Safety workers try to extinguish a fire after Juan Pablo Montoya's No. 42 car slid into the back of a jet dryer truck in Turn 3 during the Daytona 500.
 

Read more about the crash here.

Montoya had radioed to his crew moments before the crash that he had a vibration. The race was red-flagged on Lap 160 while the safety crew worked. Montoya was unhurt in the crash. Jet dryer truck driver Duane Barnes was taken to the hospital for evaluation. Matt Kenseth then held off Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Greg Biffle to win his second Daytona 500.

Juan Pablo Montoya walks away from the bizarre crash at the season opening Daytona 500 unhurt. His No. 42 Target Chevrolet, however, would have to be hauled away.

After rain delayed the race by a day, and another lengthy delay to clean up after Juan Pablo Montoya's freak accident with a jet dryer, Matt Kenseth took the checkered flag to win the Daytona 500.

In a move that sent shockwaves around the sport, Brad Keselowski tweeted this photo from his car as drivers waited out the red flag after Montoya's incident. Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge, would establish quite a following on social media, which allowed him to share his views on the sport and take fans on a journey that would eventually lead to a championship for him and his Penske Racing team.

Competing in her first full season of NASCAR competition, Danica Patrick drew crowds everywhere she went. Here, she is seen with a small group of fans getting her autograph before Nationwide Series practice at Bristol Motor Speedway in March.

Brad Keselowski and a crew member celebrate with the American flag and a burnout after winning the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway in March. This was the first of five Sprint Cup Series wins this year en route to an improbable championship for Kez.

Dodge unveiled its new-model Charger which was expected to compete in the Sprint Cup Series in 2013. Unfortunately, the manufacturer announced later in the year it would be leaving the sport as its primary team, Penske Racing, announced it was switching to Ford next year.

Sprint Cup Series driver Tony Stewart celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Auto Club 400 in Fontana, Calif. in March. The race was stopped due to rain. It was the second win in the first five races for the 2011 Sprint Cup Series champion.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon (24) and Jimmie Johnson (48) dominated the action for most of the April race at Martinsville Speedway, but an aggressive move by Clint Bowyer (15) on a late restart sent them spinning out of contention for the win and would create a long-lasting feud that would boil over in November. Had either Gordon or Johnson won, it would have marked Sprint Cup victory No. 200 for the Hendrick organization.

Barack Obama, like many presidents before him, invites champs from pro and college sports to visit the White House, and NASCAR had its turn in April. Champion Tony Stewart (pictured) and last year's Chase contenders Kurt Busch, Denny Hamliin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch were all on hand.

Joey Logano (No. 18) passes Kyle Busch (No. 54) on the final straightaway to win the Aaron's 312 Nationwide Series race at Talladega Superspeedway in May. Although his primary focus was in Sprint Cup, Logano had an epic slate of Nationwide Series races - earning nine wins (including this one) in 22 starts in 2012.

Hendrick Motorsports reached another elite record in May at Darlington Raceway when Jimmie Johnson (second from right) won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500. That marked the 200th win in the series for team owner Rick Hendrick (center), who celebrated with drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. (left), Jeff Gordon (second from left) and Kasey Kahne (far right).

Kasey Kahne captured his third Coca-Cola 600, NASCAR's longest race, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. Kahne turned in a dominating run in the final segment of the race to take the win, his first as a Hendrick Motorsports driver.

Jimmie Johnson celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway. The five-time Sprint Cup champion was wheeling a special-edition "Madagascar" paint scheme, which led to this different kind of celebration.

Tony Stewart, Regan Smith, Landon Cassill and other drivers get tangled up in a multi-car crash during the June race at Dover International Speedway. The track is affectionately known as the "Monster Mile," for obvious reasons.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway in June. The win ended a major drought for the fan-favorite driver.

Denny Hamlin's car flames up on pit road during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway in June.

Austin Dillon does a burnout after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Kentucky Speedway in June. Dillon, grandson of team owner Richard Childress, drives the iconic No. 3 in the series.

Mangled and beaten race cars get ready to be hauled away as fireworks erupt in celebration of Tony Stewart's win in the traditional Fourth of July weekend race at Daytona International Speedway.

Sam Hornish Jr. awaits his opportunity at New Hampshire in July to fill in for AJ Allmendinger as driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil AAA Dodge. Allmendinger lost his Penske Racing ride after failing a NASCAR drug test. He would return to the track later in the year after completing NASCAR's Road to Recovery program.

Jimmie Johnson pulls up to his crew after doing a burnout following his win in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Brickyard 400 in August, his record-trying fourth at the famed 2.5-mile speedway. The victory was Johnson's third to date in the year, giving him momentum heading into the title-deciding Chase for the Sprint Cup which kicked off a few months later.

Danica Patrick lets Regan Smith know that she thinks he caused her wreck, putting her out of the Sprint Cup race at Bristol in August.

Each weekend, Carl Edwards looked like a prime candidate for a win in 2012. And each weekend, something happened to prevent it. At Atlanta in September, despite driving a subpar car to a top-10 spot much of the race, Edwards couldn’t hold his position, ultimately falling a lap back shortly before his car gave out. It led to him missing the Chase for the Sprint Cup despite being a preseason favorite for the championship.
 

Brad Keselowski put on a show to kick off the Chase for the Sprint Cup, winning the first race in the 10-stage battle for the championship - offering his rivals a taste of what was to come.

Tony Stewart (14) flips in the air after an incident that pulled in 25 total drivers on the final lap of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 at Talladega Superspeedway in October.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (center) lost his shot at a championship but brought a new spotlight on the issue of driver injuries when he announced at Charlotte Motor Speedway in October that he would miss two races after being diagnosed with a concussion. Team owner Rick Hendrick (left) and crew chief Steve Letarte (right) worked with driver Regan Smith for two races before Earnhardt Jr. returned to finish the season.

Jimmie Johnson celebrates his exceptional outing at Martinsville Speedway in late October. Not only did Johnson take the win, but he also snared the lead in the Chase for the Sprint Cup with only three races remaining - leading many to believe the title race was over and the five-time champion was set to rule the sport again.

A hard crash at Phoenix led to Jimmie Johnson's championship dream taking a frustrating hit. With one race to go, he fell behind by a wide margin to Brad Keselowski.

Away from the glare of the figurative championship fight between Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson, the crews of Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer literally clashed at Phoenix International Raceway after their drivers had an incident on the track.

NASCAR chairman Brian France looks on as Brad Keselowski takes a drink out of a large glass of beer after winning the Sprint Cup Series championship following the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Keselowski held off a final challenge from Jimmie Johnson en route to his first Sprint Cup title.