2015 Daytona 200 Winner – Danny Eslick’s Suzuki GSX-R600
Danny Eslick has become a household name at the Daytona 200. The Oklahoma native earned his first pole there in 2010 aboard the RMR Suzuki GSX-R600. It would be four years until he claimed his second Daytona 200 pole, but that year – 2014 – he would also earn his first win.
Piloting the Riders Discount Racing Triumph 675 in the 2014 Daytona 200, Eslick led 44 of 57 laps to give Triumph its first Daytona 200 win since 1967 (Gary Nixon, Triumph Daytona).
Eslick didn’t earn the pole for 2015 Daytona 200, but he did take his second-consecutive win, this time aboard the TOBC Racing Suzuki GSX-R600. This was the 12th time in Daytona 200 history when a rider won back-to-back races; the last one to complete the feat was Mat Mladin (2000-2001).
And on Monday, Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum acquired the 2015 Daytona 200 winner – the #69 Suzuki GSX-R600, which is now on display at the museum.
“TOBC racing is proud and incredibly honored that the 2015 Daytona-200-winning bike piloted by two-time and defending race champion Danny Eslick has found a new home in the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum,” TOBC Team Owner Michelle Lindsay says. “It was such an emotional victory for our whole team. It was the first time we raced together as a team since our previous owner’s (Jon Couch’s) passing.
“When Barber agreed to display our bike in their museum, I was overjoyed. I cried. To have a bike in the TOBC racing colors, and with our TOBC crest on it, displayed for thousands of people to see…and to have something that we did together memorialized like this is nothing short of incredible.”
Brian Slark, Technical Director for the Museum, says “We’re delighted to have this iconic machine as part of the Barber collection. The bike is now in its rightful place among our growing collection of historically relevant, Daytona-winning motorcycles.”
Scott Harwell, who is team manager for TOBC racing, also comments: “Everyone on the team put their heart and soul into making that race happen. I’m so pleased that we now have the opportunity to take our friends and family to the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum to see the bike, and to relive the great memories of the 74th Daytona 200 and what we accomplished as a team that weekend.”
Danny Eslick’s 2015 Daytona 200 winner now joins the Museum’s collection of more than 1,400 pristine motorcycles and automobiles, and it will be displayed alongside the racebikes of world-renowned motorcycle racers like Jarno Saarinen, Yvon DuHamel, Colin Edwards, and many more.
