DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Aric Almirola grew up two hours from Daytona International Speedway, attended countless races as a kid and even "dreamed about what it would be like to have a chance to race at the highest level at this racetrack." He found out Sunday, after two days of thunderstorms, three red-flag stoppages and dozens of wrecked cars. As a bonus, he also accomplished the feat on a milestone anniversary for his car owner, NASCAR legend Richard Petty. Almirola won the delayed and rain-shortened Sprint Cup race at Daytona, putting Pettys famed blue No. 43 back on top for the first time since 1999. The 30-year-old Almirolas first Cup win came on the same weekend Petty celebrated the 30th anniversary of his 200th career victory. "The 43 car is without a doubt the most famous car in our sports history," Almirola said. "And to have that opportunity to drive that race car has been really special from the day that I stepped foot in it. All I wanted to do from the very first time I drove it was get it to Victory Lane. It took 2 1/2 years I guess, but I finally did it." Petty wasnt around for the festivities, having already left Daytona during one of the many delays. The Coke Zero 400 was supposed to start Saturday, but steady rain forced it to be postponed a day. When it did finally get going, it was interrupted several more times. There were seven cautions and three red flags, two of them because of huge accidents that took out most of the 43-car field. Top contenders Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Jamie McMurray, Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle and Kyle Busch were among those knocked out. Only seven drivers avoided both crashes. Not surprisingly, Almirola was among them. He became the first Cup driver other than Petty to win in the legendary No. 43 at Daytona. The previous time the 43 won was with John Andretti behind the wheel at Martinsville in 1999. So Pettys renowned car went 543 races without a victory. "Everybody always asks me, How, how much pressure is it to drive The Kings car?" Almirola said. "To be honest with you, theres nobody that can put any more pressure on me than me because I want to win for myself. I know this sounds terrible, but its more about winning so that I can feel a sense of accomplishment more than just winning to give Richard Petty another win. Hes won enough races." Here are five other things to know about the Daytona race: NO SWEEP: Dale Earnhardt Jr. had hoped to become the sixth driver to sweep the season at Daytona. His chances were shot just 20 laps into the race when he was collected in a 16-car accident that caused serious damage to his No. 88 Chevrolet. He fell a lap down during repairs, eventually got back on the lead lap and finished 14th. The Daytona 500 winner was particularly annoyed because hed actually avoided the accident, but got hit from behind. "We were going to be fine on that first wreck, but we got run over," he said. "I cant believe all of the cars we have wrecked today." WILD RIDE: Kyle Busch went for the wildest of rides in a 25-car crash that will be remembered for his car flipping onto its roof. But that wreck was just as unsettling for Jamie McMurray, whose car briefly went airborne. "I have never had a car thats off the ground, and its a crazy feeling, and its a helpless feeling," McMurray said. "I was really lucky that it set back down." As spectacular as the big accidents look, McMurray said they are usually the easiest for drivers. "You see these big wrecks and those are probably the easiest hits you take all year long because everyone is going the same speed, and for the most part, those dont hurt near as bad as if you have a tire issue or something," he said. CHASING THE CHASE: Slots are filling fast in the 16-driver Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, with Almirolas victory likely securing him the latest berth. There are only eight races remaining and, with 11 winners to date, there could effectively only be five remaining spots to fill. NASCAR overhauled the format this year to create a win-and-in system, and several stars have yet to grab the needed victory. Among the winless with two months to go are Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Clint Bowyer. It could lead to one of the most competitive on-track summers in some time. "Obviously the fewer spots there are, the intensity picks up," said second-place finisher Brian Vickers. "You go to every race trying to win and knowing whats at stake if you do, and whats at stake if you dont." DODGED THE BIG ONE: A mistake on pit road likely saved Danica Patricks race at Daytona. Patrick was running eighth when she headed to pit road for a routine stop, but she missed her stall. She had to back up, losing valuable time and dropping to 30th when she got back on track. It turned out to be a blessing when it put Patrick far behind the pack and in position to avoid being collected in a 25-car pileup. She ultimately finished eighth. Still, she wanted a shot to race for the win. "On a normal speedway weekend, you would say eighth is pretty good, lets just go home with a car that is not too badly banged up," she said while she waited out the final rain delay. "But there is a lot less to lose than normal, so it would be fun to go back at it." FORD FACTS: Aric Almirolas victory at Daytona was the third consecutive win for a Ford driver. The streak started last month when Carl Edwards won at Sonoma and continued last week with Brad Keselowskis victory at Kentucky. The last time Ford won three straight Cup races was in 2005, when Greg Biffle won Dover, Edwards won at Pocono and then Biffle won again at Michigan. The win is the seventh of the season for Ford Racing, equaling the most wins for Ford since 2011. It was the third win for Richard Petty Motorsports as a Ford-backed team. Fake NFL Jerseys For Sale . The Toronto Argonauts (11-7) look for an opportunity to repeat as CFL champions when they host the surging Hamilton Tiger-Cats (10-8) on Sunday. Fake NFL Jerseys Online . Watch all the action unfold live on TSN and TSN Mobile TV at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. You can also watch the game live with the debut of Wednesday Night Hockey on TSN.ca and chat throughout the game with TSN. https://www.fakenfljerseys.com/. Torres tells Spanish daily AS "in football you never know where you will be inside one month. Im going to work hard, thats all you can do with this last part of the season so important. Fake NFL Jerseys Wholesale . Anything less than gold for either nation is considered a disappointment. Yet for Switzerland, advancing to the semifinal might be a victory in itself. Fake NFL Jerseys China . -- The Green Bay Packers have signed quarterback Graham Harrell to the active roster from the practice squad and placed tight end Andrew Quarless on injured reserve.UFC president Dana White has warned Conor McGregor he will be stripped of his featherweight title unless he quickly moves to clarify his future fighting plans. Irish superstar McGregor stunned the world of mixed martial arts by announcing his retirement from the sport with a brief tweet on Tuesday. The UFC acted quickly by announcing it had pulled him from the main event of its blockbuster UFC 200 card on July 9 after he refused to travel to Las Vegas later this week to promote the landmark card. UFC president Dana White wants to plan UFC 200 McGregor was scheduled to face Nate Diaz in a rematch of their March welterweight fight, which the American won via second-round submission.Also on the card, former featherweight champion Jose Aldo is scheduled to meet Frankie Edgar for an interim featherweight title.The plan was for the winner to then face McGregor later this year but White has warned the Irishman that Aldo and Edgar will fight for the real belt unless he clarifies his position. McGregor defeated Jose Aldo to win the UFC featherweight title last December Thats the thing: Conor needs to clear up this whole retirement thing and clear it up fast because if hes retired, then at UFC 200 Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar are fighting for the vacant title then, White said, during an appearance on Wednesdays episode of The Herd on Fox Sports 1.When asked if he believed McGregor has truly retired from MMA, White said: I do not.White said he believes McGregor will fight in the next year before adding the mixed-martial arts superstar could still feature at UFC 200. McGregor pulled from UFC 200 Conor McGregor pulled from UFC 200 amid retirement speculation If he called me after this interview wed probably still do it, White said. The problem is this - you have to be here to promote your fight and you have to shoot this commercial.Were spending $10m in promotion for UFC 200 and all that money is in motion. You cant do this. I dont care who you are or how big you are, you cant do this.As things stand, the UFC are left scrambling to find a main event for a card they announced a year ago. The rest of the card had been met with a mixed reaction from fans before McGregor was pulled and being forced to withdraw the sports biggest pay-per-view star does nothing to further the UFCs cause. Nate Diaz is without an opponent for UFC 200 Diaz is without an opponent but appears far from certain to stay in the main event slot without McGregor.ddddddddddddPrior to his win over McGregor at UFC 196 in March, Diaz - who was called up to fight on late notice after an injury to lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos - had never headlined a UFC pay-per-view event.The Stockton native was soundly beaten by Dos Anjos at the end of 2014, and he suffered unanimous-decision defeats to Dong Hyun Kim and Rory MacDonald in his only two fights at welterweight, making a shot against welterweight champion Robbie Lawler hard to justify.McGregor is a superstar who transcends the sport and - aside from probably Ronda Rousey - is the only active fighter the UFC would allow to headline one of the biggest nights in its history without a world title on the line. Jon Jones will face Ovince Saint Preux for an interim light heavyweight title at UFC 197 The most obvious candidate to step into the breach may be pound-for-pound number one Jon Jones.The former light-heavyweight king makes his long-awaited return following a 16-month layoff against Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197 this Saturday.Jones was originally supposed to face Daniel Cormier but the reigning light-heavyweight champion was forced to pull out of the bout due to injury.Providing Jones comes through against Saint Preux unscathed, his rematch with Cormier would emerge as the most natural candidate to fill the void at UFC 200. That is a prospect which would excite Jones. Why did McGregor retire? Was Conor McGregors UFC exit always on the cards? Absolutely, I would totally step in to UFC 200 and fill in that main event or co-main event slot, Jones told media on Wednesday.Though Jones may stand to benefit from McGregors apparent rift with the UFC, he was quick to offer support to the Irishman.Hats off to him for standing up for what he believes is right, Jones added At the end of the day, business is business, and the guy obviously has respect for himself and his talents.Fights like this will help fighters in the future. So, I respect his balls. I respect his willingness to fight for what is right. Also See: Why did McGregor retire? McGregor pulled from UFC 200 Who is UFCs real No 1? Saint Preux v Jones at UFC 197 ' ' '