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The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 14 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Series, NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Euro Series, NASCAR Mexico Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Local Racing Series Powered by O’Reilly Auto Parts). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in five cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 11 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.

Ryan Preece storms into NASCAR Cup Chase with first career win at Daytona

Sean Gardner/Getty Images

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Short on fuel in the late going, but with no dearth of tenacity, Ryan Preece won Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway in overtime to force his way into the NASCAR Cup Series Chase.

 

“I'm just speechless right now,” said Preece, who claimed the final berth the Chase by 17 points over Shane van Gisbergen. The three-time Australian Supercars champion had led Preece by 31 points entering the regular-season finale.

 

“But those guys, that 60 group, we're fighters,” Preece continued. “When you put our back against the wall, we swing hard… Last year there were a lot of keyboard warriors saying I was nothing. Well, we just kicked their butts tonight.”

 

In winning his first Cup Series points race, Preece recovered from a three-car wreck at the end of the first stage that damaged his left front fender, but after repairs, he was able to power his No. 60 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford back to the front.

 

Stretching fuel mileage over the final 65-lap stage, Preece surged into the lead past Tyler Reddick and Zane Smith in overtime moments before Smith turned into the outside wall to ignite a series of collisions that forced NASCAR to call the fourth yellow of the evening—with Preece ahead at the moment of caution.

 

“It's a testament of how prepared these race cars are, man. I'm a racer. I know what it takes to build speed. So, to every man and woman at RFK, thank you for giving me a rocket ship so I could go to the moon tonight. This is redemption.”

 

In a race that went six laps beyond its scheduled distance of 160 laps, Preece led three times for a total of five laps. Eschewing a pit stop in the final stage, he was running second when Carson Hocevar made an aggressive move to the inside entering Turn 3 to cause the Lap 155 wreck that forced overtime.

 

Hocevar steered his Spire Motorsports Chevrolet toward the bottom lane, but the rear of the car snapped loose, propelling the No. 77 Camaro into the outside wall. Erik Jones’ Toyota plowed violently into Hocevar’s car along the outside wall, as Ty Gibbs’ Camry spun down the track.

 

“Yeah, I was always super tight behind people, it seemed,” said Hocevar, who picked up his first career win at Talladega in April. “And so, I just changed from top to bottom there, and that was the first time I really got a ton of air on my nose into three and I just lost it. It just kept going. I had the wheel straight, man.

 

“It just kept going with all the air and something down on the nose. I'm shocked that it did that. It caught me off guard, for sure. It was nice to ride around all day like we'd kind of planned, and then we gave ourselves a shot to win it at the end. We were up front, had track position and led laps, and that's all I can really ask for from a team standpoint. Overall, I thought we did a pretty good job here tonight.”

 

Hocevar’s accident set up the overtime restart with Smith in the lead. After pushing Smith on the white-flag lap, Reddick made a move to the outside, but he and Smith tangled on the final circuit to start the race-ending melee on the backstretch.

 

Daniel Suarez avoided the chaos and finished second, followed by Reddick, Michael McDowell and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Austin Cindric came home sixth and clinched the 15th seed in the Chase by nine points over Preece, who will start the postseason as the 16th seed.

 

“We were so close, two years in a row with a second-place finish,” Suarez said of his run in the No. 7 Spire Chevrolet. “Super happy and proud to make it to the Chase with this team. This team deserves it.

 

“I feel like in the past, I’ve had runs in the postseason where I didn’t think we were strong enough to really contend. But this team deserves to be in the Chase. We are a Chase team. There are so many people and partners that have helped us get here and put this kind of performance together.”

 

Austin Dillon, Alex Bowman, Josh Berry, and Cole Custer completed the top 10. Berry posted his fifth straight top-10 result in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford.

 

Bubba Wallace finished 20th after clinching the 14th seed in the Chase with a seventh-place result in the first stage.

 

Van Gisbergen worked his way into a strong position with a win in Stage 1, as Preece, RFK teammate Chris Buescher and Kyle Larson spun into the infield grass approaching the finish line to end the stage.

 

Late in the race, however, van Gisbergen came to pit road for fuel on Lap 157 and opted for four new tires. That put him 27th for the overtime restart, and from that position he was unable to avoid the multicar wreck on the final lap. The New Zealander finished 28th and out of the Chase.

 

Denny Hamlin had clinched top seeding in the Chase, along with a 25-point advantage, last Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He’ll start the Chase with 2,100 points. Despite wrecking on the final lap and finishing 33rd, Ryan Blaney picked up the Stage 2 win and held the second seed to start the Chase with 2,075 points.

 

The remaining seeds in order are: Reddick, Gibbs, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Larson, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Buescher, Suarez, Hocevar, William Byron, Wallace, Cindric and Preece.

 

The Chase begins on Sunday, Sept. 6 with the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway (5 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

NASCAR Cup Series Race - Coke Zero Sugar 400

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Florida

Saturday, August 29, 2026

 

                1. (4)  Ryan Preece, Ford, 166.

                2. (23)  Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, 166.

                3. (17)  Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 166.

                4. (18)  Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 166.

                5. (32)  Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 166.

                6. (8)  Austin Cindric, Ford, 166.

                7. (29)  Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 166.

                8. (20)  Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 166.

                9. (24)  Josh Berry, Ford, 166.

                10. (16)  Cole Custer, Chevrolet, 166.

                11. (30)  Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 166.

                12. (5)  Harrison Burton(i), Toyota, 166.

                13. (12)  Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 166.

                14. (21)  Brad Keselowski, Ford, 166.

                15. (27)  John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, 166.

                16. (11)  Corey Heim(i), Toyota, 166.

                17. (35)  Christopher Bell, Toyota, 166.

                18. (9)  Joey Logano, Ford, 166.

                19. (33)  Todd Gilliland, Ford, 166.

                20. (26)  Bubba Wallace, Toyota, 166.

                21. (31)  Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 166.

                22. (13)  William Byron, Chevrolet, 166.

                23. (22)  Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 166.

                24. (1)  Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 166.

                25. (7)  Connor Zilisch #, Chevrolet, 166.

                26. (37)  Noah Gragson, Ford, 166.

                27. (3)  Austin Hill(i), Chevrolet, 166.

                28. (6)  Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet, 166.

                29. (39)  Daniel Dye(i), Chevrolet, 166.

                30. (36)  AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 166.

                31. (10)  Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 166.

                32. (34)  Zane Smith, Ford, Accident, 165.

                33. (19)  Ryan Blaney, Ford, Accident, 165.

                34. (14)  Ty Gibbs, Toyota, Accident, 165.

                35. (25)  Cody Ware, Chevrolet, Accident, 165.

                36. (40)  Joey Gase(i), Chevrolet, 165.

                37. (38)  Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 165.

                38. (28)  Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, Accident, 154.

                39. (15)  Erik Jones, Toyota, Accident, 154.

                40. (2)  Chris Buescher, Ford, 151.

 

Average Speed of Race Winner:  154.69 mph.

Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 40 Mins, 58 Secs. Margin of Victory:  Under Caution Seconds.

Caution Flags:  4 for 23 laps.

Lead Changes:  41 among 22 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   R. Chastain 1;K. Larson 2;R. Chastain 3-4;C. Buescher 5-9;K. Larson 10;A. Hill(i) 11-33;C. Buescher 34;S. Van Gisbergen 35-39;T. Gibbs 40;R. Blaney 41;J. Logano 42-43;S. Van Gisbergen 44;T. Gilliland 45;A. Hill(i) 46-49;C. Briscoe 50-55;R. Chastain 56-63;C. Elliott 64-67;Z. Smith 68-70;C. Elliott 71-81;R. Blaney 82-84;A. Cindric 85-90;C. Elliott 91-94;R. Blaney 95;R. Preece 96;R. Chastain 97;J. Berry 98;R. Stenhouse Jr. 99;T. Gilliland 100-106;C. Briscoe 107-109;B. Keselowski 110-113;C. Briscoe 114;B. Keselowski 115-117;C. Ware 118-119;B. Keselowski 120-122;C. Ware 123-128;W. Byron 129-142;J. Nemechek 143-144;T. Reddick 145-149;R. Preece 150-152;C. Hocevar 153;Z. Smith 154-165;R. Preece 166.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Austin Hill(i) 2 times for 27 laps; Chase Elliott 3 times for 19 laps; Zane Smith 2 times for 15 laps; William Byron 1 time for 14 laps; Ross Chastain 4 times for 12 laps; Chase Briscoe 3 times for 10 laps; Brad Keselowski 3 times for 10 laps; Todd Gilliland 2 times for 8 laps; Cody Ware 2 times for 8 laps; Chris Buescher 2 times for 6 laps; Austin Cindric 1 time for 6 laps; Shane Van Gisbergen 2 times for 6 laps; Ryan Preece 3 times for 5 laps; Ryan Blaney 3 times for 5 laps; Tyler Reddick 1 time for 5 laps; John Hunter Nemechek 1 time for 2 laps; Kyle Larson 2 times for 2 laps; Joey Logano 1 time for 2 laps; Josh Berry 1 time for 1 lap; Ty Gibbs 1 time for 1 lap; Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 1 time for 1 lap; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 97,54,22,43,19,5,23,60,42,2

Stage #2 Top Ten: 12,60,38,24,34,5,19,7,9,33

 

--30--

 

Florida Native Ross Chastain Claims Clutch Daytona Pole

james gilbert/getty images

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Floridian Ross Chastain claimed his first Busch Light Pole position of the season – and third of his career – delivering a clutch effort Friday evening at Daytona International Speedway.

 

The 33-year-old from Alva, Florida – whose crew chief Brandon McSwain is from Auburndale, Fla. - dramatically claimed the top starting spot for Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 (7:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale – delivering a best lap of 184.391 mph in the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet. The effort bettered Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s Chris Buescher’s No. 17 Ford by .051-second.

 

It’s the best start on the 2.5-mile high banks for Chastain in 16 previous races at the iconic track and his first series pole position since the Watkins Glen, N.Y. road course race in 2023. Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney won this race from pole position last year – the first to do it in any Daytona NASCAR Cup Series race since Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2015.

 

“It’s almost indescribable," Chastain said, noting he fully realizes starting position in these close-quarter races at Daytona don’t always translate into a trophy.

 

“But tonight and today for a new package, for Trackhouse to pick the right package and execute through two round. … it’s very important to note we chose the right things as a team," said Chastain whose Trackhouse team advanced all three Chevrolets into the 10-car field qualifying round.

 

“Life achievement," Chastain said of the accomplishment. “I was a kid sitting in the grandstands and we camped outside Turn 1. … It’s a big deal, a life achievement and a moment I’ll never forget."

 

“Just incredible," he added. “All the cars were bouncing, all the cars were not driving well, and we made ours go faster not driving well.

 

All three of the drivers most closely vying for the final two Chase positions advanced to the second round of qualifying.

 

Buescher’s RFK teammate Ryan Preece was fastest in the opening round of qualifying and ended up fourth on the grid in the No. 60 RFK Ford – his best start of the season.

 

It’s important momentum considering Preece is 17th in the championship standings – 44 points off Team Penske’s Austin Cindric and 31 points behind Chastain’s Trackhouse teammate, Shane Van Gisbergen – the two holding onto 15th and 16th in the standings heading to Saturday’s green flag.

 

The top-16 drivers in the standings will advance to the 10-race Chase to decide the 2026 season champion, which gets underway next weekend at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

 

“I think having a good starting spot gives us an opportunity to learn about our car, but also still have a very reasonable shot at some good points," said Cindric, who will roll off seventh. “That first stage is super short, so that’s giving us a chance to start checking boxes early in the race.”

 

Said Preece of his strong qualifying showing, “I wanted the pole. Fourth is great, but not what I wanted. The good thing is we have a fast Ford Mustang, and we’ll race the hell out of them tomorrow.”

 

Driving the car that the late Kyle Busch drove to pole position for this year’s DAYTONA 500, Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill will start third in the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet, alongside Preece.

 

It was 23XI Racing’s Riley Herbst who led for most of opening session of qualifying, sitting atop the speed chart until Preece claimed the spot with only nine drivers remaining. The driver of the No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota – the only Toyota to advance to the final session – will start fifth.

 

Van Gisbergen will roll of sixth in the No. 97 Trackhouse Chevrolet, his rookie teammate Connor Zilisch in the No. 88 Trackhouse Chevrolet seventh best in the session, his fourth top-10 start of the season.

 

Team Penske teammates Cindric and three-time series champion Joey Logano will start their Fords eighth and ninth with Hendrick Motorsports’ driver and reigning series champion Kyle Larson rolling off 10th in the No. 5 Hendrick Chevrolet.

 

Daytona has historically presented a long list of race champions - nine different drivers have won the last 11 races at the speedway. There have been seven different winners in the last eight summer races here.

 

Of note, none of the top four drivers in the points standings advanced to the second round of qualifying. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, who clinched the No. 1 seed in the Chase last week, was only 30th fastest in the No. 11 JGR Toyota.

 

Last week’s New Hampshire race winner, and defending Daytona race winner, Penske’s Ryan Blaney – who sits second in the points - was 19th quickest.

 

Hamlin’s JGR teammate Ty Gibbs, who is third in the standings, will start his No. 54 Toyota from the 14th position on the grid. And 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick, who is fourth in the championship, will start his No. 54 Toyota 17th.

 

Forty drivers will take the green flag Sunday. Gray Gaulding was the only entrant that did not qualify. It would have been his first NASCAR Cup Series start since 2023.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying - Coke Zero Sugar 400

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Florida

Friday, August 28, 2026

 

                1. (1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 184.396 mph.

                2. (17) Chris Buescher, Ford, 184.204 mph.

                3. (33) Austin Hill(i), Chevrolet, 184.188 mph.

                4. (60) Ryan Preece, Ford, 184.121 mph.

                5. (35) Riley Herbst, Toyota, 183.763 mph.

                6. (97) Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet, 183.602 mph.

                7. (88) Connor Zilisch #, Chevrolet, 183.599 mph.

                8. (2) Austin Cindric, Ford, 183.408 mph.

                9. (22) Joey Logano, Ford, 183.397 mph.

                10. (5) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 183.367 mph.

                11. (67) Corey Heim(i), Toyota, 183.296 mph.

                12. (19) Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 183.284 mph.

                13. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet, 183.236 mph.

                14. (54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota, 183.214 mph.

                15. (43) Erik Jones, Toyota, 183.150 mph.

                16. (41) Cole Custer, Chevrolet, 183.135 mph.

                17. (45) Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 183.132 mph.

                18. (71) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 183.117 mph.

                19. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 183.098 mph.

                20. (48) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 183.016 mph.

                21. (6) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 182.912 mph.

                22. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 182.808 mph.

                23. (7) Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, 182.778 mph.

                24. (21) Josh Berry, Ford, 182.622 mph.

                25. (51) Cody Ware, Chevrolet, 182.548 mph.

                26. (23) Bubba Wallace, Toyota, 182.445 mph.

                27. (42) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, 182.426 mph.

                28. (77) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 182.423 mph.

                29. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 182.397 mph.

                30. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 182.334 mph.

                31. (10) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 182.330 mph.

                32. (47) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 182.278 mph.

                33. (34) Todd Gilliland, Ford, 182.231 mph.

                34. (38) Zane Smith, Ford, 182.179 mph.

                35. (20) Christopher Bell, Toyota, 181.873 mph.

                36. (16) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 181.873 mph.

                37. (4) Noah Gragson, Ford, 181.818 mph.

                38. (62) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 181.745 mph.

                39. (78) Daniel Dye(i), Chevrolet, 181.616 mph.

                40. (44) Joey Gase(i), Chevrolet, 180.242 mph.

 

                1 driver failed to qualify.

 

                41. (66)  Gray Gaulding(i), Ford, 179.791 mph.

 

Cindric, Preece claim final two spots of the Cup Series Chase

 

August 29, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – In one of the most dramatic regular season endings imaginable, coming at a track – Daytona International Speedway – that perpetually delivers that kind of drama - Roush Fenway Keselowski driver Ryan Preece and his No. 60 Ford team did everything they needed to do – and could do – to earn the final 2026 NASCAR Cup Series championship chance.

 

On the last lap of an overtime restart, the 35-year-old Preece pulled away from the field in a three-wide pass with cars spinning out alongside and behind him while he went on to take his first career win in Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400. The victory moved him from being the first driver outside the championship top-16 entering the race, to the team celebrating mightily in the sport’s most famous Victory Lane after the race - and now in position for Preece’s first career title run.

 

“I'm just speechless right now," the Connecticut-native conceded with a wide smile. “But those guys, that 60 group, we're fighters. When you put our back against the wall, we swing hard. So, thank you to [our sponsors], thank you to RFK, Jack Roush, the Fenway Group. Brad Keselowski.

 

“Last year there were a lot of keyboard warriors saying I was nothing. Well, we just kicked their butts tonight.”

 

Preece’s final lap heroics – and two separate incidents behind him on track – were enough to propel him to the first NASCAR Cup Series points-paying victory of his career at exactly the time he could use it most. His effort eliminated a two-race winner, Trackhouse Racing’s Shane Van Gisbergen from the 16th and final Chase position after Van Gisbergen finished 27th Saturday in the No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - collected in one of the two final lap crashes.

 

Joining Preece in that 10-race championship portion of the season will also be Team Penske’s Austin Cindric, who finished sixth Saturday night to claim the other of the two Chase positions to be decided at Daytona. His effort in the No. 2 Team Penske Ford was enough to maintain his 15th place in the standings, and he will start the Chase ranked just ahead of Preece.

 

It was perhaps a stunning outcome for Van Gisbergen, who earned the Stage 1 victory Saturday - his first ever oval course stage win. He had two previous race victories on the season helping him to a 31-point advantage on Preece coming into the race.

 

“Congrats to the 60 [Preece], but one night doesn’t sum up our year," Van Gisbergen said. “I guess we haven't been good enough. It's been cool to be close. Shame we're not in it.

 

“I’m proud I’ve been able to match my teammates on the ovals, I think we stepped up this year, but obviously you want to be in that Chase and didn’t make it,’ the former multi-time Australian Supercars Series champion Van Gisbergen said.

 

Cindric qualified eighth for the race and his effort Saturday night delivered his fourth Chase run in the last five years.

 

“Obviously, we had a strong Ford Mustang," the 27-year-old Cindric aid. “We were able to get to the front when we needed to at times. I hate we weren’t able to capitalize and lead as many laps as we did in stage two to give ourselves a larger buffer for the final stage, but the guys did a great job of keeping me informed with what I needed to do to keep ourselves out front and get back to the front. Everything we needed to do we checked the boxes tonight.”

 

Cindric added that despite the final-laps drama, he didn’t necessarily find the race as nerve-wracking as some may have anticipated. He finished 10th in the opening Stage to earn bonus points and a reasonable 13th in Stage 2. He restarted sixth for the two-lap overtime run.

 

“Honestly, less [dramatic] than you’d think," Cindric said. “I think there’s a lot of variables and I don’t mean to downplay it, but there were certainly a lot of variables going into the night. We weren’t all on top of each other, so I felt like in a lot of ways it was somewhat more simplified of how the race was gonna play out after I was able to watch and observe.

 

“I thought our car was good enough to charge back through when needed and obviously we got ourselves in position. The guys did a great job of giving me information all night, whether it was points or fuel and how to adapt. That’s what it takes to be a contender at a minimum, but definitely look for a strong 10 weeks from us.”

 

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, a four-race winner, claimed his first ever No. 1 seed in the Chase to earn a 25-point bonus atop the standings heading into the Chase opener, the Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway next Sunday. He was 11th at Daytona.

 

Penske’s Ryan Blaney, the 2023 series champion, is ranked second behind Hamlin, involved in that overtime crash. The season’s winningest driver to date – 23XI Racing’s five-race champ Tyler Reddick was able to move into third place in the Chase rankings with a third-place finish Saturday.

 

JGR teammates Ty Gibbs, Chase Briscoe and Christopher Bell are ranked fourth through sixth heading into the Chase with Hendrick Motorsports teammates, reigning series champion Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott seventh and eighth in the standings.

 

Penske’s Joey Logano will start his quest for a fourth title ranked ninth, followed by Preece’s RFK teammate Chris Buescher in 10th. Spire Motorsports teammates Daniel Suarez and Carson Hocevar are 11th and 12th with Hendrick’s William Byron, 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace, Cindric and Preece rounding out the Chase eligible.

 

I’m just so thankful," repeated Preece, who had maintained all week he was sure the team would win at Daytona even though he had never won in 248 previous series starts.

 

And he did.

Ryan Preece was immune to pressure in dramatic Daytona win

 

August 30, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — In retrospect, Tom Cruise’s presence at the Daytona International Speedway drivers’ meeting couldn’t have been more appropriate.

 

Cruise, who played upstart driver Cole Trickle in the 1990 film “Days of Thunder,” was there to announce that the long-awaited sequel would become reality in 2028.

 

The story of the race that followed the meeting read like a movie script—and an improbable one at that.

 

Ultimately, Ryan Preece won the Coke Zero Sugar 400 to claim the final spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Chase, and next Sunday at Darlington Raceway he’ll begin his pursuit of the championship in a 100-point hole to top seed Denny Hamlin.

 

Preece is used to the crucible of high-pressure moments. In 2017, he borrowed money to buy the best ride he could find for a NASCAR O’Reilly Series race at Iowa Speedway.

 

To use a golf analogy coined by Lee Trevino, Preece’s gamble was like playing a five-dollar Nassau with 50 cents in your pocket.

 

But in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Preece won that race from the pole in a victory that launched his career into the highest echelons of stock car racing.

 

Before Saturday night’s Cup Series race, the 35-year-old modified driver from Berlin, Connecticut, seemed outwardly calm. He was first to the drivers’ meeting, appearing relaxed and self-assured.

 

Earlier, Preece had bounced into the Daytona media center to pay off a pledge he and RFK Racing team owner/driver Brad Keselowski had made to the NASCAR Foundation, one that involved dunking The Athletic journalists Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi.

 

The driver of the No. 60 RFK Ford certainly didn’t seem like a man overwhelmed by the prospect of winning his first Cup Series points race after failing to do so in his previous 248 tries.

 

Preece entered the event 31 points behind Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen in the battle for the final Chase spot. Nearing the end of the first stage, the race took an ugly turn for the New Englander.

 

Running near the front of the field, Preece was collected in a three-car accident also involving teammate Chris Buescher and Kyle Larson and sustained damage to the left-front corner of his Mustang.

 

To make matters worse, van Gisbergen won the stage for a net of seven points over Preece, who slid across the finish line in eighth place.

 

The real drama, however, was reserved for overtime. By then, Preece could advance to the Chase only by winning the race, and on the final lap, he pulled ahead of Zane Smith and Tyler Reddick as a third of the field wrecked behind him.

 

Preece was a car-length ahead of Daniel Suarez when NASCAR called the fourth caution of the night and froze the field—and made a first-time winner of Preece.

 

Preece celebrated in Victory Lane with his family and his dog.

 

“To be able to bring my kids to Victory Lane and my wife to Victory Lane,” an emotional Preece said after the race. “(Wife) Heather has been there from when I was broke and trying to win a Stafford (Speedway) race on a Friday night so I can get my 25 percent and make $400, to her not knowing that I borrowed money and I had to pay it back somehow, to using her credit card to go get shoes at Iowa because I forgot my shoes and they were wore out that time in 2017, to moving down to North Carolina away from her friends and away from her family to chase a dream with me.

 

“Man, this is what racers dream of. It wasn’t given. It was earned. A lot of risk involved and I’m damn proud to be doing it with (team co-owners) Mr. Jack Roush, Brad Keselowski and the Fenway Group at RFK, and with Ford.”

 

Typically, the drama involving the last qualifiers for the Chase dissipates when the actual race for the championship begins. In former Chase years (before 2014), those who barely made the postseason generally were quick to fall behind.

 

Preece could be the exception, even with a deficit of 100 points to start the Chase.

 

“We started off consistent,” he said of the 2026 season. “We had a bit of a slump there in May and June, and we sort of found our way over the past few weeks, especially last week.

 

“We were a contender at Loudon. We were a contender tonight. Denny (Hamlin) and those guys have been really fast, but it would be great to go on one hell of a run.”

 

--30--

 

nascar reviews & NOTEBOOKS

www.nascar.com

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 14 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Series, NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Euro Series, NASCAR Mexico Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Local Racing Series Powered by O’Reilly Auto Parts). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in five cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 11 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.

  

 

   nascar cup series

NASCAR Cup Series schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

DateRaceTrackTime
Feb. 1Cook Out Clash at Bowman GrayBowman Gray Stadium8 p.m.
Feb. 12Duel 1 at DaytonaDaytona International Speedway7 p.m.
Feb. 12Duel 2 at DaytonaDaytona International Speedway8:45 p.m.
Feb. 15Daytona 500Daytona International Speedway2:30 p.m.
Feb. 22Autotrader 400EchoPark Speedway3 p.m.
March 1DuraMax Grand PrixCircuit of the Americas3:30 p.m.
March 8Straight Talk Wireless 500Phoenix Raceway3:30 p.m.
March 15Pennzoil 400Las Vegas Motor Speedway4 p.m.
March 22Goodyear 400Darlington Raceway3 p.m.
March 29Cook Out 400Martinsville Speedway3:30 p.m.
April 12Food City 500Bristol Motor Speedway3 p.m.
April 19AdventHealth 400Kansas Speedway2 p.m.
April 26Jack Link's 500Talladega Superspeedway3 p.m.
May 3Wurth 400Texas Motor Speedway3:30 p.m.
May 10Go Bowling at the GlenWatkins Glen International3 p.m.
May 17All-Star RaceDover Motor Speedway3 p.m.
May 24Coca-Cola 600Charlotte Motor Speedway6 p.m.
May 31Cracker Barrel 400Nashville Superspeedway 7 p.m.
June 7FireKeepers Casino 400Michigan International Speedway3 p.m.
June 14Cup Series race at PoconoPocono Raceway3 p.m.
June 21Anduril 250Naval Base Coronado4 p.m.
June 28Toyota/Save Mart 350Sonoma Raceway3:30 p.m.
July 5Cup Series race at ChicagolandChicagoland Speedway6 p.m.
July 12Quaker State 400EchoPark Speedway7 p.m.
July 19Window World 400North Wilkesboro Speedway7 p.m.
July 26Brickyard 400Indianapolis Motor Speedway2 p.m.
Aug. 9Iowa Corn 350Iowa Speedway3:30 p.m.
Aug. 15Cook Out 400Richmond Raceway7 p.m.
Aug. 23Cup Series race at New HampshireNew Hampshire Motor Speedway3 p.m.
Aug. 29Coke Zero Sugar 400Daytona International Speedway7:30 p.m.

NASCAR Cup Series playoff race schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

DateRaceTrackTime
Sept. 6Southern 500Darlington Raceway5 p.m.
Sept. 13Enjoy Illinois 300World Wide Technology Raceway3 p.m.
Sept. 19Bass Pro Shops Night RaceBristol Motor Speedway7:30 p.m.
Sept. 27Hollywood Casino 400Kansas Speedway3 p.m.
Oct. 4South Point 400Las Vegas Motor Speedway5:30 p.m.
Oct. 11Bank of America ROVAL 400Charlotte Road Course3 p.m.
Oct. 18Freeway Insurance 500Phoenix Raceway3 p.m.
Oct. 25Yellawood 500Talladega Superspeedway2 p.m.
Nov. 1Xfinity 500Martinsville Speedway2 p.m.
Nov. 8Cup Series Championship RaceHomestead-Miami Speedway3 p.m.

2027 NASCAR CUP SERIES SCHEDULE

Date

Event / Racetrack

Saturday, February 13

Wheatley Vodka Clash (Daytona International Speedway)

Sunday, February 21

DAYTONA 500

Sunday, February 28

EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta)

Sunday, March 7

Circuit of the Americas (Austin)

Sunday, March 14

Phoenix Raceway

Sunday, March 21

Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Sunday, March 28

OFF WEEK

Sunday, April 4

Darlington Raceway

Sunday, April 11

Bristol Motor Speedway

Sunday, April 18

Martinsville Speedway

Sunday, April 25

Talladega Superspeedway

Sunday, May 2

Texas Motor Speedway

Sunday, May 9

Kansas Speedway

Sunday, May 16

Dover Motor Speedway

Sunday, May 23

NASCAR All-Star Race (North Wilkesboro Speedway)

Sunday, May 30

Charlotte Motor Speedway

Sunday, June 6

Nashville Superspeedway

Sunday, June 13

Pocono Raceway

Sunday, June 20

Michigan International Speedway

Sunday, June 27

Chicagoland Speedway

Sunday, July 4

Iowa Speedway

Sunday, July 11

Sonoma Raceway

Sunday, July 18

EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta)

Sunday, July 25

Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Sunday, August 1

San Diego (Naval Base Coronado)

Sunday, August 8

OFF WEEK

Saturday, August 14

Bristol Motor Speedway

Sunday, August 22

World Wide Technology Raceway (St. Louis)

Saturday, August 28

Daytona International Speedway

Sunday, September 5

Darlington Raceway

Saturday, September 11

Richmond Raceway

Sunday, September 19

Watkins Glen International

Sunday, September 26

New Hampshire Motor Speedway

Sunday, October 3

Kansas Speedway

Sunday, October 10

Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Sunday, October 17

Charlotte Motor Speedway

Sunday, October 24

Phoenix Raceway

Sunday, October 31

Talladega Superspeedway

Sunday, November 7

Martinsville Speedway

Sunday, November 14

NASCAR Championship (Homestead-Miami Speedway)

 

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