Daytona 500 postponed to Monday following rain delays

HOUSTON - The Daytona 500 has been postponed due to weather and will resume Monday at 4 p.m. ET on FOX. The race will resume on lap 21 of 200.

The race was mired in delays prior to officials postponing the race until Monday.

The first delay lasted 50 minutes and came moments after the presidential motorcade completed a ceremonial parade lap around the 2 1/2-mile track.

Trump’s armored limousine nicknamed “The Beast” exited Daytona International Speedway, and the sky opened for a brief shower that forced drivers back to pit road.

The start already had been pushed back 13 minutes to accommodate Trump’s trip. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. eventually led the field to the green flag and was out front for the first 20 laps before heavier rain-soaked a racing surface that takes hours to dry.

It choked some of the excitement out of an event that was a raucous celebration hours earlier, set off by Trump’s dramatic entrance. Thousands cheered as Air Force One performed a flyover and landed at Daytona International Airport a few hundred yards behind the track. Trump’s motorcade arrived a few minutes later, prompting another loud ovation. Both entrances were broadcast on giant video boards around the superspeedway.

At least a dozen drivers were escorted from the pre-race meeting to a private introduction with Trump.

“I got to meet the president! How cool is that?” driver Aric Almirola said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.