A month ago, the Kansas City Chiefs tried to accomplish something that has never been done before in the history of the National Football League. They went into Super Bowl LIX as the two-time defending champions with a plan to win three in row. Well, you probably know how that turned out. Threepeats are exceedingly rare in most sports, including motorsports.
Which brings us to the Daytona 200. “The Great American Motorcycle Race” has been run 82 times so far, and no rider has ever won three consecutive Daytona 200s. Even among the legends like Scott Russell and Miguel Duhamel, who remain tied with the most Daytona victories at five, neither of them ever strung three Daytona 200 victories together in a row. Russell went back to back with victories two times in his career—1994 & 1995, and then again in 1996 & 1997—but, he never threepeated.
Rather surprisingly, back-to back Daytona 200 winners are not that rare. Since 1937, the first year of the 200, riders have won two in a row 15 times. In fact, Ben Campanale won in both 1938 and 1939, the second and third years that the race was held.
For this year’s 83rd Daytona 200, there are actually three riders on the entry list who have each won two 200s in a row: Danny Eslick, who did it twice in 2014 & 2015, and then again in 2017 & 2018; Brandon Paasch, who went back to back in 2021 & 2022; and, of course, Josh Herrin, who won two Daytona 200s in a row in 2023 & last year. Ironically, Herrin prevented Paasch from making history with the threepeat, and Herrin has a chance this year to be the very first rider ever in the long and storied history of the Daytona 200 to “break the curse” and get his name etched on the winner’s trophy for the third consecutive time.
And, if he does that, he will join Eslick as the only other four-time Daytona 200 winner. Both riders will then be just one victory away from joining Russell and Duhamel at the top of the heap with five. Already with four, Eslick can join that five-time winners’ club if he wins on Saturday.
Will it happen? History would say “no,” but, as the saying goes, “there is a first time for everything,” and this Sunday could be it.
Good luck, Josh Herrin.
The Daytona 200’s 15 back-to-back winners (but no threepeats) are:
• Ben Campanale 1938 & 1939
• Dick Klamfoth 1951 & 1952
• Joe Leonard 1957 & 1958
• Brad Andres 1959 & 1960
• Roger Reiman 1964 & 1965
• Cal Rayborn 1968 & 1969
• Dick Mann 1970 & 1971
• Kenny Roberts 1983 & 1984
• Scott Russell 1994 & 1995 and 1998 & 1999 (2)
• Mat Mladin 2000 & 2001
• Danny Eslick 2014 & 2015 and 2017 & 2018 (2)
• Brandon Paasch 2021 & 2022
• Josh Herrin 2023 & 2024
