Matt Kenseth leads the pack at Daytona (Photo Credit: Jerry Markland/Getty Images for NASCAR)
2012 Daytona 500 unofficial results
| Driver | Team and Car | ||
| 1 | Matt Kenseth | Roush-Fenway Ford | 202 laps |
| 2 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Chevrolet | +0.210 |
| 3 | Greg Biffle | Roush-Fenway Ford | +0.258 |
| 4 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Toyota | +0.613 |
| 5 | Jeff Burton | Childress Chevrolet | +0.771 |
| 6 | Paul Menard | Childress Chevrolet | +0.999 |
| 7 | Kevin Harvick | Childress Chevrolet | +1.031 |
| 8 | Carl Edwards | Roush-Fenway Ford | +1.141 |
| 9 | Joey Logano | Gibbs Toyota | +1.151 |
| 10 | Mark Martin | Waltrip Toyota | +1.161 |
| 11 | Clint Bowyer | Waltrip Toyota | +1.249 |
| 12 | Martin Truex Jr. | Waltrip Toyota | +1.261 |
| 13 | Marcos Ambrose | Petty Ford | +1.345 |
| 14 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Toyota | +1.380 |
| 15 | Dave Blaney | Baldwin Chevrolet | +1.474 |
| 16 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Chevrolet | +1.516 |
| 17 | Kyle Busch | Gibbs Toyota | +1.644 |
| 18 | Terry Labonte | FAS Lane Ford | +1.894 |
| 19 | Tony Raines | Front Row Ford | +2.050 |
| 20 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush-Fenway Ford | +5.054 |
| 21 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Chevrolet | +6.382 |
| 22 | Landon Cassill | BK Toyota | +22.939 |
| 23 | David Gilliland | Front Row Ford | +1 lap |
| 24 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Chevrolet | +2 laps |
| 25 | Casey Mears | Germain Ford | +3 laps |
| 26 | David Reutimann | BK Toyota | Retired – Accident |
| 27 | Elliott Sadler | Childress Chevrolet | +6 laps |
| 28 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Toyota | +8 laps |
| 29 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Chevrolet | Retired – Accident |
| 30 | Michael McDowell | Parson Ford | +13 laps |
| 31 | Jamie McMurray | EGR Chevrolet | Retired – Accident |
| 32 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Dodge | Retired – Accident |
| 33 | Aric Almirola | Petty Ford | Retired – Accident |
| 34 | A.J. Allmendinger | Penske Dodge | +25 laps |
| 35 | Trevor Bayne | Wood Brothers Ford | +38 laps |
| 36 | Juan Pablo Montoya | EGR Chevrolet | Retired – Accident |
| 37 | David Stremme | Inception Toyota | Retired – Engine |
| 38 | Danica Patrick | Baldwin Chevrolet | +64 laps |
| 39 | Kurt Busch | Phoenix Chevrolet | +89 laps |
| 40 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Chevrolet | Retired – Engine |
| 41 | Robby Gordon | Gordon Dodge | Retired – Engine |
| 42 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Chevrolet | Retired – Accident |
| 43 | David Ragan | Front Row Ford | Retired – Accident |
