"The Big One" came late in the Daytona 500.

Paul Menard triggered a 21-car accident shortly after a restart with 10 laps to go in "The Great American Race."

Menard turned Matt DiBenedetto, who slammed into the wall and started a chain reaction. It brought out a red flag that stopped the race during the cleanup.

Defending Daytona 500 champion Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott were among those drivers involved in the 21-car pileup, which was ignited when Paul Menard's car made contact with Matt DiBenedetto and sent him into the wall. Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports

Menard says, "I'll take the blame for that one."

It was one of five crashes and two red flags over the final 20 laps of regulation as the Daytona 500 turned into a wreck-fest.

Defending Daytona 500 champion Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola and Daniel Suarez were among those involved in the 21-car pileup.

Almirola seemingly had the wildest ride, his back wheels getting lifted off the pavement and landing on David Ragan's windshield.

Denny Hamlin went on to win the race, with Kyle Busch finishing second and Erik Jones third.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.