Pitbull, DJ Khaled, and The Rock give the Daytona 500 a taste of South Florida
At the Daytona 500, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Pitbull, and DJ Khaled represented South Florida. The three celebs from the Sunshine State added some star power to the postponed race day on Sunday due to rain.
The wrestler-turned-actor Johnson declared he would be present for the race on Monday, respecting his position as grand marshal of the Daytona 500 and issuing the order for drivers to start their engines.
The pre-race performance featuring Pitbull on the Daytona infield was cancelled due to persistent rain. He consented to come back for the same occasion in 2025. Khaled stated that he was unable to attend Monday’s honorary starting game.
The Daytona 500 was postponed for an entire day the previous time it happened in 2012.
“Who would have ever thought,” Pitbull said, “The Rock, Khaled and Pit at the Daytona 500?”
Khaled moved to Miami — home of the 305 area code — in 1998 to kickstart a radio career that led to Grammy wins and a successful run as DJ, producer, and song writer. Known as “Mr. Worldwide,” Pitbull was born in Miami and named his debut album “M.I.A.M.I.” before he released massive hits such as “Timber” and “Fireball.”
“It’s incredible to see us all come together for the Daytona 500,” Khaled said. “But to represent Florida is beautiful.”
The 51-year-old Johnson is set to return to wrestling for WrestleMania in April in Philadelphia. The “Fast and the Furious” franchise star played football at Miami and was a reserve on the team’s 1991 national championship team.
“Best college in Florida,” Johnson said.
The A-listers stuck around the track to promote their current projects.
Johnson posted an Instagram video of himself driving past Daytona International Speedway late Saturday night, joking he was “up to no good. Trouble. With a capital T.”
“I got a little cooky last night because I couldn’t sleep,” Johnson said Sunday. “I went to the gym at midnight. I drove by the Speedway, all the lights were on, just immediately felt the energy.”
FINALLY, THE ROCK HAS COME BACK TO DAYTONA
TRoll with it, the Rock advised NASCAR villain Denny Hamlin.
Johnson, who made his WWE comeback recently in a heel role, advised Hamlin to accept the jeers and incorporate them into his racing style.
Three-time Daytona 500 champion Denny Hamlin has unexpectedly emerged as the top Cup Series public nemesis. When he wins, he is teased more than Kyle Busch and has taken advantage of the situation by joking, “I just beat your favourite driver.”
The Rock is hoping for more.
“Being the villain is the greatest thing in the world,” The Rock said. “Everybody wants to be a good guy or good girl, everyone wants to be loved and cheered and considered the hero, which is great and it’s natural; it’s just human psychology and desire.
“But I have felt in my career and through my experience — that I’ve been very fortunate to have — is that the rare air is when you have the opportunity and you grab it by the throat and you don’t let it go and that’s the opportunity to be a great bad guy.”
Johnson has experienced both sides as an actor and as a professional wrestler.
“I always think that the best and greatest bad guys, bad girls and villains out there are coming from a place of truth. So one of the cool things that being a great bad guy and a great villain offers — and this is my advice to Denny — is not only do you embrace it, but also you get the opportunity to say and do a lot of things that people can’t.
“A lot of people wish they can, but they don’t. So you don’t have to. Let me and Denny do the talking and get the boos.”
MR. WORLDWIDE
Pitbull still considers himself a NASCAR underdog.
Despite six wins and 36 top-five finishes in three seasons as co-owner at Trackhouse Racing, the Grammy Award-winning singer says “this is just the beginning.”
“Underdogs, one thing we love is a challenge,” Pitbull said. “We love when people tell us no, don’t, won’t, never will happen, crazy, stupid, impossible. Those are words that fuel us.”
He then explained how easy it is to flip those from negative to positive: changing can’t to can, don’t to do and won’t to won.
“And if you really put it together, just put an apostrophe between I, M and Possible, it’s I’m possible,” he added.
“So when you bring that mentality to a whole sport who is hungry to feed the world and teach different communities, different cultures that, ‘Hey, there’s opportunities here,’ then you in the ultimate world of do good and be well.
“So for Trackhouse to be underdogs, that was a beautiful thing in the beginning, but we’ll forever be underdogs and that’s why we’ll fight the way that we fight and we’ll continue to build the way that we build and continue to inspire and motivate others out there.”
Pitbull, who co-owns the team with retired driver Justin Marks, now has two full-time cars driven by Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez. He also fields a third car at select races for road-racing specialist Shane van Gisbergen.
He recently released a new NASCAR-themed album featuring songs with Tim McGraw, Dolly Parton and Nile Rodgers. He also has a song dedicated to the late Jimmy Buffett.
WE TAKIN’ OVER
Could DJ Khaled, who already has a stellar résumé as a hype man, producer, and writer, add NASCAR team owner willing to win, win, win no matter what?
Says Khaled, he’s the one.
Khaled stated that he imagined a day when he would return to the Daytona 500, but this time as a celebrity owner akin to Michael Jordan of 23XI Racing and Pitbull.
“I would love to be a team owner,” Khaled said. “Look at Michael Jordan, the beautiful things he’s doing. All the other great team owners. One day, God willing, I’ll have a ‘We the Best’ car out there, bringing home a trophy.”
Celebrities who have visited media outlets and made audacious claims about owning a team but were never able to close a transaction are common in NASCAR. Khaled claimed to have loved racing since he was a young child.
The DJ-producer, whose real name is Khaled Mohamed Khaled, claimed that his childhood passion of vehicles prompted him to attend one or two Daytona 500 races. Khaled arrived at the track with his wife and two small sons.
When Khaled stated he raised his hands and practiced waving the green flag, he flexed.
He also hinted at upcoming new music.
“Everybody take it easy, the title is coming soon,” Khaled said to laughter standing over the Harley J. Earl Trophy. “It’s going to touch everybody worldwide.”
