The race was founded in the spirit of Independence Day patriotism. Bill France Sr. announced plans for a 100-lap, 250-mile stock car race to be held on July 4, 1959, naming it the Firecracker 250 after the holiday association. Daytona Beach native Fireball Roberts won the inaugural event in dominating fashion, leading 84 of 100 laps and finishing 57 seconds ahead of runner-up Joe Weatherly before 12,900 spectators.
In 1963 the race was expanded to 160 laps and 400 miles, becoming the Firecracker 400. Fireball Roberts won that edition too, making him the first driver to win back-to-back events. Roberts was killed in a racing accident in 1964, foreclosing any possibility of a third straight win.
From 1959 through 1987, the race was always scheduled for July 4 regardless of day of the week, later shifting to the nearest Saturday. The morning start time — typically 10:00 or 11:00 a.m. Eastern — was chosen to avoid Florida's afternoon thunderstorms and to allow fans time to visit Daytona Beach afterward. ESPN's live coverage during this era coined the term "Breakfast at Daytona."
The race attracted two sitting U.S. presidents. On July 4, 1984, Ronald Reagan became the first sitting president to attend a NASCAR race, arriving by Air Force One and joining Richard Petty in victory lane after Petty secured his 200th and final career NASCAR win. On July 4, 1992, George H. W. Bush attended the race as part of his re-election campaign trail and gave the starting command before riding around the track in the pace car.
In 1974, a tie for third place between Buddy Baker and Cale Yarborough — the only recorded dead heat in NASCAR history — occurred at the race, following an extraordinary final-lap duel between David Pearson and Richard Petty that Pearson won using a deliberate draft maneuver.
In 1997, Daytona International Speedway announced a major lighting project by MUSCO lighting. Plans called for the 1998 Pepsi 400 to be held under the lights in primetime, making it the longest speedway with a night race and the first restrictor-plate race held at night. However, on July 4, 1998, wildfires in Florida consumed the surrounding areas and forced the track to be used as a firefighters' staging area. The race was postponed to October 17, 1998, and was successfully held under lights for the first time to a near-sellout crowd. From 1999 onward the summer Daytona race has been a night event.
During the Winston sponsorship era, the Firecracker 400's name on ABC broadcasts was changed to the "Talladega 500" for the Talladega race and "Michigan 500" for the Michigan race due to restrictions on televised tobacco advertising — but "the Firecracker 400" itself contained no tobacco brand name, allowing it to be broadcast under its original name. This made it unusual among NASCAR's top-tier events of the era.
The race produced a notable list of drivers' first career Cup victories, including A. J. Foyt (1964), Sam McQuagg (1966), Greg Sacks (1985), Jimmy Spencer, John Andretti, Greg Biffle, David Ragan, Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Justin Haley, William Byron, and Harrison Burton. David Pearson won five July Daytona races in his career, the most of any driver. Tony Stewart won the event four times without ever winning the Daytona 500.
In 2020, following negotiations regarding tourism and the COVID-19 pandemic, the race was moved from its traditional Independence Day weekend slot to late August, where it has served as the final race of the NASCAR regular season. The July 4 weekend date was subsequently taken by the Grant Park 165 race. The move ended a 60-year tradition of the summer Daytona race coinciding with the national holiday.