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NASCARCelebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series™, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour™), one local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series™) and three international series (NASCAR Pinty’s Series™, NASCAR Mexico Series™, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series™). 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 eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).

 

Last-lap pass makes a DAYTONA 500 winner of Tyler Reddick

Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Tyler Reddick waited for the last possible moment to make his move—and it paid off with victory in Sunday’s 68th running of the DAYTONA 500.

 

In the final 500 yards of the Great American Race, Reddick got a welcome push from teammate Riley Herbst, muscled his way past Chase Elliott and powered his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota toward the finish line.

 

As the track exploded in chaos behind him, when Herbst tried an ill-fated late block on Brad Keselowski and a knot of cars slid sideways across the finish line, Reddick already was celebrating a 0.308-second victory over 2023 DAYTONA 500 winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

 

Reddick was the 25th different leader—a record for the race—and the only lap he led was the last one.

 

After a winless 2025, Reddick expressed both satisfaction and relief at doing what 23XI co-owners Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan hired him to do.

 

“Last year was really hard for all of us, hard for me,” Reddick said. “When you're a Cup driver and you get to this level and drive for Michael Jordan, it's expected you win every single year.

 

“For us to go on that drought it made us look hard in the mirror, and I am really proud of everyone on our Chumba Casino Toyota Camry. Worked really hard in the offseason, and there were many points in this race where we weren't making decisions we wanted to, but we just reset, and every opportunity we got to reset, we went back at it.

 

“Just speechless. I didn't know if I'd ever win this race. It's surreal, honestly. The best part is my son asked before this race, ‘Are you finally going to win this race?’ Something about today just felt right.”

 

The final two laps produced more plot twists than a dime novel. Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar led at the white flag but spun in Turn 1 and fell out of the lead pack, taking Erik Jones and Michael McDowell with him. Elliott took control and appeared ready to win his first Crown Jewel race before Reddick gained momentum off Herbst’s bumper.

 

Moments later, Herbst’s attempted block stopped Keselowski’s huge run near the outside wall and sealed the win for Reddick.

 

“I'm not really sure what happened with the first (Hocevar) wreck,” Elliott said. “But we ended up kind of getting gifted the lead, and the 38 (Zane Smith) and I had got out by ourselves down the back. He had given me a good shove off into (Turn) 3 and then it was kind of just he and I, and at that point I just felt momentum shift, like there was going to be another run coming behind us there at some point.

 

“Unfortunately, that was accurate, and then at that point in time, you're just on defense. Man, that's a really, really tough place to be, truthfully. Obviously looking back, you can run it through your mind a thousand times. Do you do something different? I feel like if I had thrown a double block on the 45 (Reddick), probably would have just crashed us at that point in time.”

 

Behind Stenhouse, 2015 DAYTONA 500 winner Joey Logano slid across the finish line in third place, followed by Elliott and Keselowski.

 

“Yeah, a lot of chaos,” said Keselowski, who raced while still recovering from a broken right femur. “Last restart I gave William Byron a great push, and just wasn't enough to move our lane. I was giving him all I had, and then right here at the end I had this huge run and the 35 (Herbst) wrecked us. Really disappointed.

 

“Tore up the 9 (Elliott), tore up the 22 (Joey Logano), a bunch of cars that didn't deserve to be wrecked, so that was a big bummer and really stupid. Still a decent day for us to come home with a top 5 and to be competitive and have a shot to win.”

 

As wild as the finish was, the biggest melee of the afternoon came much earlier.

 

With seven laps left in the second stage, contact between the No. 40 Chevrolet of Justin Allgaier and the No.11 Toyota of three-time DAYTONA 500 winner Denny Hamlin ignited a 20-car wreck in the tri-oval.

 

Allgaier was leading the top line but left a narrow lane open to his right. As Hamlin attempted to fill the hole, Allgaier’s car twitched toward the wall, turned across the nose of Hamlin’s Camry and lit the fuse of chaos behind him.

 

“I got to the outside lane there, got to the front—got the outside lane,” Allgaier said. “And I really thought I had blocked enough of that top lane that the top line was just going to fall in behind.

 

“And as soon as Denny went to that quarter-panel, it just sucked me in there. It’s a hundred percent my fault. That’s the frustrating part. I should have moved it up higher. But there are moments where you get a little bit complacent. You think you did everything right, but you didn’t check all the boxes. That’s what happened there.”

 

Even though Herbst was listed in that incident, his car was not severely damaged and survived to become a key component in the 23XI victory, as Jordan acknowledged after the race.

 

“I thought Riley did an unbelievable job pushing at the end,” Jordan said. “That shows you what teamwork can really, really do. He doesn't get enough credit. He won't get enough credit. But we feel the love. We understand exactly what he did.

 

“We hung in there all day. Great strategy by the team, and we gave ourselves a chance at the end. Look, I'm ecstatic. I don't even know what to say. It feels like I won a championship, but until I get my ring, I won't even know.”

 

Smith, Chris Buescher, Herbst, Josh Berry and Bubba Wallace finished sixth through 10th, respectively. Byron, trying for a third straight DAYTONA 500 win, came home 12th, and pole winner Kyle Busch was 15th.

 

The lead changed hands among the record 25 different drivers 665 times. Smith took the first stage win—the first of his career—and Wallace won the second under caution for the 20-car accident.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Race - DAYTONA 500

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Florida

Sunday, February 15, 2026

 

                1. (26)  Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 200.

                2. (16)  Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 200.

                3. (3)  Joey Logano, Ford, 200.

                4. (4)  Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 200.

                5. (9)  Brad Keselowski, Ford, 200.

                6. (30)  Zane Smith, Ford, 200.

                7. (41)  Chris Buescher, Ford, 200.

                8. (28)  Riley Herbst, Toyota, 200.

                9. (14)  Josh Berry, Ford, 200.

                10. (27)  Bubba Wallace, Toyota, 200.

                11. (25)  Noah Gragson, Ford, 200.

                12. (39)  William Byron, Chevrolet, 200.

                13. (15)  Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, 200.

                14. (34)  Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 200.

                15. (1)  Kyle Busch, Chevrolet, 200.

                16. (8)  Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 200.

                17. (33)  Cody Ware, Chevrolet, 200.

                18. (6)  Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 200.

                19. (35)  AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 200.

                20. (37)  Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 200.

                21. (24)  Erik Jones, Toyota, 200.

                22. (10)  Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 200.

                23. (20)  Ty Gibbs, Toyota, 200.

                24. (23)  Cole Custer, Chevrolet, 200.

                25. (19)  Ryan Preece, Ford, 200.

                26. (11)  John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, Accident, 199.

                27. (5)  Ryan Blaney, Ford, Accident, 199.

                28. (29)  Corey Heim(i), Toyota, 199.

                29. (31)  Jimmie Johnson, Toyota, Accident, 199.

                30. (13)  Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet, 199.

                31. (22)  Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 198.

                32. (17)  Casey Mears, Ford, 195.

                33. (32)  Connor Zilisch #, Chevrolet, 195.

                34. (36)  Austin Cindric, Ford, 193.

                35. (12)  Christopher Bell, Toyota, Accident, 191.

                36. (2)  Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 188.

                37. (7)  Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, Accident, 137.

                38. (40)  Justin Allgaier(i), Chevrolet, Accident, 123.

                39. (18)  Todd Gilliland, Ford, Accident, 123.

                40. (21)  Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, Accident, 123.

                41. (38)  BJ McLeod, Chevrolet, Accident, 4.

 

Average Speed of Race Winner:  147.107 mph.

Time of Race:  3 Hrs, 23 Mins, 56 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.308 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  5 for 32 laps.

Lead Changes:  65 among 25 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   K. Busch 1-3;J. Nemechek 4-7;K. Busch 8-11;J. Logano 12-13;J. Nemechek 14-18;J. Logano 19;J. Nemechek 20-28;J. Logano 29;J. Nemechek 30;J. Logano 31-34;C. Briscoe 35-57;C. Elliott 58;T. Gilliland 59;Z. Smith 60-68;A. Allmendinger 69;R. Blaney 70-71;A. Cindric 72-74;D. Hamlin 75-76;B. Wallace 77-79;C. Ware 80-81;R. Chastain 82-83;*. Allgaier(i) 84;T. Dillon 85-87;*. Allgaier(i) 88;R. Stenhouse Jr. 89;R. Chastain 90-95;A. Cindric 96-97;R. Chastain 98-100;S. Van Gisbergen 101-103;K. Larson 104;K. Busch 105-108;K. Larson 109-112;K. Busch 113;K. Larson 114;K. Busch 115-116;K. Larson 117;K. Busch 118-121;D. Hamlin 122;*. Allgaier(i) 123;B. Wallace 124-130;R. Stenhouse Jr. 131-133;B. Wallace 134-136;*. Heim(i) 137-138;B. Wallace 139;C. Bell 140;*. Heim(i) 141;B. Wallace 142-144;C. Bell 145;B. Wallace 146;C. Bell 147-148;*. Heim(i) 149;C. Bell 150-151;B. Wallace 152;*. Heim(i) 153-156;C. Bell 157;B. Wallace 158-162;C. Bell 163-164;B. Wallace 165-180;C. Buescher 181-184;K. Busch 185;R. Chastain 186;C. Elliott 187;J. Logano 188;M. McDowell 189-198;C. Hocevar 199;T. Reddick 200.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Bubba Wallace 9 times for 40 laps; Chase Briscoe 1 time for 23 laps; John Hunter Nemechek 4 times for 19 laps; Kyle Busch 7 times for 19 laps; Ross Chastain 4 times for 12 laps; Michael McDowell 1 time for 10 laps; Christopher Bell 6 times for 9 laps; Joey Logano 5 times for 9 laps; Zane Smith 1 time for 9 laps; * Corey Heim(i) 4 times for 8 laps; Kyle Larson 4 times for 7 laps; Austin Cindric 2 times for 5 laps; Chris Buescher 1 time for 4 laps; Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2 times for 4 laps; * Justin Allgaier(i) 3 times for 3 laps; Ty Dillon 1 time for 3 laps; Denny Hamlin 2 times for 3 laps; Shane Van Gisbergen 1 time for 3 laps; Chase Elliott 2 times for 2 laps; Cody Ware 1 time for 2 laps; Ryan Blaney 1 time for 2 laps; AJ Allmendinger 1 time for 1 lap; Todd Gilliland 1 time for 1 lap; Tyler Reddick 1 time for 1 lap; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 38,2,12,77,7,17,71,60,48,4

Stage #2 Top Ten: 23,12,42,8,35,67,17,45,22,7

 

 

Joey Logano, Chase Elliott win 150-mile Duels as DAYTONA 500 field is set

James Gilbert/Getty Images

February 12, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Joey Logano won the fourth America 250 Florida Duel of his career on Thursday night to secure a third-place starting spot in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

In a second Duel that ran caution free, Chase Elliott took control of the race on Lap 53 of 60 and held off Carson Hocevar by 0.065 seconds to win his third 150-mile qualifying race and earn the fourth starting position for the DAYTONA 500.

 

With an earnest push from Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney, Logano was at the front of the field when NASCAR called the third caution of the first Duel on Lap 63, three laps into overtime.

 

Both Logano and Blaney are among the favorites to win Sunday’s 68th edition of the Great American Race. Blaney ran second and will start fifth in NASCAR’s biggest race.

 

“Just a lot of teamwork all the way through,” Logano said of the win. “I think about the 22 team in particular. Nick Hensley, our gas man, did a fantastic job getting us in position out of pit road. (Spotter) Coleman Pressley up on the roof giving us great information. My teammate Ryan Blaney being committed and working together.

 

“It's nice when everything works out the way it's supposed to.”

 

Logano has finished ninth or better in 12 straight Daytona Duels.

 

Former DAYTONA 500 winner Austin Dillon ran third, followed by Brad Keselowski—recovering from a broken right femur—and John Hunter Nemechek. Shane van Gisbergen, Daniel Suarez, Casey Mears, Ryan Preece and Alex Bowman completed the top 10.

 

Mears came from a lap down to earn the one Open position in the DAYTONA 500 available from the first Duel. Mears advanced when fellow Open competitor Corey LaJoie—running in the top five at the time—turned into the outside wall in a chain-reaction collision on the final lap of overtime.

 

Anthony Alfredo had a relatively stress-free run to claim the DAYTONA 500 spot available to Open cars in the second Duel, or so he thought. Though Alfredo finished 18th, 23 seconds ahead of BJ McLeod—the next-best Open driver—his finish was disallowed after post-race inspection, and McLeod will compete in the Great American Race on Sunday.

 

According to NASCAR Cup Series director Brad Moran, a transmission cooling hose on Alfredo's No. 62 Chevrolet was not fastened properly, and another hose was disconnected, affecting both cooling and airflow.

 

The complexion of the first race changed dramatically after Mears slid into the Ford of Noah Gragson coming to pit road on Lap 46. Preece had led 38 laps to that point but needed more fuel on his stop and fell back after the subsequent restart on Lap 50.

 

Mears lost a lap because of his spin into the infield grass but regained it as the beneficiary under caution under the second caution for a five-car accident on Lap 56 that eliminated the No. 24 Chevrolet of William Byron, the two-time defending winner of the DAYTONA 500.

 

Byron will start Sunday’s race from the rear of the field in a backup car.

 

In the final wreck on Lap 63, Mears’ No. 66 Ford nosed into the Chevrolet of Daniel Suarez after passing Lajoie’s spinning Ford for the critical position. Mears had the leading Open car when NASCAR called the caution that froze the field.

 

“I hit somebody square,” Mears said, unsure whether his Carl Long-owned car could be repaired or if a backup would be required. “And I knew when I hit him flat it didn't tear up the car too much and I was going to be able to get back (to the checkered flag).

 

“But I didn't know who was in front of me still, whether or not we made it. All the guys started going nuts on the radio.”

 

Sensing danger as the first Duel barreled toward a frenetic conclusion, DAYTONA 500 pole winner Kyle Busch dropped to the rear of the field after the Lap 50 restart to preserve his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet for Sunday’s race. He finished 18th in the 23-car field.

 

Seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, already locked into the 500 on an Open Exemption Provisional, ran a conservative race and finished 15th.

 

In the second Duel, Elliott led twice for nine laps and became the third Hendrick Motorsports driver to win three or more Duels. NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon leads the organization with five.

 

“A great way to get the blood pumping for sure on a Thursday night,” said Elliott, who is seeking his first win in the Great American Race. “There was a lot going on those last handful (of laps). Really, ever since we came off of pit road after the cycle, we were getting after it. It was a lot of fun.

 

“Had some great support there. Carson did a great job helping me control those lanes, helping get Team Chevy for Victory Lane tonight. Certainly, owe him an appreciation for just kind of sticking with it, also pushing me well. It's real easy to get people out of control. Appreciate that.”

 

Reigning Cup Series champion Kyle Larson ran third, followed by former DAYTONA 500 winner Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell. Josh Berry, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Todd Gilliland, Ty Gibbs and Denny Hamlin claimed positions six through 10, respectively.

 

Chase Briscoe, who locked into the second starting position during Wednesday night’s time trials, led a race-high 38 laps but fell victim to a lengthy green-flag pit stop on Lap 45, lost the draft and finished 20th.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Race - America 250 Florida Duel 1 at DAYTONA

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Florida

Thursday, February 12, 2026

 

          1. (6)  Joey Logano, Ford, 63.

          2. (11)  Ryan Blaney, Ford, 63.

          3. (7)  Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 63.

          4. (10)  Brad Keselowski, Ford, 63.

          5. (9)  John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, 63.

          6. (19)  Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet, 63.

          7. (20)  Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, 63.

          8. (22)  Casey Mears, Ford, 63.

          9. (2)  Ryan Preece, Ford, 63.

          10. (4)  Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 63.

          11. (13)  Cole Custer, Chevrolet, 63.

          12. (23)  Noah Gragson, Ford, 63.

          13. (16)  Bubba Wallace, Toyota, 63.

          14. (3)  Corey Heim(i), Toyota, 63.

          15. (15)  Jimmie Johnson, Toyota, 63.

          16. (21)  Chandler Smith(i), Ford, 63.

          17. (14)  Cody Ware, Chevrolet, 63.

          18. (1)  Kyle Busch, Chevrolet, 63.

          19. (8)  Corey LaJoie, Ford, Accident, 62.

          20. (17)  AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, Accident, 62.

          21. (18)  Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, Accident, 62.

          22. (12)  William Byron, Chevrolet, Accident, 55.

          23. (5)  Chris Buescher, Ford, Accident, 55.

 

Average Speed of Race Winner:  153.867 mph.

Time of Race:  1 Hrs, 1 Mins, 25 Secs. Margin of Victory:  Under Caution Seconds.

Caution Flags:  3 for 9 laps.

Lead Changes:  9 among 6 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   K. Busch 0;R. Preece 1-3;A. Dillon 4;J. Nemechek 5-7;A. Dillon 8-9;R. Preece 10-44;C. Custer 45-47;J. Logano 48-49;C. Buescher 50;J. Logano 51-63.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Ryan Preece 2 times for 38 laps; Joey Logano 2 times for 15 laps; Austin Dillon 2 times for 3 laps; Cole Custer 1 time for 3 laps; John Hunter Nemechek 1 time for 3 laps; Chris Buescher 1 time for 1 lap.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Race - America 250 Florida Duel at DAYTONA

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Florida

Thursday, February 12, 2026

 

          1. (4)  Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 60.

          2. (14)  Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 60.

          3. (3)  Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 60.

          4. (10)  Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 60.

          5. (6)  Christopher Bell, Toyota, 60.

          6. (13)  Josh Berry, Ford, 60.

          7. (19)  Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 60.

          8. (16)  Todd Gilliland, Ford, 60.

          9. (5)  Ty Gibbs, Toyota, 60.

          10. (2)  Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 60.

          11. (12)  Erik Jones, Toyota, 60.

          12. (20)  Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 60.

          13. (15)  Riley Herbst, Toyota, 60.

          14. (9)  Zane Smith, Ford, 60.

          15. (11)  Connor Zilisch #, Chevrolet, 60.

          16. (18)  Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 60.

          17. (8)  Austin Cindric, Ford, 60.

          18. (17)  Anthony Alfredo(i), Chevrolet, 60.

          19. (21)  BJ McLeod, Chevrolet, 60.

          20. (1)  Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 60.

          21. (7)  Justin Allgaier(i), Chevrolet, 60.

          22. (22)  JJ Yeley(i), Chevrolet, 57.

 

Average Speed of Race Winner:  183.237 mph.

Time of Race:  0 Hrs, 49 Mins, 7 Secs. Margin of Victory:  .065 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  0 for  laps.

Lead Changes:  12 among 10 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   C. Briscoe 1-31;T. Dillon 32;C. Briscoe 33-39;T. Dillon 40-41;M. McDowell 42-44;*. Alfredo(i) 45;C. Zilisch # 46;R. Herbst 47;*. Allgaier(i) 48-49;T. Reddick 50;C. Elliott 51;C. Hocevar 52;C. Elliott 53-60.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Chase Briscoe 2 times for 38 laps; Chase Elliott 2 times for 9 laps; Ty Dillon 2 times for 3 laps; Michael McDowell 1 time for 3 laps; * Justin Allgaier(i) 1 time for 2 laps; Tyler Reddick 1 time for 1 lap; * Anthony Alfredo(i) 1 time for 1 lap; Riley Herbst 1 time for 1 lap; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 1 lap; Connor Zilisch # 1 time for 1 lap.

 

 
 

Kyle Busch wins pole for Sunday's Daytona 500

Feb. 11, 2026

 By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. _ Kyle Busch delivered the best Daytona 500 qualifying effort of his championship NASCAR career Wednesday night at Daytona International Speedway, claiming his first ever pole position for the Great American Race (Sunday, 2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Busch’s No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was quickest in first round qualifying and answered the work resoundingly with an even faster lap (183.651 mph) in the 10-car final round - besting Joe Gibbs Racing’s Chase Briscoe by only .064-mph to set the front row.

 

Busch, 40, and Briscoe, 31 – the 2025 Daytona 500 polesitter – locked into the 41-car field along with 23XI Racing’s Corey Heim and JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier, who claimed the two open positions up for grabs Wednesday. The remainder of the field will be settled in Thursday night’s America 250 Florida Duel at Daytona races (7 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) with the 500 starting positions based on the Duels’ finishing order.

 

This will mark Busch’s 21st start in the Daytona 500 – and no previous driver has won the race with more than 20 starts.  The late NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt scored his only DAYTONA 500 victory in his 20th start for Busch’s team owner, NASCAR Hall of Famer Childress.

 

“Certainly, here on a Wednesday night, being able to qualify on my first pole for the Daytona 500, that's pretty special.,’’ said a grinning Busch. “I've had one other speedway pole down here in Daytona for the summer race. This feels good. Feels really good for RCR as a group.

 

“Just a valiant effort by everybody here,’’ the two-time series champion added. “It would be really nice to be doing an interview like this about being No. 1 come Sunday night.”

 

Briscoe was obviously encouraged by his showing as well, noting with a laugh that more typically it’s the Hendrick Motorsports team that has dominated Daytona 500 front row qualifying in recent years.

 

“It's cool for sure to be able to consistently two years in a row now,’’ said Briscoe, who drives the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. “It's really a testament to the folks back at JGR. We've made so many improvements on our superspeedway program. This race really comes down to, at least in qualifying, attention to detail, just doing every little thing.

 

“The 19 group has consistently kind of been the best one. That's really exciting for us. Just a lot of pride in that, right? I know for me, every week when I get in the car, I know I'm in arguably the best car every single week. When we come here and do stuff like we've done two years in a row validates that.

 

“It's the kid in me. .. being in the front row, for two years in a row at the Daytona 500. It's a really big deal.’’

 

It was certainly a thrilling start to the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series points season, the qualifying session featured a great battle among all three series manufacturers – with four Chevrolets, three Fords and three Toyotas making up the final round. Nine of the 10 cars that advanced bettered the pole speed from a year ago.

 

Last week’s Clash preseason-opening race winner Ryan Preece was third fastest in the No. 60 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford with three-time Daytona 500 winner, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin fourth quickest followed by Heim, the only one of eight “open” cars to make the 10-car final round.

 

“Just kind of nerve-wracking for sure to say the least,’’ the 2025 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion Heim conceded of earning his first ever Daytona 500 start in the No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota.

 

“But as soon as we knew all cars would be out in the second round except for us, that's kind of the final solidifying factor. I thought for a minute, three of us were going to be in the final round and we were going to have to race it out.

 

“So impressed and thank you for 23XI Racing and Toyota coming here with an open car and a fourth team at 23XI. To be able to do that is pretty impressive even from my eyes. I feel like that's a very big accomplishment from those guys. Just blessed to be a part of the team.”

 

The veteran Allgaier – the 2024 champion and a current fulltime competitor in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series - is making his second consecutive start in the No. 40 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, owned by two-time DAYTONA 500 champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller. Allgaier’s qualifying time bettered the open car driven by Corey LaJoie by only a slight .004-second to claim that second guaranteed entry.

 

“I thought there would be less stress but I felt like for me, the stress level actually went up compared to last year with what we are able to accomplish,’’ said Allgaier, who finished ninth last year in the team’s inaugural DAYTONA start.

 

“You feel like you’ll come back in a lot better capacity and we did, that was a great qualifying effort, just short of the top-10,’’ he said of the car’s 14th place showing Wednesday night among the 45 car field.

 

“I think last year we made it so exciting on Thursday, it was really cool and it was special,’’ Allgaier said of having to race for a position in the 2025 DAYTONA 500 in the Duels. “But I feel like this year, I can go through the Duels and work on the car in a far different capacity and allows us to go to the 500 and really feel like we’re competing for a win and competing for a great position. It’s just different and I’m really proud of this team.’’

 

His grinning team owner Earnhardt conceded, “It is stressful but that’s the best part about it.”

 

Of note, Front Row Motorsports driver Noah Gragson had his qualifying lap disallowed after he used his hand to affect airflow, violating a new NASCAR rule that took effect this year. He’ll start last in his Duel race.

 

“I completely forgot about that rule,’’ Gragson said, “That one’s on me.’’

 

Ryan Preece overcomes weather and 18th-place starting spot to win Cook Out Clash

Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

 

 

February 4, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Neither rain nor sleet nor snow nor gloom of night could keep Ryan Preece from his appointed rounds at Bowman Gray Stadium.

 

On wet-weather tires, on a track peppered with a wintry mix during the 100-lap break, Preece navigated the glazed asphalt at the historic quarter-mile track to win the second Cook Out Clash staged in Winston-Salem, N.C.

 

Historically heavy snow already had forced postponement of the season-opening NASCAR Cup Series exhibition race twice, but for the 35-year-old driver from Berlin, Connecticut, the victory on Wednesday night was well worth the wait.

 

“I don’t even know what to say,” said Preece, tears in his eyes as he climbed from his car to the cheers of hardy fans who had braved the rain and bone-chilling temperatures. “To be honest with you, it’s been a freaking long road.

 

“It’s the Clash, but, man, it’s been years and years of grinding ... Two years ago, I didn’t think I was going to have a job. I thought I was going back to Connecticut.”

 

Preece, however, secured a ride in the No. 60 Roush Fenway Racing Ford after Stewart-Haas Racing closed its doors at the end of the 2024 season.

 

On Wednesday night, he led the final 45 laps after taking the top spot on Lap 156, muscling his way past Shane van Gisbergen after a restart four laps earlier.

 

In a rock 'em, sock 'em free-for-all that featured a Clash-record 17 cautions, Preece pulled away after the final restart on Lap 182 of 200 to beat runner-up William Byron to the finish line by 1.752 seconds.

 

Preece is the third driver to win the Clash before winning a NASCAR Cup Series points race, joining NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon and Denny Hamlin in that distinction.

 

The modified star, who started 18th and worked his way forward before and after the halfway break, extended one streak and broke another. He is the ninth straight different driver to win the Clash, but he’s the first to win from outside the first two rows since the Clash went to a quarter-mile format at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2022.

 

Ryan Blaney ran third, followed by Daniel Suarez and Denny Hamlin. Chase Briscoe, Austin Dillon, Chris Buescher, Ross Chastain and Alex Bowman completed the top 10.

 

Pole winner and reigning Cup champion Kyle Larson led a race-high 67 laps to Preece’s 46, but Larson’s race fell apart after rain and sleet covered the track, leading to a 16th-place result after the change from slick tires to wet-weather rubber.

 

For the second straight year, Josh Berry raced into the main event from the Last Chance Qualifier. After passing AJ Allmendinger for the top spot on Lap 18 of 75, Berry led the rest of the way in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford and finished 7.419 seconds clear of runner-up Austin Cindric.

 

The field for the Clash wasn’t set, however, until AJ Allmendinger shoved Cindric past Corey LaJoie in the final corner, allowing Cindric to secure the second of two spots available through the LCQ.

 

From Lap 62 on, Cindric and Lajoie had battled for the runner-up position, with Cindric securing the inside position for the final four circuits.

 

“You, wanted to be on the inside, obviously, but you don’t want to pass the guy, ‘cause then he has the opportunity to get back to you,” said LaJoie, who was subbing for injured Brad Keselowski in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Ford.

 

“It was exciting. It was fun to be in the fight. I hadn’t been in a fight like that in a long time.”

 

Allmendinger, who finished fourth behind LaJoie, was in the mix until the finish.

 

“I had the plan set up perfect,” said Allmendinger, who intended to move both Cindric and LaJoie up the track on the final lap. “I just didn’t execute. I went down in there to kind of shove ‘em both out of the way, and we didn’t have enough grip to throttle back up and beat ‘em to the line.”

 

Berry started 21st in the Clash and finished 12th. Cindric started 22nd and ran 21st after a litany of issues.

 

Bowman started last (23rd) in the Clash field on a provisional as the highest finisher in the 2025 standings not already in the field though qualifying or the LCQ.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Race - Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray

Bowman Gray Stadium

Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

 

                1. (18)  Ryan Preece, Ford, 200.

                2. (2)  William Byron, Chevrolet, 200.

                3. (16)  Ryan Blaney, Ford, 200.

                4. (20)  Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, 200.

                5. (6)  Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 200.

                6. (4)  Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 200.

                7. (15)  Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 200.

                8. (8)  Chris Buescher, Ford, 200.

                9. (9)  Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 200.

                10. (23)  Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 200.

                11. (14)  Joey Logano, Ford, 200.

                12. (21)  Josh Berry, Ford, 200.

                13. (5)  Christopher Bell, Toyota, 200.

                14. (3)  Ty Gibbs, Toyota, 200.

                15. (12)  Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 200.

                16. (1)  Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 200.

                17. (11)  Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 200.

                18. (19)  Connor Zilisch, Chevrolet, 200.

                19. (13)  Kyle Busch, Chevrolet, 200.

                20. (17)  Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet, 200.

                21. (22)  Austin Cindric, Ford, 200.

                22. (10)  Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 200.

                23. (7)  Bubba Wallace, Toyota, 199.

 

Average Speed of Race Winner:  21.39 mph.

Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 20 Mins, 15 Secs. Margin of Victory:  1.752 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  17 for 0 laps.

Lead Changes:  11 among 7 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   K. Larson 1-53;C. Briscoe 54-56;K. Larson 57-70;W. Byron 71-84;C. Briscoe 85-95;T. Gibbs 96-100;C. Briscoe 101-121;C. Hocevar 122-139;S. Van Gisbergen 140-142;R. Preece 143;S. Van Gisbergen 144-155;R. Preece 156-200.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Kyle Larson 2 times for 67 laps; Ryan Preece 2 times for 46 laps; Chase Briscoe 3 times for 35 laps; Carson Hocevar 1 time for 18 laps; Shane Van Gisbergen 2 times for 15 laps; William Byron 1 time for 14 laps; Ty Gibbs 1 time for 5 laps.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 60,24,12,7,11,19,3,17,1,48

 

Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium postponed until Monday

January 31, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

A steady snowfall on Saturday forced postponement of the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium from Sunday to Monday to allow time to clear the track and provide safe access for fans.

 

The season-opening NASCAR Cup Series exhibition race already had been shortened to one day by historically cold weather and the threat of snow. Practice and qualifying for the 200-lap Clash now will start at 11:00 a.m. ET Monday on FS2.

 

The Last Chance Qualifier at the quarter-mile short track will begin at 4:30 p.m. ET, followed by Cook Out Clash at 6:00 p.m. ET, with FOX picking up the coverage of both events. MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will broadcast all the action, starting with Monday’s practice.

 

“Mother Nature hasn’t been kind to us at all this week,” said Justin Swilling, NASCAR’s senior director of marketing services. “But one thing it has done for us this time around, it has made the snow very light, fluffy and powdery.

 

“So the beautiful thing we tested out (Saturday) morning is that, once the wind dissipates, and once the snow stops falling, we can quickly get it moved.”

 

Parking lots will open Monday at 9 a.m. with off-site shuttle services beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET Gates will open at 10:00 a.m.ET Ticket holders can get more information at www.nascarclash.com/weather or by calling 855-525-7223.

 

 

NASCAR Weekend Preview: EchoPark Speedway

Atlanta Awaits as Last-Lap Thrills Dominate Drafting Tracks

HAMPTON, Ga. – Fresh off a huge television audience and a sell-out DAYTONA 500 grandstands witnessing 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick’s dramatic last lap victory, the NASCAR Cup Series moves to another of the sport’s thrill-ride venues EchoPark Speedway in Atlanta as part of a NASCAR triple-header weekend.

 

The recently reconfigured 1.54-mile Atlanta oval, hosting Sunday’s AutoTrader 400 (3 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) races like a superspeedway – similar to the Daytona big track – and is renowned for its own brand of high-excitement and exhilarating finishes.

 

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell earned the headlines in last February's EchoPark Speedway race, a last lap pass for victory that started a streak of three consecutive NASCAR Cup Series wins for the popular and perpetual championship challenger.

 

His single lap out front at Atlanta last February wasn’t only dramatic but historic as the last time a race winner at the track led only one lap happened decades ago – 1961 – by NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson.

 

Reddick’s win last week at Daytona was reminiscent of Bell’s trophy-work and actually extended a last-lap victory streak by drivers to an amazing seven races at the drafting-style tracks in Daytona, Talladega, Ala. and Atlanta.

 

Whether by last lap dramatics or complete race day domination, Bell, would love to right the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team’s ship after being in contention for a DAYTONA 500 victory last Sunday only to be collected in a multi-car accident 12 laps from the end and suffer a 35th-place finish. With his NASCAR Cup Series win last year, Bell now has wins in all three of NASCAR’s national series at Atlanta.

 

When it comes to the drafting tracks, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing owner-driver Brad Keselowski actually leads all active drivers with seven wins - and is coming off a fifth-place finish in the DAYTONA 500. Fellow Ford driver, Team Penske’s Joey Logano is next with six wins. Logano’s teammate Ryan Blaney, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron (Chevrolet) and Bell’s JGR teammate Denny Hamlin all have five wins on the drafting tracks.

 

Of note, Ford drivers have claimed six poles since Atlanta’s reconfiguration, however the make has only two trophies (Logano in 2023 and ’24) to show for it. Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron and Chase Elliott each have a pair of wins.

 

Logano’s 333 laps out front is most in the eight races on the new track. Elliott’s 9.14 average finish is best in that time. And it’s worth noting, Kyle Busch - who is coming off his first career DAYTONA 500 pole position – has finished top-10 in five of the six Atlanta races he’s competed in for Richard Childress Racing – his best work in the No. 8 RCR Chevrolet.

 

Busch Light Pole Qualifying is set for 11 a.m. ET on Saturday, February 21 (on Prime, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Blaney won pole position for this race last year.

 

Atlanta Is Austin Hill’s Playground — Good Luck Changing That

 

The strategy for most teams coming into Saturday’s Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250 (5 p.m. ET on The CW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway looks a whole lot like it did in the Daytona season-opener last weekend.

 

The field needs to figure out a way to beat Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Hill, who is not only the defending winner at his “home” track, but has won five of the last seven races at the 1.5-miler.

 

Hill, 31, comes into the race weekend following a strong victory in the No. 21 RCR Chevrolet at Daytona last Saturday, when he led an impressive 78 of 120 laps. His closest challenger was his RCR teammate Jesse Love, who also spent most of the day at Daytona running among the frontrunners.

 

The 2025 spring Atlanta race results actually looked a lot like the season-opening Daytona race last week. Hill and Love set the pace and ultimately Hill edged former series champion Justin Allgaier to the finish line. Last year at Atlanta, Hill led a completely dominating 146 of 163 laps. He has claimed a series record 11 wins at drafting tracks.

 

And…. Should Hill win Saturday evening, he would become the first driver in series history to win the first two races of the season multiple times – answering his work at Daytona and Atlanta in 2024.

 

Only three drivers scored top-10 finishes in both Atlanta races last year, but AM Racing’s Nick Sanchez is the only one competing this weekend. The 24-year-old finished fifth in this race and scored his only career NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series victory in June.

 

Of note, a win for Allgaier in 2026 would give him a victory in 10 straight seasons, an all-time record breaking the mark he currently shares with NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin and Kyle Busch.

 

NASCAR Cup Series regular Ross Chastain will drive the No. 32 Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet in the first of his four scheduled starts this year in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

 

Kennametal Pole Qualifying is set for 5 p.m. ET Friday, February 20 (CW App). Love is the defending polesitter and has won pole position in three of the last four races.

 

Champions Collide in Atlanta CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Showdown

 

Saturday’s FR8 Racing 208 at EchoPark Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, NRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will pit some of the best ever in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series with last year’s dominant champion Corey Heim back on the grid, alongside two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch.

 

A record-setting eight-time winner at the track Busch will make the first of his eight season starts this weekend. He’s won the last two Atlanta races giving him an average finish of 1.0 in his two races on the re-design.

 

The series is coming off an absolute ratings bonanza at Daytona last week, the FS1 season-opener watched by almost 1.4-million viewers – making it the most-watched truck race since 2016. Front Row Motorsports’ Chandler Smith prevailed in a dramatic run to checkered line capping a night that featured the most lead changes (32) in any race ever for the series.

 

The RAM All-Star truck entrant this week is NASCAR Cup Series regular Ty Dillon. The make marked its return to NASCAR competition last week at Daytona with Brenden Queen’s seventh-place finish best among the five RAM trucks. Rookie Mini Tyrell earned a 19th-place finish in his series debut.

 

Kennametal Pole Qualifying is Friday at 3 p.m. ET (FS1). Connor Mosack won pole position last year.

 

 

From NBA Titles to NASCAR Glory: Jordan celebrates DAYTONA 500 win

 

February 16, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – "Size 13," Michael Jordan answered immediately of the DAYTONA 500 champion’s ring he will receive – and forever cherish – as team co-owner of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota that Californian Tyler Reddick drove to a dramatic victory Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.

 

A six-time NBA Champion and five-time league Most Valuable Player, Jordan, 62, was absolutely thrilled to add a win in NASCAR’s most celebrated race to his collection of legendary sports hardware. The Victory vibe was absolutely unmistakable.

 

Reddick’s amazing final lap push to claim his – and the 23XI Racing team’s – first DAYTONA 500 championship Sunday evening was a high-stakes move resulting in the high-wattage victory. Something Reddick’s team co-owner Jordan knows a lot about.

 

“We hung in there all day," Jordan said Sunday night amid the high-fives, loud call-outs and celebratory toasts he was enjoying. “Great strategy by the team, and we gave ourselves a chance at the end. Look, I'm ecstatic. I don't even know what to say. It feels like I won a championship.”

 

The 6-foot-6 former NBA all-star celebrated in Daytona Victory Lane – at one point lifting the 5-foot-5 Reddick off the ground in a huge bear hug and then ultimately helping Reddick raise the iconic Harley J. Earl DAYTONA 500 winners’ trophy above their heads, grinning ear-to-ear amongst the confetti-filled celebration.

 

There now exists a “new” iconic photograph of Jordan cradling the DAYTONA 500 trophy in much the same way he was photographed hugging the NBA championship trophies so many times over so many seasons.

 

Jordan and three-time DAYTONA 500 champion Denny Hamlin are both superstars in their respective sports, and on Sunday Reddick gave the 23XI Racing team co-owners an opportunity to raise the bar again.

 

“It's big for the sport," Hamlin said of Jordan’s presence at tracks all season and his friend’s genuine jubilation following Sunday’s victory. “He's the most popular athlete in the world. I don't think there's any disputing that.

 

“He loves the sport, and certainly he goes to a lot of races. Sometimes you don't even see him and he's there. He makes more races than people know. But he loves this race team."

 

During a recent company-wide meeting with the 23XI team – which fields Toyotas fulltime for Reddick, Bubba Wallace  (who finished eighth at Daytona) and Riley Herbst (who finished 10th), Hamlin reminded the organization that Jordan is “all-in” and a passionate supporter of the six-year-old team he helped build from the ground up.

 

“I was like, ‘do you guys understand the responsibilities that you have, that you have the power to bring joy to Michael Jordan?'" Hamlin recalled. “I told them, ‘You have that power. Nobody else can do it.’ There's nothing else that can bring him the joy that seeing his team win can do.

 

“They took it to heart today.”

 

And it is a unique opportunity to diversify success for such a great athlete.

 

“I’ve met very few people that love the sport of NASCAR more than Michael Jordan, which is so cool," said 23XI Racing President Steve Lauletta. “And we get to be around it.

 

“We have to take so much pride and pleasure that this is his [Jordan’s] competitive outlet and what we can deliver for him, experiences like he had yesterday and the joy that comes on him, how he literally jumps up and down and just loves it. It’s so much fun for all of us."

 

At the traditional DAYTONA 500 winner’s breakfast Monday morning, the room was filled with not only Reddick’s team but crew and staff from all four of the teams (also No. 67 Corey Heim) 23XI entered in the race. They watched as Reddick put his handprints, shoe print and autograph into plaster and into DAYTONA 500 immortality.

 

It was such a milestone victory for everyone and completes a personal Daytona International Speedway trifecta for Reddick, 30, who now has wins at the track in all three of NASCAR’s major series.

 

As with those before him Reddick was prepared to leave Daytona Beach and embark on a national media tour to celebrate the victory heading into Sunday’s Autotrader 400 at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway (3 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Other races have winners, but as Reddick is keen to remind, “We are DAYTONA 500 champions.”

 

 

Shot at history slips away for Elliott, Keselowski in DAYTONA 500 chaos

 

February 15, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Two former NASCAR Cup Series champions took the white flag signaling one lap to-go in Sunday’s 68th DAYTONA 500 in position to perhaps at last add DAYTONA 500 champion to their already accomplished racing resumes.

 

And in a blink of an eye, both Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski were instead collected in a multi-car crash and finished the day at the Daytona International Speedway AdventHealth Medical Center in the infield instead of the track’s famous Victory Lane. Both of them were okay physically but frustrated having to salvage top-five finishes in the biggest race of the season - the major Crown Jewel event that has “just” eluded them – 10 times for Elliott and now 17 times for Keselowski.

 

Elliott’s No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet patiently and methodically moved forward in the closing laps, avoiding several big multi-car accidents in the second half of the race to put himself in position to make a run at NASCAR’s most celebrated trophy.

 

While maintaining a spot in the lead pack of cars – even leading a lap with five laps to go - the 2020 series champ was collected in a multi-car accident about 100 yards from the checkered flag. Riley Herbst’s No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota barely clipped Elliott’s Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet but was enough to collect other cars and launch Elliott’s car across Daytona’s famed finish line.

 

It was good enough for a fourth-place finish, Elliott’s third top-10 and best work in the DAYTONA 500 since a runner-up effort in 2021.

 

“Obviously looking back, you could run it through your mind a thousand times, do you do something different -- I feel like if I had thrown a double block on the 45 [race winner Tyler Reddick], probably would have just crashed us at that point in time," Elliott said of the front pack’s frantic bob-and-weave toward the checkered flag.

 

“I felt like you had to pick your battles. I thought maybe if somebody would pick me up on the top, you might have one more run to the line, but unfortunately ended up getting turned around.

 

“Appreciate all the effort. …thought we had a good Speedweeks down here. Obviously hate to -- this really sucks to be that close and come off Turn 4 with the lead and not finish it off.

 

“But that's part of this event, and unfortunately we were on the bad end of it today.”

 

Keselowski came into the race already in recovery from a broken leg he suffered in an offseason incident at a ski resort. Sunday night he came out of the Infield Care Center leaning on the cane he’s used all weekend - and aggravated at the field’s aggression on that final run to the checkered as well.

 

Although he did not lead a lap Sunday, the 2012 series champion put himself in position to be in contention in the closing laps and was visibly frustrated by the turn of events and also being collected in the multi-accident triggered by Herbst.

 

“A lot of chaos," Keselowski said of the final push.

 

“The 35 [Herbst] just wrecked me out of nowhere for no reason. That was one of the dumbest things I’ve seen. He had no chance of blocking my run. I had a huge run. I don’t know if I could have gotten the 45 (race winner Tyler Reddick) or the 47 (runner-up, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.)  but I would have liked to have found out because my run was coming fast and the 35 just wrecked us and himself.

 

“Pretty stupid!" he added, noting that Herbst block wasn’t just one lane, but three lanes coming up from the bottom of the track. “To wreck yourself and everybody else is just stupid. Very, very stupid."

 

“Tore up the 9 (Elliott), tore up the 22 (Logano), a bunch of cars that didn't deserve to be wrecked, so that was a big bummer and really stupid," Keselowski added of the finish. “Still a decent day for us to come home with a top-five and to be competitive and have a shot to win."

 

As for his injury, Keselowski said, he felt “great” and “couldn’t feel it” while in the car and was actually – on some level – heartened that it was tested with the crash.

 

“I felt really good in the car and felt really good getting through the crash," Keselowski said. “I’m proud to make it this far. A few weeks ago, I didn’t know if I’d be able to run this race. To get to run the race and have an opportunity to win it feels pretty good, just disappointed not to bring it home.”

 

The fifth-place showing for Keselowski was his third top-five in 17 career DAYTONA 500 starts and first since a third-place showing in 2014 after being collected in accidents in six of the last 10 DAYTONA 500s.

 

“I felt good about just being in position, for sure," he said. “At the end it’s a roll of the dice and who’s going to making good moves or bad moves and the dice didn’t roll our way."

 

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 1 day to go

 

February 14, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Only once has a driver in a car bearing the No. 1 triumphed in the DAYTONA 500. The year was 2010, and Earnhardt Ganassi Racing driver Jamie McMurray began what would become his career year with a victory in the Great American Race. McMurray led only two laps in No. 1 Chevrolet after passing Kevin Harvick for the lead in overtime. In a scramble to the finish, Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran second, 0.119 seconds behind McMurray. This race was notable for two stoppages after a pothole developed between Turns 1 and 2, the result of cool, damp weather. McMurray was the 21st different driver to lead the race, a record at the time. In the only multi-win season of his NASCAR Cup Series career, McMurray went on to win both the Brickyard 400 and the fall race at Charlotte in 2010.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Saturday Daytona Notebook

 

Notebook Items:

  • Jimmie Johnson announces 2027 DAYTONA 500 as last NASCAR Cup race
  • Richard Childress Racing off to promising start at Daytona
  • NASCAR announces earlier start to DAYTONA 500 because of weather
  • Defending winner William Byron happy with backup car as practice concludes

 

February 14, 2026

 

By Holly Cain and Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Jimmie Johnson announces 2027 DAYTONA 500 as last NASCAR Cup race

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson announced Saturday morning at Daytona International Speedway that he will make his final Cup start in the 2027 DAYTONA 500.

 

The 83-race winner and two-time DAYTONA 500 champion will take his 23rd green flag in The Great American Race on Sunday (1:30 p.m. ET on FOX, FOX Deportes, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) driving the No. 84 Toyota for the Legacy Motor Club team that he owns.

 

Daytona seemed like an appropriate place to announce his departure, as it has played a big role in his NASCAR Hall of Fame career. He won the first pole position of his career in his first DAYTONA 500 start in 2002 and went on to win the storied race twice, in 2006 and 2013.

 

His five consecutive NASCAR Cup Series titles between 2006-2010 comprise a streak that is unmatched and likely never to be equaled.

 

Since retiring from full-time competition following the 2020 season, Johnson has made 13 assorted starts and is slated to race in the inaugural race on June 21 at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego, just miles from his hometown El Cajon, Calif.

 

“I'm just thankful for the opportunity that's been granted to me through my career," Johnson said Saturday morning at Daytona ”I didn't use the word retirement way back when in 2020. I still love to compete and want to be on the track and racing.

 

“The journey as an owner, and certainly where I am in life right now, to compete at the Cup level, week in and week out, is just a door that's shutting from here now. I'll be able to enjoy it a bit more this year with the race this weekend and getting in San Diego, and then put a bow on everything, Cup wise, when we come back in ‘27.

 

“It doesn't mean I'm not going to race and do other fun things. As you guys know, I've got plenty planned this year and hope to have some more fun later in the year as well, but a quick start to the year with this race.  … just trying to find, you know, fun bucket list things to do.”  — Holly Cain

 

Richard Childress Racing off to promising start at Daytona

 

With Kyle Busch on pole position for the DAYTONA 500 and Austin Dillon fastest in Friday practice, it’s safe to say Richard Childress Racing has upped its game and shown up ready to contend for the sport’s most iconic trophy.

 

Busch’s No. 8 RCR Chevrolet issued a bold statement in pole qualifying Wednesday night, setting fastest time in both rounds to earn the first front-row start for the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion in 21 DAYTONA 500 appearances.

 

Busch’s teammate Dillon, the 2018 DAYTONA 500 champion, also has turned in encouraging results this week, after an offseason that included several changes to team leadership as well as a new Chevrolet Camaro body.

 

“We're just proud of the effort that we've made in the offseason," said Dillon, driver of the iconic No. 3 RCR Chevrolet. “I think ECR horsepower is, again, showing how dominant they are. We get to these speedways, and they always seem to give us a shot, and job well done to Chevrolet with the new Camaro. We feel like we can take the fight on offense more.

 

“It's been a struggle, I feel like, the last couple years on speedways for us, and this time around you feel like you can push and compete up there, and it's a lot more fun. I know that.”  — Holly Cain

 

NASCAR announces earlier start to DAYTONA 500 because of weather

 

With inclement weather expected in the evening hours on Sunday, NASCAR has announced an earlier start to the DAYTONA 500, which will begin at 1:30 p.m. ET instead of the originally scheduled 2:30 p.m. ET.

 

Gates and hospitality will now open at 9 a.m. ET, and the Hard Rock Bet Fanzone will open at 8:30 a.m. ET. Parking lots will open at 6 a.m. ET.

 

Broadcast coverage will continue as planned on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Pre-race coverage on FOX will begin at 11:30 a.m. ET.

 

Country music star Miranda Lambert will perform a pre-race concert, and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds will provide a spectacular air show before the 68th running of the Great American Race.

 

The DAYTONA 500 opens the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season and features the largest purse in motorsports--$31 million. —Reid Spencer

 

Defending winner William Byron happy with backup car as practice concludes

 

Toyotas were in short supply during final NASCAR Cup Series practice for the DAYTONA 500. In fact, seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson was the only Camry driver to shake down his car during 50-minute session on Wednesday.

 

All told, only 18 of the 41 drivers who will take the green flag on Sunday (1:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) posted lap times during “Happy Hour.”

 

Pole winner Kyle Busch did not participate. Third-place starter Joey Logano, the 2015 winner of the Great American Race, ran a session-high 32 laps.

 

Drafting in a group of eight cars, Cook Out Clash winner Ryan Preece topped the speed chart at 192.818 mph, followed by Roush Fenway Keselowski teammate Chris Buescher (192.785 mph), who was driving a backup No. 17 Ford after falling victim to a multicar wreck in Thursday night’s first Duel.

 

Ross Chastain and two-time defending DAYTONA 500 winner William Byron also were driving backups for the same reason. 

 

“I told my guys it felt just like the primary car,” Byron said of the backup in an interview with FOX Sports. “The guys back at Hendrick Motorsports in the shop worked extremely hard overnight on Thursday night into Friday morning, and it feels identical, honestly.

 

“So big credit to them, and I couldn’t really tell any differences. We worked on a couple of things yesterday to try to get handling off of both ends of the corners, and I think it’s going to be good.”

 

It’s noteworthy that Byron won the first of his two straight DAYTONA 500s in 2024 in a backup car. —Reid Spencer

 

--30--

 

 

 

Friday Daytona Notebook

 

Notebook Items:

  • NASCAR OEM representatives discuss hopes for 2026 season
  • Chase Elliott hopes to add a champion’s name to DAYTONA 500 winners list
  • Joey Logano says ‘Driver beware’ in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500
  • Chase Briscoe says virtual bald look will become reality soon enough
  • NASCAR, POET Biofuels announce official partnership
  • FOX’s Mike Joy receives prestigious NMPA Myers Brothers Award

 

February 13, 2026

 

By Holly Cain and Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

NASCAR OEM representatives discuss hopes for 2026 season

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — After watching Thursday night’s America 250 Florida Duels at Daytona, Dr. Eric Warren, vice president of global motorsports competition for General Motors, was impressed with the drivability of the new Chevrolet body style.

 

The NASCAR Cup car’s ability to push and bump-draft? Let’s just say the jury is still out.

 

“Excited to see how the 3 (Austin Dillon) was able to move through there (in the first Duel),” said Warren during a Friday press conference that included representatives from all four NASCAR manufacturers. “But the second Duel (won by Chevrolet driver Chase Elliott), I was really excited about to see our cars really be able to get to the front and watching Carson (Hocevar) and Chase run together there a little bit.

 

“We watched (Ford drivers) Ryan (Blaney) and (Joey) Logano really make that two-car bump really kind of work. We haven't been able to do that. They were certainly able to do that last year.”

 

The proof will come when all 41 cars race together in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

“When you get all the cars there, the momentum is a little different with the full field versus the Duels, so I've learned over the years that whatever you take from those Duels is not necessarily what happens when everybody is there,” Warren said.

 

“But certainly, promising for what we intended coming into Daytona with the new car.”

 

Kevin Kidd, North American Motorsports competition director for Stellantis, affirmed the Ram brand’s readiness to compete in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series as well as adding the assurance that Dodge intends to race in the NASCAR Cup Series in the future.

 

“Don't have anything ready to announce on that today, but it's certainly part of the discussion internally,” Kidd said. “It's looking at what the future brings for us. We have not made any qualms about it. We aim to get back in the Cup Series. It's really a matter of what the right timing is and what that looks like.

 

“You're racing against the best in the world here, so we have to build an incredible amount of infrastructure to go Cup racing. It's one thing to go Truck racing. It's a whole different can of worms to go Cup racing. For us, there is a strategy that we're currently developing to figure out what all that looks like and what the timing looks like behind that.

 

“Again, nothing ready to announce today, but I can tell you that we are working towards it.”

 

Pat DiMarco, NASCAR program manager for Ford Racing, acknowledged the Blue Oval teams expect to do better in 2026.

 

“I'd say '25 was a miss for us,” DiMarco said. “Anytime you don't win, you reflect on that. Not having anybody in the final four at Phoenix was a miss.

 

“There were some highlights, though. Ryan Blaney was consistent and one of the best drivers all year long, and the way the playoff format plays out, he just didn't make it…

 

“But looking forward to a great '26 and more consistency across the board, which I think with the RFK (Roush Fenway Keselowski) cars running up front (Thursday) night, Ryan Preece with the win at the Clash. I think there's some upside for '26 for the Ford Motor Company.”

 

In the Toyota camp, Toyota Racing Development president Tyler Gibbs was pleased with the manufacturer’s effort during the 2025 season, a campaign that could have been even better had a late caution not deprived Denny Hamlin of a chance to win the Cup Series title.

 

“We were 90 seconds from a great year,” Gibbs said. “A lot of fun over the course of the season, worked hard in the off-season getting ready for this year, and kind of building on what we had last year. We've only got one new crew chief this year, same drivers as last year.

 

“So, building on what we had last year and coming out one spot better this year is really the goal and what we are looking for.” –Reid Spencer

 

Chase Elliott hopes to add a champion’s name to DAYTONA 500 winners list

 

Chase Elliott, winner of Thursday’s night’s second Duel, met with reporters Friday morning for a candid discussion about the sport and his expectations for the weekend’s season-opening DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

It’s a race that only two of the seven NASCAR Cup Series champions entered this weekend have ever won.

 

The short list of champs who have won the DAYTONA 500 includes Team Penske’s Joey Logano (2015) and Legacy Motor Club’s Jimmie Johnson (2006 and 2013). And although Logano now owns three season titles, when he scored his Daytona victory 11 years ago, he wasn’t a season champion yet.

 

“It’s always been kind of a lottery in some capacity and you have to have a lot of things go your way," Elliott said of scoring a win in the sport’s grandest race.

 

“And there’s positives and negatives to that. It’s produced a lot of great underdog stories that you wouldn’t have if it wasn’t that way. I think it’s just the nature of the race, and honestly it’s been that way since I’ve been around.

 

“There’s just not a lot once the race gets going that’s in your hands, but there are some things, and it’s important to try and execute those things, whatever they are—no matter how big or how small they are—to the best of your ability.”

 

Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch will be starting the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet from pole position for the first time in his career, hoping his 21st DAYTONA 500 start will be the charm.

 

Elliott, the 2020 series champion will start the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports on the second row alongside Logano in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Logano’s teammate, 2023 champ Ryan Blaney will roll off fifth in the No. 12 Penske Ford.

 

Two-time and reigning series champion Kyle Larson starts eighth, and 2012 champion Brad Keselowski lines up ninth on the starting grid—both also racing for their first trophy.

 

“You’re just hedging your bet, doing everything you can to put the numbers as much in your favor as you can, and from there you have to have some things go your way," Elliott said. “From our standpoint, that’s all we can do.

 

“Unfortunately, that hasn’t worked out to this point but also really fortunate to have another opportunity with HMS and come down to my 11th DAYTONA 500, and every time I’ve driven through the tunnel I know I have a shot. I know I have a shot when I get here, so what else can I ask for." – Holly Cain

 

Joey Logano says ‘Driver beware’ in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500

 

Joey Logano believes Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SIRIUSXM NASCAR Radio) is likely to be a wild affair—and that’s from the guy who won Thursday night’s first America 250 Florida Duel at Daytona qualifying race.

 

In other words, drivers can bump-draft at their own peril, even on the straightaways.

 

“I think the whole field has learned that pushing each other is pretty sketchy,” Logano said after taking the checkered flag. “I was thinking about it driving over here (to the media center). The DAYTONA 500 could be a total wreck-fest, 'cause if you think about the Duels, it's a heat race, and everyone is like, ‘Don't tear up your car, get what you can out of it, but don't crash.’

 

“We wrecked a lot of stuff (in the first Duel). That's everyone not racing for the DAYTONA 500, so... Say a prayer. It's going to be crazy.”

 

Even though Logano and Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney worked well together to finish 1-2, Logano was concerned about drivers’ ability to push each other, particularly when they’re not driving the same manufacturer’s cars.

 

“Everyone's ‘push-ability’ seems awful,” said Logano, the 2015 DAYTONA 500 winner. “I didn't see any car that was taking a push that was, like, comfortable on the straightaways. A lot of cars were just squirrelly, right? I haven't watched replays yet, but all the wrecks happened on the straightaways. I'm assuming that's from pushes more times than not. I'm assuming everyone's push-ability is weak.” –-Reid Spencer

 

Chase Briscoe says virtual bald look will become reality soon enough

 

During the offseason, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Chase Briscoe took to social media and AI to present himself with a freshly shaved head, a la Joey Logano.

 

In Briscoe’s case, the bald head wasn’t real, though it created quite a stir on the internet.

 

To be fair, and as Briscoe freely admits, he doesn’t have a lot of hair to start with.

 

“I have social media in an uproar normally every single week, because TV shows me during the National Anthem, and people roast me for how bad my hair is—and lack of hair,” Briscoe said.

 

Accordingly, he decided to take the next step—virtually.

 

“I felt like I was giving the fans what they wanted,” said Briscoe, who will start from the outside of the front row in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). I was kind of dipping my toe into the bald community. It’s going to happen at some point. It’s inevitable. I’ve been going bald forever, it’s going to happen. I just was trying to dip my toe in and see what the reaction would be.

 

“I might do it over the offseason. I might randomly show up one week this summer with it all cut off. But it’s going to happen at some point, I can assure you.”

 

Briscoe acknowledges that the real thing won’t match the AI-generated image.

 

“The problem is, with the AI thing it looks good, but my head is not that shape,” Briscoe said. “So, it’s going to look totally different when I actually do it. And it’s going to be like the brightest white thing—you’re going to need sunglasses when I take my hat off.”  --Reid Spencer

 

Yates family honored with Ford Motor Company’s highest award

 

Ford Motor Company presented renowned NASCAR engine builder Doug Yates and his father, the late Robert Yates with the prestigious Spirit of Ford Award on Friday at Daytona. The honor has only been bestowed 30 times in history and goes to those who have “made a significant contribution to the sport of auto racing on and off the race track.

 

In its nine seasons competing in NASCAR, Robert Yates Racing (1988-2007) earned 57 wins, three DAYTONA 500 trophies and the 1999 championship with Dale Jarrett. Doug has since carried on the family tradition of success after joining forces with team owner Jack Roush.

 

Roush Yates Engines have accounted for 449 victories combined in the NASCAR Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Craftsman Truck Series.

 

“There are very few people in the world who love Ford Motor Company as much as Doug Yates," said Edsel B. Ford II, a member of the Ford Motor Company’s board of directors said in presenting the award. “Doug, and his father Robert, symbolize what’s right with the Ford Racing program, but also what is right about the sport of motor racing itself.”  — Holly Cain

 

NASCAR, POET Biofuels announce official partnership 

 

NASCAR announced Friday that POET, the world’s largest biofuels producer, will now serve as the “official bioethanol partner” of the sport.

 

The company’s plant-based bioethanol serves as a  “cleaner-burning higher-octane alternative to traditional gasoline” with zero life cycle carbon emissions.

 

“Obviously, this is something that will be subject to great testing and working across the industry," said NASCAR’s Chief Impact Officer Eric Nyquist. “Ethanol has a nice benefit of bringing higher octane benefits to our fuel.

 

“Obviously, it's a cleaner burning element as well that we can bring forward to making important improvements to the efficiency of our fuel and what it brings to the environment.”

 

NASCAR is the first major motorsports series to use this zero-carbon bioethanol and the company’s visibility in the sport also includes the naming of the POET Restart Zone on all NASCAR-owned tracks. — Holly Cain

 

FOX’s Mike Joy receives prestigious NMPA Myers Brothers Award

 

Long-tenured race announcer Mike Joy was presented with the legendary NMPA Myers Brothers Award Friday at Daytona. The FOX Sports NASCAR race announcer follows in the footsteps of other great honorees, including the late Greg Biffle.

 

Joy will be covering his 47th Daytona 500 and has been an announcer in the sport in various capacities for 57 years. He started and spent 14 years with MRN before anchoring the first live race telecasts on ESPN (1981) and then TNN (1991).

 

He has been a pit reporter, worked on both radio and television and since 2001 been the lead announcer on FOX Sports NASCAR. Sunday’s race will be his 24th straight in the FOX Sports booth.

 

The Myers Brothers award honors individuals or groups for “outstanding contributions” to the sport and is decided by the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) membership. — Holly Cain

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 2 days to go

 

February 13, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The number two is not typically a beloved numeral in racing largely because it means a driver took the checkered flag second and did not win. However, when it comes to the DAYTONA 500 at least starting the race second has been a good omen that a driver may finish the race first. Eight times the second-place starter has taken the big trophy, but the last time that happened was more than 30 years ago - 1993 (Dale Jarrett). And while the overall odds (almost 40 percent) remain favorable for a front row starter to claim the win, none has since pole-winner Jarrett in 2000. Only two Daytona 500 winners since 2020 even started among the top-10 on the grid reflecting what a wide-open competitive event it truly has become.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

--30--

Mears Races In, McLeod Awarded Final Daytona 500 Berth After Inspection

 

February 12, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – High drama and long-shot endings once again proved the narrative of the night in Thursday’s America 250 Florida Duels at DAYTONA with Casey Mears and B.J. McLeod claiming the final two “open” positions for the 41-car field for Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

They will join 23XI Racing’s Corey Heim and JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier, who secured their Open car starting spots in Wednesday night’s Busch Light Pole Qualifying session. Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Jimmie Johnson, owner-driver of Legacy Motor Club, is using an Open Exemption Provisional and raced his way up to a 31st starting spot for Sunday.

 

Team Penske’s Joey Logano (Duel 1) and Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott (Duel 2) were Thursday’s race winners.

 

Mears, a former longtime fulltime NASCAR Cup Series driver and race winner for the legendary Hendrick Motorsports Team – and nephew of Indianapolis 500 great Rick Mears – turned in a video game move on the final half lap of the opening Duel finishing eighth and earning an unlikely ticket into Sunday’s race – his first DAYTONA 500 start since 2019.

 

“This is just one of those places where there are enough random things happen and stuff that happens that’s out of your control and sometimes you’re on the right side of it and sometimes you’re not and fortunately today, we were on the right side," said an emotional 47-year-old Mears.

 

“It was a big range of emotions, but the one thing that’s interesting this time around is this is all a bonus round for me. My career pretty much ended back in 2017-2018 and to come back and just have the opportunity to do this again is a big deal so I’m kind of soaking it all in and enjoying every moment."

 

His Carl Long-owned Garage 66 Ford team only has 10 members and even brought a back-up car – not necessarily for Daytona – but to try again at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway next week in case he didn’t end up qualifying for Sunday’s race.

 

At one point a miscue coming to pit road left his No. 66 Ford Dark Horse Mustang stuck in the grass by pit road, but he got out and crucially lost only one lap, which ultimately made all the difference. He made it up on a later caution.

 

For all but that final overtime lap, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s “fourth car” driven by Corey LaJoie ran among the front-runners – consistently best among the three open cars in that first Duel. And he seemed easily poised to take the position transferring him into the race. Until the final lap.

 

Unfortunately for LaJoie, that’s when he spun and collected multiple cars in the melee while Mears was able to zig and zag forward from the back of the field and move into a position on the DAYTONA 500 grid.

 

“It's been incredible to work with these guys, and didn't see this opportunity coming about," LaJoie said from the track’s Infield Care Center. “Didn't see it, you know, ending like this, but, I mean, at the end of the day, God's so good, even in the valley. It sucks. It sucks.”

 

McLeod, 42, finished 19th in the second – caution-free – Duel race but was awarded the DAYTONA 500 transfer spot after post-race inspection found a rules violation on the 18th-place Beard Motorsports car driven by Anthony Alfredo.

 

This will be the sixth DAYTONA 500 start – and first since 2023 - for the Floridian, McLeod, who owns and drives the No. 78 Life Fast Motorsports Chevrolet. His best career finish in the 500 is 19th and came in his 2019 debut in the race. He does have a pair of top-10 finishes in the Daytona summer 400-miler.

 

During post-race inspection, inspectors noticed a transmission transaxle cooling hose in Alfredo’s car that was supposed to be attached but instead was disconnected. NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Moran noted that all hoses are checked post-race and “if anything is found like this during the season it would be a DQ during the race” and noted it is not an “appeal-able” violation because it came in a qualifying race not a race.

 

“First of all, unfortunate to be here," Moran said. “Any small open team we don't like to have these problems, but we do have to do our job, make sure there's parity amongst the field and also parity amongst people trying to make the 500.

 

“During inspection, we noticed this hose, which is a transmission cooling transaxle cooling hose. Comes off of the right side quarter window, and it's supposed to go into the transaxle cooler. It needs to be airtight, needs to be fastened.

 

“We have many rules, as you all know, that no parts can fall off the car for obvious reasons. We don't say what the intent is, but these parts have to be fastened properly. Unfortunately, this one piece wasn't on the right side. There was also another hose disconnected for driving cooling, which affects airflow.”

 

As for Mears, Sunday will mark his 495th start in the NASCAR Cup Series with the goal of getting to 500 starts this season. He said he’s targeting superspeedways and road courses on the 2026 schedule for the best chance of qualifying into the field as an open team.

 

“I just can’t believe we’re sitting here right now, everything was just completely stacked against us from top to bottom," Mears said, adding with a smile. “Thank God we were just in the right place at the right time and we were able to get it home. …Feels good to be here. Haven’t been here in a while."

 
 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 3 days to go

 

February 12, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Denny Hamlin won the DAYTONA 500 three times within a span of five races from 2016 through 2020. Teamwork carried Hamlin to his 2016 win in the Great American Race, as Joe Gibbs Racing drivers finished 1-2-3-5, with Hamlin beating Martin Truex Jr. to the finish line by 0.010 seconds. In 2019, JGR Toyotas once again swept the top three spots as Hamlin edged Kyle Busch by 0.138 seconds, and Erik Jones ran third. In a 2020 race that featured nine laps of overtime, Hamlin led the final 12 circuits as Ford drivers Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher, David Ragan and Kevin Harvick claimed the next four spots. With three wins in the Great American Race, Hamlin is tied with Bobby Allison, Dale Jarret and Jeff Gordon for third-most all-time.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR Weekend Preview: DAYTONA 500

 

February 12, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

William Byron ready to try for unprecedented DAYTONA 500 three-peat

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — William Byron doesn’t think he’s the best driver in the NASCAR Cup Series garage at drafting on superspeedways.

 

That said, the driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet has been good enough to win consecutive DAYTONA 500s. He’ll try for an unprecedent third straight victory in the Great American Race on Sunday (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Byron has five career victories at drafting tracks—two at Atlanta Motor Speedway and three at Daytona International Speedway, including a win in the 2020 summer race. At Talladega Superspeedway, Byron has posted five top-five results in 16 starts.

 

“I don’t know if I’ve figured it out,” Byron said of his past success on superspeedways. “I feel like we’ve had some things go our way, and then we’ve been good at the speedways. Really, it started at Talladega. I think we were better at Talladega for a while.

 

“We weren’t finishing at Daytona, and once we figured out a way to finish the races at Daytona, it seemed like it started to go the other way. You just try to do the best job you can, learning the little nuances of the draft. I don’t think I’m the best at drafting at the moment. I think there’s still more to learn.”

 

Byron’s crew chief, Rudy Fugle is acutely aware of what’s on the line in Sunday’s race.

 

“Everybody understands how cool it would be, how historic it would be to win three in a row,” Fugle said. "We know a lot of that’s out of our control, but you’re still putting forth that amazing effort in every corner of the shop.”

 

Byron isn’t the only competitor driven by numbers. Veteran Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin is trying to win his fourth DAYTONA 500, a feat that would tie him with Cale Yarborough for the second-most all-time victories in NASCAR’s biggest race.

 

Only seven-time winner Richard Petty has more.

 

“Every win that you get here puts you in a certain list,” Hamlin said. “The list is so small at that four number, it certainly was on my mind on the last lap last year when we were leading, that we are going to get another one.

 

“I’ve just been really lucky to have the opportunities I’ve had to win these races, but also been very unfortunate in the NextGen era (starting in 2022) to not have won more. I feel as though the opportunity will be there, and hopefully we can put ourselves in position to move ourselves up that Daytona 500 winners board.”

 

Kyle Busch, who won the pole position for Sunday’s race in Wednesday night’s qualifying session, will have to overcome a couple of statistical challenges to claim his first Harley J. Earl trophy.

 

Busch is racing in his 21st DAYTONA 500. No driver has ever won the race for the first time in more than 20 attempts, the number it took the late Dale Earnhardt to add that elusive victory to his resume (1998).

 

“Yeah, it's a box we’ve got to check,” said Busch, who ran second to Hamlin in 2019. “Here we are. This is an opportunity to be able to do that. I've come down here a lot of years. I think I finished in about every position possible. It would be nice to close out 2026 with a victory here in the Daytona 500.”

 

No driver has won the DAYTONA 500 from a front-row starting position since Dale Jarrett won from the pole in 2000.

 

Austin Hill looks to rebound in NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts season opener

 

Austin Hill comes to Daytona with the same confident attitude that carried him to three straight season-opening victories from 2022 through 2024—a streak that ended last year because of a rear end gear failure.

 

The pre-eminent superspeedway racer in the newly-entitled NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, Hill will try for his 11th career drafting track victory in Saturday’s United Auto Rentals 300 at 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway (5 p.m. ET on CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Hill succeeds at Daytona in part because he enjoys the inevitable close-quarters racing.

 

“I actually have a lot of fun with it,” said Hill, who is embarking on his fifth full-time season in the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. “Everyone talks about pressure and questions if the pressure is going to get to you. But for me, I just go into Daytona weekends with the same mindset that I always do.

 

“We try to run up front, do our thing, stay out of wrecks, and hope that it’s enough at the end.”

 

Hill didn’t win last year’s Daytona opener. RCR teammate Jesse Love did. Love went on to claim the series title at Phoenix Raceway, providing perfect bookends to a season otherwise dominated by rookie phenom Connor Zilisch, who won 10 of his 32 starts.

 

Zilisch has moved on to the NASCAR Cup Series with Trackhouse Racing, to the delight of Love and his fellow championship contenders.

 

“Obviously there is a lot of want and desire to go back-to-back at Daytona, a lot of want and desire to start the year off with a win and get RCR's fifth win in a row,” Love said. “Definitely looking forward to it. I'm kind of tired of the offseason. I'm just ready to get back in my swing of things.

 

“I'm excited, not nervous or anything like that, which is different from past years where I typically feel like I am a little bit nervous to start the season. But now I have my feet under me, I know what to expect and what not to expect, and mostly I am a little bit wiser now to understand similar things that can happen that I don't normally think of."

 

Zilisch’s departure also should be a boon for JR Motorsports veteran Justin Allgaier, who won the series championship in 2024. Allgaier is running both the DAYTONA 500 and O’Reilly Auto Parts race.

 

On Wednesday, Allgaier locked into the DAYTONA 500 field in the No. 40 JRM Chevrolet, one of eight Open cars trying to make the race.

 

Tony Stewart supports Ram brand debut as both return to NASCAR Truck Series

 

For the first time since 2005, 54-year-old Tony Stewart will take the green flag in a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race in Friday night’s Fresh from Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

The start will be Stewart’s first in a NASCAR national series since the NASCAR Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2016. Since then, the driver of the No. 25 Kaulig Racing Ram has earned admission into the NASCAR Hall of Fame and embarked on a successful career as a top fuel drag racer.

 

The truck Stewart will drive is new to the series. Kaulig will field five Ram trucks in the brand’s first NASCAR competition since 2012. Other Kaulig drivers include Justin Haley, Daniel Dye, Brenden “Butterbean” Queen and Mini Tyrrell, who earned his ride in the No. 14 Ram through Kaulig’s Race for the Seat competition.

 

“This is Ram’s coming-out party,” Stewart said Thursday at Daytona International Speedway. “So, what better way to support Ram and Dodge and (parent company) Stellantis and to do it in the biggest showcase of the year in the first race at Daytona?

 

“…It’s fun to do it with a group I’ve never worked with before. It’s fun to do it with a brand I’m passionate about at a track that we’ve had some success at. All in all, it’s nice to be back.”

 

Last year’s dominant driver and series champion Corey Heim has moved on from the No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota after winning a series-record 12 of 25 races in 2025. That leaves an enormous void that such drivers as Kaden Honeycutt (Heim’s successor in the No. 11), Layne Riggs and Chandler Smith of Front Row Motorsports and the Kaulig contingent will be eager to fill. 

 

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 4 days to go

 

February 11, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The No. 4 has left a spirited DAYTONA 500 legacy – adorning the car of winners and record-setters. Ernie Irvan was the first to drive the No. 4 into Daytona International Speedway’s famed Victory Lane – claiming the 1991 DAYTONA 500 in the Morgan-McClure Motorsports Chevrolet. Only three years later, Sterling Marlin would claim his very first career win in the 1994 DAYTONA 500 driving that team’s No. 4 and he answered it with his second career win in the 1995 DAYTONA 500 – becoming only the third driver (of five now) to win NASCAR’s grand race consecutively. Front Row Motorsports driver Noah Gragson would love to contribute to that No. 4’s storied history at Daytona this Sunday in the 2026 season-opening DAYTONA 500.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

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DAYTONA 500 Media Day Notebook

 

Notebook Items:

  • Denny Hamlin is working his way into 2026 NASCAR Cup season
  • Connor Zilisch aware of high expectations in DAYTONA 500 debut
  • Chase Elliott: New NASCAR championship format is aptly named
  • Kyle Busch ready for challenge in 21st DAYTONA 500 start
  • So far, so good for Brad Keselowski’s return from broken leg
  • Shane van Gisbergen cites progress on oval tracks as top priority

 

February 11, 2026

 

By Holly Cain and Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Denny Hamlin is working his way into 2026 NASCAR Cup season

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Denny Hamlin hasn’t lost his competitive edge. Simply put, it has been dormant for a few months—and understandably so.

 

In 2025, Hamlin, 45, made a wholehearted effort to win the NASCAR Cup Series championship. His preparation was superb, and so was his performance in the title event at Phoenix Raceway.

 

Hamlin led 208 of 319 laps, won the second stage and was three laps away from a dominant victory when the championship was snatched from his grasp by an untimely caution.

 

After that disappointment came heartache, when Hamlin’s father, Dennis Hamlin, died from injuries suffered in a housefire on Dec. 28. His mother, Mary Lou Hamlin, was severely injured in the blaze.

 

As a consequence, Hamlin is working his way into the current season, but he’s confident he’ll be ready by the time the new 10-race Chase championship format arrives in September.

 

“We're kind of getting back into the swing of things,” Hamlin said Wednesday during DAYTONA 500 Media Day interviews at Daytona International Speedway. “Certainly, would be lying if I said I was as highly motivated as I have been in years past, but I think that—I said  it last week—it would just take some time.

 

“And I think that every day at the race track is certainly getting there. I know I'm way too competitive to just go through the motions. So, as we get on the racetrack, go through practices and qualifying, we're slowly getting there.”

 

Recently, Hamlin has leaned heavily on team owner Joe Gibbs—never more so than the night his father died.

 

“I mean, Joe beat me to the hospital the night of,” Hamlin said. “The guy is just unbelievable in how he is as a leader, and obviously he has been through it (with the loss of sons J.D. Gibbs and Coy Gibbs).

 

“So, my connection really on that personal level is more so with Joe, and it's always been that way since he kind of took over as my at-track dad.”

 

No doubt Hamlin’s competitive nature will kick in on Sunday when he tries to win his fourth DAYTONA 500, a number only Richard Petty (seven victories) and Cale Yarborough (four victories) have accomplished. —Reid Spencer

 

Connor Zilisch aware of high expectations in DAYTONA 500 debut

 

Connor Zilisch has won in every kind of car he’s competed in—a road racing phenom who hoisted a 24 Hour of Daytona class winner’s trophy before he could get his legal driver’s license.

 

Last year he transitioned to fulltime NASCAR racer and won a NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series-best 10 races and set a record with 18 consecutive top-five finishes, capping the season with Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors as the championship runner-up.

 

It's quite a lead-in to 2026, when Zilisch will now contend in his rookie NASCAR Cup Series season driving the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet. He makes his full-time debut in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway, a place he recalls coming four years ago as a fan, not even knowing anyone in the garage area well enough to secure a pit pass.

 

A generational-talent, Zilisch faces not only the challenge of competing in the sport’s greatest race against its greatest talents, but he also competes under high and heavy expectation that come with his all his past success.

 

But the perpetually good-natured 19-year-old Charlotte native smiles gratefully and promises his goal is to finish all the laps and hopefully come away with a top-10 in his debut in the Great American Race. Should he win, Zilisch would become the youngest winner in DAYTONA 500 history.

 

“I appreciate the excitement, I think it's really cool that there's a lot of people excited to watch how I'm going to do this season, whether it's fans or media," said Zilisch, who finished 27th in the 2025 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season opener at Daytona, after being collected in a late-race multi-car accident.

 

“I do think it sometimes gets a little outlandish… a lot of people maybe expecting a lot of me in my first year. I don't think people realize how big of a jump it is from Saturday to Sunday. But I try not to pay too much attention to it. I know what my personal goals are throughout the year. I know what I want to accomplish and my long-term goals. I find it cool mostly.”

 

His approach is unfailingly thoughtful.

 

“There's a lot of things that can happen out of your control here. And I think for me, I'm just most excited to enjoy it all, whether it's media day today. Usually I dread these things, but I came in with a positive mindset today that I'm going to have fun and I'm going to enjoy it, and I think that goes for the entire weekend.” –Holly Cain

 

Chase Elliott: New NASCAR championship format is aptly named

 

Count Chase Elliott among the NASCAR Cup Series drivers who are thrilled by the return to the 10-race Chase to determine the champion—and not because his name happens to match the name of the format.

 

“Motorsports is just a little different, and I think we've we spent an awful lot of time trying to be like everybody else,” Elliott said on Wednesday during DAYTONA 500 Media Day at Daytona International Speedway. “I'm really proud of leadership of saying, ‘Hey look, let's be us and let’s go do our own thing.’

 

“The Chase format was really unlike anything else in sports, that I could remember at that time, when it came out. Very genuine, very original. I think it fits. It never felt like a playoff to me, and not because of my name, but ‘The Chase’ does sound good. It sounds like racing. It sounds like a racing term.”

 

Elliott also believes the 10-race scenario could reward the sort of consistency he has shown in recent years. In both 2024 and 2025, Elliott finished on the lead lap in 32 of 36 points races.

 

“I like our chances, for sure,” said Elliott, the Cup Series’ perennial Most Popular Driver. “I think that you're going to have to perform at a really high level for 10 weeks. There will be more room in there for you to have, I don't want to say a bad day—you might get away with one bad day—but you're going to have to perform at a really high level.

 

“That was the case before, but I like the fact that it gives it time for things to come out in the wash. You know, if you have one bad pit stop, it doesn't ruin your championship at Phoenix. That was the part that always was difficult from my perspective. Whether I was a part of it or if I was watching it, (it) was kind of hard.” —Reid Spencer

 

Kyle Busch ready for challenge in 21st DAYTONA 500 start

 

Kyle Busch is a two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who has won more races in the sport’s three national series (232) than any driver in history. But the 40-year-old Las Vegas native lines up for his 21st green flag in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500 amazingly still looking for his first win in the Great American Race.

 

His statistics at the 2.5-mile speedway are certainly good enough. He’s won in all three major series—the NASCAR Cup Series (summer, 2008), the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (2007) and the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (2014).

 

Of Busch’s 539 laps led in the NASCAR Cup Series at Daytona, 63 percent of them (342) have come in the DAYTONA 500. Yet his best finish came in his 2019 series championship season, when he finished runner-up to Denny Hamlin – a blink-of-the-eye .138-second behind.

 

He’s had five top-10 finishes in all, including a third-place showing in 2016—a race also won by his then-Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Hamlin.

 

“Coming to Daytona, as you’re coming in (to your career) maybe four-five years in, you’re a young guy, you’re pumped up and amped for the DAYTONA 500," Busch said. “As you go on through the years, you’ve got to figure out a way to be in the right ‘mind place’ and figure out how to go out there, excel and be in the right place at the right time (to win).

 

“We’ve seen it here the last couple years. You can be leading coming off Turn 2 and not make it back to the start-finish line. You can be running fifth, or seventh or 11th and be the one that wins the race. It’s just a matter of having it be your way.

 

“Being able to win Daytona, that’s obviously sort of the last box to check in my career, and getting that done would be a lot of fun," he added, breaking into a wide grin. “We’d celebrate that really, really big." –Holly Cain

 

So far, so good for Brad Keselowski’s return from broken leg

 

Brad Keselowski arrived for his DAYTONA 500 Media Day interviews walking with a cane to support his right leg, which has been healing from a broken femur.

 

It wasn’t just any cane, mind you. This one bore sponsorship stickers relating to his No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Ford.

 

“I knew I was probably going to get picked on a little bit,” said Keselowski, who on Feb. 9 was cleared to race in the DAYTONA 500 after skipping the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium. “So, I might as well just at some point own it. I won't say it (the decals) was my idea, but I actually thought it was a good one.”

 

Keselowski broke his leg by slipping on ice during a family ski vacation in mid-December. He explained that the injury was far more severe than the broken ankle he suffered in a wreck at Road Atlanta in 2011.

 

As he was lying on the ice after the recent accident, Keselowski was beset with a grim thought.

 

“When I was laying on the ground and I was completely immobile immediately after I broke my leg, what was going through my mind was like, ‘Oh my God.’ Like, think about the soldiers in the Civil War,” Keselowski said. “Like, they just would cut their leg off right here.

 

“And I understood why they would do it, because it hurt so bad. It was by far the worst pain I've ever went through. I get why they would bring out the hacksaw. There was a part of me that was like, that might actually feel better.”

 

Keselowski expects to be able to drive at Daytona, though David Ragan will stand by as a relief driver. Less certain is whether he can handle the rigors of the Circuit of The Americas road course on Mar. 1.

 

As a consequence, sports car star Joey Hand already has been enlisted as a backup for that race. —Reid Spencer

 

Shane van Gisbergen cites progress on oval tracks as top priority

 

A new car number and a full season of experience capped by a Playoff debut in the NASCAR Cup Series certainly have Trackhouse Racing’s Shane Van Gisbergen feeling optimistic about the 2026 season.

 

Not surprisingly, the former three-time Australian Supercars champion has spent much of his time in the sport adjusting to the oval racing he hadn’t experienced before. He earned five wins in 2025 (second only to veteran Denny Hamlin)—all on road courses—and  claimed the Sunoco Rookie of the Year award.

 

This season, the New Zealander obviously would like to up his oval game to more closely match his road course prowess and seems optimistic about what he learned in his rookie season. His only top-10 finish on an oval was a 10th place run at Kansas last September, but he was strong last week on a short track in the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.

 

“You just learn what you want and need from a car," said Van Gisbergen, whose Chevrolet will carry his long-time No. 97 beginning this season. “My driving style was very different to most, I guess. The way I make the car work or want it to work is very different to others.

 

“We noticed a lot of trends which took a while to get everyone to adjust to. I adjusted a bit, but now we’re sort of coming my way a bit, which has kind of helped me. It’s interesting. The cars are set up so different to what I’m used to, and I’m still trying to understand what I need or want from the car.”

 

As for racing on the big tracks such as Daytona (2.5 miles) and Talladega Superspeedway (2.66 miles) Van Gisbergen says he enjoys the style but acknowledges it’s a whole different ballgame.

 

“I'm still learning and trying to make friends, I guess. People leave you for no reason, or you do something wrong and lose the trust of people. It takes a while to understand how to put your car in the right place.”

 

“You don’t really have an influence on it. You just drive as fast as you can, close to the line as you can. But the preparation is very different. On road courses, I’m more involved in setup with what I want. On the ovals I’m just kind of learning and trying to build a notebook.

 

“In these races it’s about trying to understand the flow of the race, how to work with people. It’s a completely different style of racing—that’s for sure.” –Holly Cain
 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 5 days to go

 

February 10, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Five different drivers have won the DAYTONA 500 in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford, a record number of different victors for a single car number in the Great American Race. Three of those drivers were titans of motorsports—Cale Yarborough (1968), A.J. Foyt (1972) and David Pearson (1976). The other two were dramatic surprises. Tiny Lund won the 1963 DAYTONA 500 as a substitute for injured Marvin Panch, whom he had rescued from a burning car during practice 10 days earlier. Thirty-five years after Pearson beat Richard Petty in a knock-down, drag-out affair at the World Center of Racing, Trevor Bayne pulled off perhaps the biggest upset in event history when he held off Carl Edwards to win the 2011 edition of the Great American Race.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 6 days to go

 

February 9, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – With six days until the drop of the DAYTONA 500 green flag, the number six stands to provide a compelling outcome in NASCAR’s storied season-opener. Should Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota), Josh Berry (No. 21 Woods Brothers Ford), William Byron (No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet) or rookie Connor Zilisch (No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet) prevail in Sunday’s race – it would mark the sixth time one of those car numbers has won in the sport’s grandest race - second most all-time only to the No. 43, which Richard Petty drove to seven Daytona 500 wins.

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 7 days to go

 

February 8, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

In the category “Richard Petty’s records that are unlikely to be broken” you can include the King’s seven victories in the DAYTONA 500. In 1964, five years after his father, Lee Petty, won the inaugural running of the Great American Race, Richard Petty was the only driver on the lead lap at the finish as he claimed his first triumph. Over the next 17 years, the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion was the dominant force at Daytona, winning six more Harley J. Earl trophies, in 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979 and 1981. Petty’s record 200 career victories, 27 wins in a single season and 10 straight Cup victories might be considered more unassailable, but note that among current full-time Cup drivers, there are only two multiple DAYTONA 500 winners—Denny Hamlin with three and William Byron with two.

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 8 days to go

 

February 7, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The number eight comes up often in interesting modern DAYTONA 500 historical chapters. The very first overtime race in the storied event’s history featured eight extra laps in 2005 with Jeff Gordon claiming the Harley J. Earl trophy. Dale Earnhardt Jr., drove the No. 8 Chevrolet to his first DAYTONA 500 win in 2004 and “doubled down” claiming his second victory in the No. 88 ten years later. And as an owner-driver entry between 2009-2016, three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart’s best-ever finish in the Great American Race was eighth place (2009).

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 9 days to go

 

February 6, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

When Bill Elliot won the 1985 DAYTONA 500 in the No. 9 Melling Racing Ford Thunderbird, it was the first time in 27 editions of the Great American Race that a driver in a car with a single-digit number had earned the Harley J. Earl Trophy. The victory took on extra significance for Elliott as the first Crown Jewel event in the first year of the Winston Million program. Elliott went on to win two of the three remaining Crown Jewel races (The Winston 500 at Talladega and the Southern 500 at Darlington) to claim the seven-figure prize and add the nickname “Million Dollar Bill” to his resume.

 

Ryan Preece is a worthy winner of wintry Cook Out Clash

 

February 5, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

The addition of 80 horsepower to the NASCAR Cup Series cars suited Ryan Preece just fine.

 

The 35-year-old Preece was foremost among all drivers when it came to dealing with a series of rapidly changing track conditions in Wednesday night’s Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.

 

Disadvantaged during practice and qualifying as one of the first drivers to take to the track, Preece started 18th in the 23-car field in his No. 60 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford.

 

On slick tires, with new left sides provided by Goodyear, he had made steady progress to ninth by the time the race reached the halfway break at 100 laps.

 

That’s when the race changed radically. As the cars returned to the garage area for adjustments, a mixture of rain and sleet began to fall, with pellets of ice bouncing off the hoods of the parked vehicles.

 

NASCAR declared wet race conditions, mandating the use of treaded wet-weather tires for the start of the second half of the Clash. Preece began to make his move after caution slowed the race for the seventh time on Lap 121.

 

On Lap 138, when NASCAR called the eighth of a Clash-record 17 cautions for a Turn 4 incident involving Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney, Preece was running fourth.

 

During a spate of five cautions in six laps (with only green-flag laps counting toward the race total), Preece climbed to second behind New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen, the most experienced wet-weather racer in the field.

 

With the track starting to dry, Preece bulled his way past Van Gisbergen on Lap 156 and held the lead to the finish 45 laps later, despite having to negotiate four more restarts.

 

“My hat is off to Goodyear,” Preece said during his winner’s press conference. “It wasn't our traditional soft tire. It was a rain tire. I still feel between them, as well as the increase in horsepower today on a quarter-mile with the gear that we're running, you could feel it. There were multiple times I couldn't go wide-open throttle. That's saying something.”

 

Preece has never won a points-paying Cup race. In that respect, he’s in elite company. In 47 previous editions of the Clash, only NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon and veteran Denny Hamlin won the exhibition race before visiting Victory Lane in a Cup points race.

 

Gordon went on to win 93 races and four championships. Hamlin currently has 60 victories—and counting.

 

Preece’s win was particularly meaningful to RFK Racing as a whole, given that it followed the devastating loss of former RFK driver Greg Biffle, his family and three others in a plane crash on Dec. 18.

 

Beyond his racing exploits, Biffle had gained recognition for his tireless rescue efforts during the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in 2024. RFK hopes to use Biffle’s memory as inspiration.

 

“We had a meeting with the drivers and crew chiefs and myself,” said team president Chip Bowers. “We talked about being bold, aggressive, and committed, the acronym meaning we're going to get back to the front. We do it with heavy hearts. We do it with Greg and his family in our hearts, in our minds. It's been a tough few months for us, right? We've had a little bit of tragedy to deal with.

 

“It's a real testament to the family atmosphere that we have in our organization and the collective commitment to be ourselves and be committed to one another, and Ryan exemplifies that.”

 

Despite two postponements because of severe snowfall, and despite the wintry mix that visited the quarter-mile track during Wednesday’s race, NASCAR’s determination to complete the event this week ultimately was rewarded.

 

Do the weather conditions of 2026 mean the Clash should move to warmer climes, as some are suggesting?

 

Not necessarily. It’s important to remember that the snowstorm that hit Winston-Salem was an anomaly.

 

And it’s important to note that weather can be a disruptive force anywhere, as it was in Los Angeles, of all places, where a massive rainstorm forced the 2024 Clash in the Coliseum to run a day early.

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 10 days to go

 

February 5, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Among its lengthy list of legendary contributions to the sport, with William Byron’s win last year Hendrick Motorsports now boasts an unmatched 10 Daytona 500 victories. Geoff Bodine earned the team its first win in The Great American Race in 1986 and Byron bookended it last February matching his win in 2024. Jeff Gordon’s three trophies tops the Hendrick list while fellow NASCAR Hall of Famers Jimmie Johnson (two) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two) also contributed to the team’s record haul. In 12 days, Byron will attempt to become the only driver in NASCAR history to win three consecutive Daytona 500s. Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough, Sterling Marlin, Denny Hamlin and Byron are the only drivers in the sport’s history to win two in a row.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

 

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 11 days to go

 

February 4, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

In 40 starts at Daytona International Speedway, Denny Hamlin has posted 11 top-five finishes. Three of those top fives were victories in the DAYTONA 500, putting the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in elite company. Only seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Richard Petty (seven DAYTONA 500 victories) and fellow NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough (four wins) have more. Hamlin scored all three of his wins in the Great American Race in the five-year period from 2016 through 2020 to join Bobby Allison, Dale Jarrett and Jeff Gordon in the three-victory club.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

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Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 12 days to go

 

February 3, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The car number 12 has been on DAYTONA 500 winning cars only twice – once with Bobby Allison in 1988 and again with Ryan Newman’s victory in 2008. That win for Newman proved to be among the most celebrated in the race’s history, however, as it came in the 50th running of The Great American Race. It marked the first DAYTONA 500 crown for legendary team owner, NASCAR Hall of Famer Roger Penske whose drivers, Newman and Kurt Busch finished first and second that day. And Penske would go on to collect two more Daytona 500 trophies – winning it with Joey Logano in 2015 and Austin Cindric in 2022.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

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Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 13 days to go

 

February 2, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

On Feb. 19, 2024, in his 13th start in a points-paying race at Daytona International Speedway, William Byron won his first DAYTONA 500, leading only the final four laps of the Great American Race. The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet already had a victory to his credit at the World Center of Racing, having won the 2020 summer event at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. On Feb. 16, 2025, Byron successfully defended his win in NASCAR’s biggest race, setting up a try for an unprecedented third straight DAYTONA 500 victory on Sunday, Feb. 15.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

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Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 14 days to go

 

February 1, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – As an owner-driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing entry from 2009-2016, Tony Stewart hoisted a pair of NASCAR Cup Series race trophies at Daytona International Speedway – including a 2009 victory in the summer 400-miler from pole position. But the NASCAR Hall of Famer – who has 16 Daytona trophies – from a combination of victories in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and IROC - never won the DAYTONA 500. His closest finish in 17 DAYTONA 500 starts was a lone runner-up effort coming in 2004, when he finished .273-second behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ironically, Stewart carried the No. 14 in honor of his racing hero, A.J. Foyt who drove the No. 14 to DAYTONA 500 glory in 1972 – the only time that number has visited Victory Lane in the Great American Race.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

 
 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 15 days to go

 

January 31, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Michael Waltrip drove the No. 15 Chevrolet to victory in the fateful 2001 DAYTONA 500, ending a streak of 462 races without a win from the start of his NASCAR Cup Series career. But there was no celebration. Waltrip’s car owner, seven-time Cup champion Dale Earnhardt Sr., lost his life in a collision with the outside wall on the final lap. Two years later, however, Waltrip would repeat the victorious feat in the No. 15 DEI Chevy, adding his name to the list of multiple winners of the Great American Race.

NASCAR Weekend Preview: Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium

Kaulig Racing driver AJ Allmendinger describes the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium as a “cool event”—and that may be putting it mildly.

 

In the opening exhibition race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, drivers will battle the elements as well as each other, given that they will run Sunday’s 200-lap race at the historic quarter-mile short track in historically cold temperatures.

 

Weather already has taken its toll on the Clash. The imminent threat of snow has forced the cancellation of Saturday’s on-track activities and compressed the race into a one-day show, with the main event scheduled for 8 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

The action on Sunday starts with practice and qualifying from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET, scheduled for broadcast on FS2. FOX picks up the coverage for the Last Chance Qualifying Race at 6 p.m.

 

"The Clash at Bowman Gray is just a cool event, and I had never been there in my life until last year,” said Allmendinger, who was collected in a six-car accident on Lap 65 of last season’s Last Chance Qualifier and failed to advance to the main event. “What they say is true—the Bowman Gray crowd is unique and very passionate, and it was fun to be able to see what it was all about.

 

“The energy was high, and you couple that with crazy racing, meaning you’re just going to beat and gouge on each other around that place. It’s full contact, so you just have to be mentally prepared for that going into it. I think it’s a fun kickoff event.”

 

In contrast to Allmendinger, defending race winner Chase Elliott had a relatively stress-free trip to the checkered flag. The 2020 series champion won the first of four 25-lap heat races wire-to-wire, started the main event on the pole and led twice for 171 of the 200 green-flag laps.

 

“It was a really smooth weekend for us, and I think that was probably the biggest takeaway,” Elliott said. “Qualifying well sets you up well for your heat race. Got us into a great position to have good track position all night.

 

“I don’t necessarily think that’s the end-all, be-all. I think Ryan (Blaney) debunked that with his performance in the main. But certainly, it would be nice to get off to a good start again this year, and I think we can do that.”

 

In the 2025 inaugural Cup race at Bowman Gray, Blaney came from last place in the 23-car field to finish second, 1.333 seconds behind Elliott.

 

The Clash comes three months after Kyle Larson won his second Cup Series championship under the elimination Playoff format. With the series returning to a 10-race Chase this season, Larson nevertheless is eager to get started.

 

“Off seasons are fun and give you the ability to refresh, but as the new season approaches, I get really antsy and ready to go,” said Larson, who raced sprint cars, micro sprints and midget race cars during the winter break.

 

“I look forward to being around everybody again, getting into meetings and preparing for the race weekends and all of that. We’ll see what the weather is like, but either way we’ll be ready. I’m just excited to get back to racing.”

 

In Sunday’s feature, only green-flag laps count toward the 200-lap total. There will be a break after 100 laps. NASCAR is monitoring weather conditions, with snow expected Saturday.

 

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell doesn’t expect drivers to suffer once their cars reach racing temperatures, but the performance of the vehicles themselves could be affected by the cold.

 

“It’s pretty wild, honestly, the forecast. From the drivers’ standpoint, it’s not really going to matter much for us inside the car,” Bell said during a Zoom meeting with reporters on Friday morning.

 

Cold tires, however, could be an issue, along with brakes and engine performance.

 

“I guess the biggest things will just be yellow flags,” Bell added. "The tires might get slick, or the track might get slick, but as we run, the temperatures inside the car are going to be really comfortable for us.”

 

--30--

 

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 16 days to go

 

January 30, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The number 16 is certainly a special designation for 2026 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Kurt Busch. It took the talented 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion 16 tries in the DAYTONA 500 to finally hoist a trophy in the Great American Race. And he did so dramatically – taking the lead from Kyle Larson on the final lap after surviving the “Big One” – a 17-car accident mid-race. It was the new Hall of Famer Busch’s first win after three previous runner-up showings and he was credited with only that one most important lap out front.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

-

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 17 days to go

 

January 29, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Driving the No. 17 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, Darrell Waltrip won the 1989 DAYTONA 500 in his 17th attempt at the Great American Race. The NASCAR Hall of Famer started second, led 25 laps and beat teammate Ken Schrader to the finish line by 7.64 seconds. That was Waltrip’s only victory in NASCAR’s biggest race, but the No. 17 returned to Victory Lane in the DAYTONA 500 in 2009, driven by Matt Kenseth for Roush Racing (now RFK Racing). Kenseth added another win for the No. 17 in the 2012 season opener.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

--30--
 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 18 days to go

 

January 28, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The number 18 was magical for two of NASCAR’s most beloved stars. Both eventual NASCAR Hall of Famers Bobby Allison (1978) and Buddy Baker (1980) won their first Daytona 500 on their 18th start in the Great American Race. Ironically, it was a heartbreaking blown engine for Baker with five laps remaining in that 1978 race that essentially left the trophy to Allison, who had been running second. Allison would go on to win two more Daytona 500s in his decorated career. And Baker would emerge from that 1978 disappointment to claim his only Daytona 500 trophy in 1980 – taking less fuel than his competition on a strategic final pit stop for his famous “Gray Ghost” Oldsmobile.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

--30--

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 19 days to go

 

January 27, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - No driver in a No.19 car has ever won the DAYTONA 500, but Chase Briscoe took a step in the right direction last year with his pole-winning run for the Great American Race. In his first season in Joe Gibbs Racing’s No.19 Toyota, Briscoe clocked in at 182.745 mph to earn the top starting spot for the 67th running of the event. Not only did Briscoe put a Toyota on the pole for the first time in DAYTONA 500 history (leading to a fourth-place finish), but he also went on to score a NASCAR-Cup-Series-best seven pole positions during the 2025 season.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

Countdown to the DAYTONA 500: 20 days to go

 

January 26, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - While the No. 20 has long been a common number on the NASCAR Cup Series starting grid, surprisingly it has only been carried on the side of a DAYTONA 500-winning car one time in the race’s 67-year history - when Marvin Panch drove it to Daytona glory in 1961, the third edition of the Great American Race. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell currently steers the No. 20 and will be making his seventh start in the race. His best finish is fourth in 2024.

 

Tune-in to the 2026 DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

NASCAR returns to 10-race Chase format to decide national series champions

 

January 12, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

NASCAR is heading full-steam into the future with a return to the past.

 

In response to growing sentiment among fans and stakeholders in the sport, the sanctioning body has opted to revive the Chase format to crown champions in its top three national series.

 

In the Cup Series, NASCAR’s top division, 16 drivers will qualify for a 10-race Chase based on the number of points they score during the 26-race regular season, according to the format announcement on Monday at NASCAR’s Production Facility in Concord, N.C.

 

Gone is the “win-and-you’re in” provision that governed qualification in the elimination Playoff format in use from 2014 through 2025. Under the Chase format, the top 16 drivers in points will compete for the series title irrespective of the number of regular-season victories they accumulate.

 

To provide balance and to elevate the importance of wins in the Chase format, NASCAR will award 55 points for a victory versus 40 under the elimination system. Points for all other positions, including stage points, remain the same, though Playoff points, an important element of the elimination format, are now a thing of the past.

 

No longer is there Regular Season Champion, but finishing first in the standings will continue to have substantial value. The points leader after 26 races will start the 10-event Chase with 2100 points, 25 more than the second-place driver and 35 more than the third-place qualifier.

 

From third on down, the value of each position to start the Chase declines in five-point increments, with the 16th-place driver receiving 2000 points. Under the Chase format, there are no eliminations and no single championship race to decide the title. The driver who scores the most aggregate points in the final 10 races will be crowned champion.

 

In the newly christened NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, 12 drivers will compete in a nine-race Chase; in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, 10 drivers will vie for the championship over seven races. Those numbers are commensurate with the respective proportions of the schedules of those two national divisions.

 

Landing on the Chase format followed lengthy discussions involving owners, drivers, manufacturers, tracks, broadcast partners and fans.

 

NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, a vocal advocate for a full 36-race championship format, was delighted with the compromise that revived the Chase.

 

“I think that this is the most perfect compromise that you could ever ask for,” Martin said at the announcement. “It's going to require our 2026 champion to be lightning fast and incredibly consistent, and that's what we can all get behind.

 

“So, I'm really excited. I think it's fantastic. I would just appeal to the race fans, all the race fans, but especially the classic fans who say to me, ‘I don't watch anymore.’ I say we need you. Come on back. We're headed in the right direction. Come back and join with us, and we'll keep making progress.”

 

Like Martin, NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell feels the return to the Chase provides a delicate balance between those who favor a full-season points race and those who prefer a postseason playoff.

 

“We believe we've struck that balance,” O’Donnell said. “We've got the best of both worlds where every race matters. We've talked to a lot of folks in the industry. We've run a lot of different models and believe this is the best place to land really to get back to who we are.

 

“That's the core of NASCAR… and we're really excited about the 2026 season.”

 

Chase Elliott, the 2020 Cup Series champion, grew up watching drivers compete in the Chase, the system used from 2004 through 2013, and was enthralled by what he saw.

 

“A lot of those years of (seven-time champion) Jimmie (Johnson) dominating and the (2011) championship of Tony (Stewart) and Carl (Edwards) all during the Chase were incredible runs. I think we oftentimes forget how good we had it through all those years of Chase format.

 

“I think it’s a really nice compromise. I think getting a full season was going to be a pretty big challenge, and I'm not sure there's really a better place to land than a true 10-race Chase, really similar to what we had through those years of the epic battles that we saw.”

 

Kyle Larson, who won his second Cup title in November at Phoenix Raceway, favors the longer format, even when it was just theoretical—and even though next year’s final race is moving to Homestead-Miami Speedway, one of his favorite tracks.

 

“Even though Homestead’s arguably my best track and most dominant track, I still would feel like I have a better opportunity to win a championship going off—whatever it may be—a 10-race, three-race, four-race sort of point-earning thing,” Larson said two weeks before the Chase format was announced.

 

“With more races, it’s a little bit more in your hands… I think what we had kind of ran its course.”

 

--30--

 

NASCAR Cup champion Kyle Larson grows as global force in racing

 

January 5, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

KWINANA BEACH, Western Australia — Kyle Larson has no idea how winning a second NASCAR Cup Series championship will affect his standing among his peers in the NASCAR Cup Series garage.

 

“I haven’t been back in the NASCAR garage,” Larson said before hot laps and qualifying on Dec. 29, the second preliminary night of High Limit International racing at the Perth Motorplex, where he was defending his 2024 win in Australia’s richest sprint car race.

 

“Once you win the championship, everybody kind of disappears and does their own thing, so you really don’t notice it until you get back into the garage… It’s a big deal, but you really don’t see the respect from it that much until you get back to Daytona or I guess the Clash at Bowman Gray (Feb. 1).”

 

Larson won his second Cup title in November at Phoenix Raceway, becoming only the third full-time active driver in the series to hold more than one championship in NASCAR’s top division. Joey Logano leads with three titles, and Kyle Busch has two.

 

But make no mistake. Though his level of recognition may be delayed in the Cup garage, Larson already is an international superstar whose global impact has been growing exponentially.

 

Tony Clarke, an 80-year-old from Adelaide in South Australia, watched the broadcast of last year’s High Limit Racing event in Perth last year. Subsequently, he followed some of Larson’s exploits in Cup racing and in the Indianapolis 500.

 

Larson’s winning performance in the High Limits feature motivated Clarke to drive 1,600 miles across the continent through barren land where gas stations are 350 miles apart and cellular phone service is sketchy at best.

 

The trip took 28 hours and “two sleeps” in the car, as Clarke put it.

 

“I want to see Kyle Larson,” he asserted.

 

Told of Clarke’s journey, Larson shook his head in wonderment.

 

“Having the success I’ve been able to fortunately have in NASCAR the past five seasons or whatever has helped all of this,” Larson said. “I think it’s all helped translate to growing racing—NASCAR, sprint cars, even the dirt late model stuff when I was in that.

 

“I think racing’s just in a healthy spot right now. So, yes, it’s pretty neat to have fans travel from very far distances, within this country and even outside the country, to come watch myself race but get a chance to see others they may not have heard about yet.”

 

Wherever Larson goes, his reputation precedes him. Often called a “generational talent,” his success in a wide array of racing machines has defined his career.

 

The 2025 season was emblematic. Larson started the year by winning a Golden Driller trophy in the Tulsa Shootout for micro sprints and followed that with his third title in the Chili Bowl Nationals for midget race cars.

 

Driving the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Larson won three Cup Series races and claimed the title in November by holding off Denny Hamlin after a late restart and finishing third behind Ryan Blaney and Brad Keselowski.

 

Larson capped the 2025 campaign with his second straight victory in the High Limit International main event in Perth, pocketing $110,000 in Australian dollars for the sprint car win.

 

That’s not to say that 2025 wasn’t without its disappointments. Larson’s second attempt at the Indianapolis 500/Coca-Cola 600 double ended badly and likely took its toll on the usually resilient driver.

 

“You think about the double, the month of May, the 600,” Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon said after the championship race at Phoenix. “It’s the first time I saw his confidence brought down a notch. I think it was a humbling experience.”

 

Throughout the season, Larson insisted that there was no hangover from the double attempt. In retrospect, he acknowledged there might have been.

 

“I would say ‘No,’ but then it’s hard to argue with the timing of all that,” said Larson, who didn’t win a Cup Series race after taking the checkered flag at Kansas Speedway on May 11. “I had a great season going to that point, then had a couple of bad weeks at Indy and went into the 600, and then all my racing kind of took a dip—Cup racing, sprint car racing, all that.

 

“You could argue that, OK, our cars took a dip in performance as well, but still… I guess maybe it did, but it was just bad timing—I don’t know. It did seem to all kind of come crashing down for a couple of months, but you’ve got to stick with the process and stay confident in yourself, your team and the people around you.

 

“I think that’s what makes the championship at the end of the year extremely meaningful.”

nascar reviews & NOTEBOOKS

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Celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series™, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour™), one local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series™) and three international series (NASCAR Pinty’s Series™, NASCAR Mexico Series™, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series™). 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 eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).

  

 

 

   nascar cup series

NASCAR Cup Series schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

Date Race Track Time
Feb. 1 Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Bowman Gray Stadium 8 p.m.
Feb. 12 Duel 1 at Daytona Daytona International Speedway 7 p.m.
Feb. 12 Duel 2 at Daytona Daytona International Speedway 8:45 p.m.
Feb. 15 Daytona 500 Daytona International Speedway 2:30 p.m.
Feb. 22 Autotrader 400 EchoPark Speedway 3 p.m.
March 1 DuraMax Grand Prix Circuit of the Americas 3:30 p.m.
March 8 Straight Talk Wireless 500 Phoenix Raceway 3:30 p.m.
March 15 Pennzoil 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway 4 p.m.
March 22 Goodyear 400 Darlington Raceway 3 p.m.
March 29 Cook Out 400 Martinsville Speedway 3:30 p.m.
April 12 Food City 500 Bristol Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
April 19 AdventHealth 400 Kansas Speedway 2 p.m.
April 26 Jack Link's 500 Talladega Superspeedway 3 p.m.
May 3 Wurth 400 Texas Motor Speedway 3:30 p.m.
May 10 Go Bowling at the Glen Watkins Glen International 3 p.m.
May 17 All-Star Race Dover Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
May 24 Coca-Cola 600 Charlotte Motor Speedway 6 p.m.
May 31 Cracker Barrel 400 Nashville Superspeedway  7 p.m.
June 7 FireKeepers Casino 400 Michigan International Speedway 3 p.m.
June 14 Cup Series race at Pocono Pocono Raceway 3 p.m.
June 21 Anduril 250 Naval Base Coronado 4 p.m.
June 28 Toyota/Save Mart 350 Sonoma Raceway 3:30 p.m.
July 5 Cup Series race at Chicagoland Chicagoland Speedway 6 p.m.
July 12 Quaker State 400 EchoPark Speedway 7 p.m.
July 19 Window World 400 North Wilkesboro Speedway 7 p.m.
July 26 Brickyard 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2 p.m.
Aug. 9 Iowa Corn 350 Iowa Speedway 3:30 p.m.
Aug. 15 Cook Out 400 Richmond Raceway 7 p.m.
Aug. 23 Cup Series race at New Hampshire New Hampshire Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
Aug. 29 Coke Zero Sugar 400 Daytona International Speedway 7:30 p.m.

NASCAR Cup Series playoff race schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

Date Race Track Time
Sept. 6 Southern 500 Darlington Raceway 5 p.m.
Sept. 13 Enjoy Illinois 300 World Wide Technology Raceway 3 p.m.
Sept. 19 Bass Pro Shops Night Race Bristol Motor Speedway 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 27 Hollywood Casino 400 Kansas Speedway 3 p.m.
Oct. 4 South Point 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway 5:30 p.m.
Oct. 11 Bank of America ROVAL 400 Charlotte Road Course 3 p.m.
Oct. 18 Freeway Insurance 500 Phoenix Raceway 3 p.m.
Oct. 25 Yellawood 500 Talladega Superspeedway 2 p.m.
Nov. 1 Xfinity 500 Martinsville Speedway 2 p.m.
Nov. 8 Cup Series Championship Race Homestead-Miami Speedway 3 p.m.

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