Jimmie Johnson, Jamie McMurray and Kurt Busch, and turned sideways on the driver's side door. Gordon was pushed down the track on his side for several hundred feet before his car barrel-rolled three times and came to a rest on his roof.
 * 2013: Kevin Harvick won for the third time in the race. This was the first time the event was named the Sprint Unlimited. This race also marked the debut of the Sixth Generation car.
 * 2014: Denny Hamlin won his second Unlimited by overtaking Brad Keselowski with drafting help from Kyle Busch with two laps to go. The first race under a new rules package that included a slightly taller spoiler, there were numerous wrecks, including a frightening wreck on lap 35 when Matt Kenseth was turned by Joey Logano in the trioval, collecting Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Tony Stewart, Danica Patrick, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., which saw Stenhouse's car first drive under Busch's rear wheels, lose its brakes and steering, before t-boning Patrick on the apron. The race also saw an incident during the break between the second and third segments in which the Holden Commodore safety car suffered an electrical fire with the wiring harness used to control the safety car lights suffered a wiring short circuit. There were 16 lead changes among seven drivers.
 * 2015: Matt Kenseth won the race with Martin Truex, Jr. challenging in the final laps. Brad Keselowski crashed hard on the front straight at lap 25, and Jamie McMurray caused the big one later in the race. After the race, defending series champion Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano were involved in an altercation after Logano's 22 sent Harvick's 4 into the turn four wall coming to the white flag.
 * 2016: Hamlin took command of the field and moved ahead of the No. 2 car. Eventually, Keselowski moved by him coming to the line and took the lead on lap 34. Hamlin shot ahead of Keselowski on the backstretch to take the lead back the next lap. Keselowski used a push from teammate Joey Logano to retake the lead on lap 37. Just like his first stint in the lead, he picked up another piece of debris that covered his grill. The third caution of the race flew on lap 44 for a single-car spin on the backstretch. Going down the backstretch, Johnson made contact with Mears that sent him spinning through the grass. His car dug into the ground and ripped off the front fender. He said afterwards that he "did a decent job of backing out of there and not causing a big one as the door shut on me." Keselowski opted to stay out while the rest of the field opted to pit, The race restarted with two laps to go in overtime, The field passed the overtime line and the race was official at that point. After a multi-car wreck in turn 1, Hamlin was declared the race winner.
 * 2017: For just the second time in the event's history, the race was postponed from Saturday Night to Sunday Afternoon due to rain. Kurt Busch lasted just shy of 20 laps as Jimmie Johnson got loose off of turn 4 and spun Busch. Denny Hamlin dominated and looked to be on his way to his fourth win in the event leading 48 laps. After leading at the white flag, Brad Keselowski made a move to the inside that Hamlin left open, which led to Hamlin driving into Keselowski in a failed attempt to block him, ultimately ending their chances at winning. As the collision happened, Keselowski's teammate Joey Logano was able to avoid the incident on the high side and ultimately won the event for the first time in his career over Kyle Busch and Alex Bowman. Danica Patrick managed to finish 4th after running 10th at the white flag.
 * 2018: Unlike all the other years, except for 2006 and 2017, the race was held on Sunday Afternoon. The race saw only two caution flags, one for the end of the segment, and the other caused by Jamie McMurray crashing in turn 4 after contact with Kurt Busch on lap 34. He would ultimately be the only one not running at the end of the race. This was the first race where crew members only allow five men over the wall instead of six, with the fastest pit stop going to Kurt Busch at 16.9 seconds. Brad Keselowski would win his first Clash race as a big wreck happened on the last lap where Kyle Larson turns Jimmie Johnson into the outside wall on the back straightaway collecting Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Kasey Kahne, and Martin Truex, Jr.
 * 2019: For the first time in the race's history, it was truncated due to rain. Paul Menard drew the pole and led 51 laps all through the rain-plagued race, breaking the record held by Dale Earnhardt Jr. for most laps led in the event. Rain red-flagged the race three times, first on lap 10, and a second time on lap 45. Racing was very tame as Menard led the entire 20 car field single file in the high groove. With more rain on the horizon, drivers were starting to make their moves. On lap 56 Jimmie Johnson got a run on Menard and in an attempt to get the lead by side-drafting, made contact with Menard. The ensuing contact triggered the "Big One" that involved 17 of the 20 cars in the field when Menard spun back across the track. As the field with Johnson now out in front circled the track under caution, rain began to fall once again. After being brought down pit road with 59 of the scheduled 75 laps completed and red-flagged for a third time, NASCAR called the race over, with Johnson taking home his second Clash triumph with controversy. Only 8 of the 17 cars involved continued and were scored as having finished the race, resulting in only 11 of the 20 starters finishing the race. The race would ultimately be Johnson's last NASCAR-sanctioned victory.

Past winners

 * 1983: Race postponed from Sunday to Monday due to rain.
 * 2006 & 2017: Race postponed from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon due to rain.
 * 2006, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2016 & 2020: Race extended due to an overtime.
 * 2019: Race shortened due to rain.

Segment winners

 * 1991: Earnhardt won first 10-lap segment, and second 10-lap segment
 * 1992: Sterling Marlin won first 10-lap segment, and Bodine won second 10-lap segment
 * 1993: Earnhardt won first 10-lap segment, and second 10-lap segment
 * 1994: Dale Earnhardt won first 10-lap segment, and Gordon won second 10-lap segment
 * 1995: Jeff Gordon won first 10-lap segment, and Earnhardt won second 10-lap segment
 * 1996: Sterling Marlin won first 10-lap segment, and Jarrett won second 10-lap segment
 * 1997: Terry Labonte won first 10-lap segment, and Gordon won second 10-lap segment

Television broadcasters

 * Due to the nature of qualifying for the event (see above), several top NASCAR drivers were often excluded from the field in it first two decades. During its tenure on CBS, the Busch Clash telecast sometimes included a special guest color commentator(s), who was an active driver(s) on the circuit, but did not win a pole position the previous year, and thus was not in the field.


 * 2014: Michael Waltrip filled in for Darrell Waltrip, who was recovering from gallbladder surgery.
 * 2017: Dale Earnhardt Jr. was a guest analyst. Alex Bowman drove his car after winning his first career pole at Phoenix in November 2016 as Earnhardt was recovering from a concussion after missing the second half of the 2016 season.