| Official Race Results | |||||||||
| Daytona 500 | Daytona International Speedway | |||||||||
| February 15, 2009 | Race 1 of 36 | |||||||||
| Average Speed: 132.816 mph | Margin of Victory: Caution | ||||||||
| Time of Race: 02:51:40 | |||||||||
| Lead Changes: 9 | |||||||||
| Cautions: 9-10, 27-29, 56-59, 82-85, 120-123, 125-132, 139-142, 147-152 | |||||||||
| Fin | St | Car | Driver | Make | Sponsor | Pts / Bonus | Laps | Status | Winnings |
| 1 | 39 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Ford | Dewalt | 190/5 | 152 | Running | $1,530,390 |
| 2 | 32 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Shell / Pennzoil | 170/0 | 152 | Running | $1,115,720 |
| 3 | 20 | 44 | A.J. Allmendinger | Dodge | Valvoline | 165/0 | 152 | Running | $786,563 |
| 4 | 22 | 33 | Clint Bowyer | Chevrolet | Cheerios / Hamburger Helper | 160/0 | 152 | Running | $632,013 |
| 5 | 30 | 19 | Elliott Sadler | Dodge | Stanley | 160/5 | 152 | Running | $515,113 |
| 6 | 33 | 6 | David Ragan | Ford | UPS | 150/0 | 152 | Running | $412,163 |
| 7 | 27 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | Toyota | NAPA | 146/0 | 152 | Running | $371,238 |
| 8 | 5 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Office Depot / Old Spice | 147/5 | 152 | Running | $371,371 |
| 9 | 34 | 43 | Reed Sorenson | Dodge | McDonald's | 138/0 | 152 | Running | $362,324 |
| 10 | 13 | 2 | Kurt Busch | Dodge | Miller Lite | 134/0 | 152 | Running | $325,713 |
| 11 | 1 | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops / Tracker | 135/5 | 152 | Running | $345,663 |
| 12 | 28 | 0 | David Reutimann | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine | 127/0 | 152 | Running | $316,646 |
| 13 | 3 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | DuPont | 129/5 | 152 | Running | $356,935 |
| 14 | 8 | 42 | Juan Montoya | Chevrolet | Target | 121/0 | 152 | Running | $299,388 |
| 15 | 25 | 7 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | Jack Daniel's | 118/0 | 152 | Running | $298,838 |
| 16 | 2 | 5 | Mark Martin | Chevrolet | Kellogg's / Carquest | 120/5 | 152 | Running | $313,588 |
| 17 | 23 | 47 | Marcos Ambrose | Toyota | Little Debbie / Kingsford / Clorox | 112/0 | 152 | Running | $295,246 |
| 18 | 16 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Ford | Aflac | 109/0 | 152 | Running | $326,454 |
| 19 | 37 | 34 | John Andretti | Chevrolet | Window World | 106/0 | 152 | Running | $287,668 |
| 20 | 35 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 3M | 103/0 | 152 | Running | $297,863 |
| 21 | 42 | 78 | Regan Smith | Chevrolet | Furniture Row Companies | 100/0 | 152 | Running | $287,696 |
| 22 | 12 | 96 | Bobby Labonte | Ford | Ask.com | 102/5 | 152 | Running | $308,352 |
| 23 | 40 | 21 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Motorcraft | 94/0 | 152 | Running | $288,160 |
| 24 | 43 | 66 | Terry Labonte | Toyota | Window World | 91/0 | 152 | Running | $273,963 |
| 25 | 17 | 36 | Scott Riggs | Toyota | Red Bank Outfitters | 88/0 | 152 | Running | $273,513 |
| 26 | 10 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Express | 85/0 | 152 | Running | $300,963 |
| 27 | 14 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Chevrolet | Amp Energy / National Guard | 87/5 | 152 | Running | $291,063 |
| 28 | 26 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Chevrolet | Caterpillar | 79/0 | 152 | Running | $317,654 |
| 29 | 15 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Dodge | Budweiser | 76/0 | 152 | Running | $313,846 |
| 30 | 11 | 8 | Aric Almirola | Chevrolet | Guitar Hero | 73/0 | 152 | Running | $312,446 |
| 31 | 7 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Lowe's | 70/0 | 152 | Running | $336,149 |
| 32 | 29 | 77 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Dodge | Mobil 1 | 67/0 | 151 | Running | $289,933 |
| 33 | 24 | 12 | David Stremme | Dodge | Penske Racing | 64/0 | 151 | Running | $300,763 |
| 34 | 31 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Toyota | Jim Beam | 61/0 | 151 | Running | $287,158 |
| 35 | 38 | 82 | Scott Speed * | Toyota | Red Bull | 58/0 | 151 | Running | $268,763 |
| 36 | 36 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | U.S. Army | 55/0 | 150 | Running | $295,252 |
| 37 | 21 | 26 | Jamie McMurray | Ford | Crown Royal | 52/0 | 139 | Running | $274,713 |
| 38 | 19 | 98 | Paul Menard | Ford | Quaker State / Menards | 49/0 | 138 | Accident | $296,229 |
| 39 | 6 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Toyota | Red Bull | 46/0 | 134 | Accident | $305,171 |
| 40 | 18 | 41 | Jeremy Mayfield | Toyota | All Sport | 43/0 | 126 | Running | $265,238 |
| 41 | 4 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | M&M's | 50/10 | 123 | Accident | $349,182 |
| 42 | 41 | 28 | Travis Kvapil | Ford | Golden Corral | 37/0 | 90 | Running | $263,963 |
| 43 | 9 | 20 | Joey Logano * | Toyota | The Home Depot | 34/0 | 79 | Accident | $317,720 |
| * Denotes Rookie | |||||||||