"It hasn’t happened to me a lot" - Emotional Conor Daly opens up about clinching Daytona 500 spot

Conor Daly has spoken out about sealing a spot in the Daytona 500. It needed a good dose of luck but the 31-year-old got there.

“It’s all worth it. We do this for moments like this when it all pays off, when things work out. Sometimes you get lucky. It hasn’t happened to me a lot, but sometimes you’ve got to be thankful for those moments, and I’m very thankful right now.”

Daly has approximately 100 IndyCar starts under his belt. The son of a former IndyCar driver and the stepson of the president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Daly has grown up around racing.

Yet, it has not been an easy road. Daly's career has seen ups and downs. He is yet to win an IndyCar race. His most notable achievement in that series was leading the most laps in the 2021 Indianapolis 500. That event famously saw Helio Castroneves becoming the fourth driver to win the event four times.

The No. 50 car from The Money Racing Team, a part-time Cup team owned by Hall of Fame boxer Floyd Mayweather, was considered for Castroneves to drive. Daly was given the ride after a contract could not be reached.

Things went downhill once Conor Daly landed in Daytona. An electrical problem burnt a hole in the oil line, preventing him from qualifying on Wednesday night.

Daly, who had no laps in a Cup car, needed to finish ahead of Travis Pastrana and Austin Hill in their qualifying race to secure the final position for an unchartered vehicle in the Daytona 500.

However, things started to turn about for Conor Daly from that point onwards. Daniel Suarez's charge sent leader Kyle Busch into the wall, scattering those behind to escape the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing car.

Five other cars were involved, including Pastrana and Hill's. Pastrana had left. Hill attempted to continue, but his car was too damaged. This secured Daly a slot in the Daytona 500. He'll line up 34th.

Conor Daly stood alone on pit road after one of his most major achievements in racing, with no one to celebrate with. He was surrounded by the media. Everyone wanted to take pictures and interview him.

However, suddenly, Daly's smile got even wider when he saw his mom walk through the crowd to greet him. It was one of the heartwarming experiences for Daly.

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Conor Daly and Zane Smith get last Daytona 500 field spots in Duels

During Thursday night's Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying races, Conor Daly joined reigning Craftsman Truck Series champion Zane Smith in claiming the last Daytona 500 starting places. Both drivers will be making their second Cup Series appearances and their first in the prestigious season opener on Sunday.

Both were also helped by the misfortune of their main opponents for the Daytona 500 places. Chandler Smith was never able to recover from a mid-race pit road speeding penalty in Duel 1. Austin Hill was trapped in the aftermath of a multi-car pile-up in the second 150-miler. Both did not qualify.

“This race, I’ve watched it for so many years and so much crazy stuff can happen, and thankfully we were on the right side of the craziness. It’s pretty amazing,” Daly said.