#45-Tyler Reddick won the 2026 Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway. The win is his first win at Daytona and ninth of his career.
#47-Ricky Stenhouse Jr finished 2nd followed by #22-Joey Logano, #9-Chase Elliott, #6-Brad Keselowski, #38-Zane Smith, #17-Chris Buescher, #35-Riley Herbst, #21-Josh Berry, and #23-Bubba Wallace.
#71-Carson Hocevar led at the white flag but was involved on an accident on the final lap. #9-Chase Elliott led coming into the trioval, but was passed by Reddick just before another accident collected a number of cars. Reddick’s only lap led was the final one.
Pole winner #8-Kyle Busch finished 15th
#38-Zane Smith won Stage 1. #23-Bubba Wallace won Stage 2.
The fastest lap bonus point goes to #77-Carson Hocevar.
There were 66 lead changes among 26 drivers and 5 cautions for 32 yellow flag laps.
The average speed of the race was: 147.107mph.
See race details at: Race Results, Driver Points Standings, Owner Points Standings, Cumulative Report, Infraction Report.
Race Fast Facts – Daytona:
Tyler Reddick won the DAYTONA 500, his ninth victory in 219 NASCAR Cup Series races. Becomes the 44th driver to win the Daytona 500.
This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in 2026.
This is his first victory and fourth top-10 finish in 14 races at Daytona International Speedway.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (second) posted his fifth top-10 finish in 28 races at Daytona International Speedway. It is his first top-10 finish in 2026.
Joey Logano (third) posted his 12th top-10 finish in 35 races at Daytona International Speedway.
Connor Zilisch (33rd) was the highest finishing rookie.
Tyler Reddick leads the point standings by 17 points over Zane Smith.
Reddick led only the last lap, the fourth time a driver won the DAYTONA 500 after leading only one lap.
23XI Racing’s first DAYTONA 500 victory.
Toyota’s 204th Cup Series win and fourth DAYTONA 500 win.
2026 Driver Points / Chase Standings after Daytona:
Race 1 of 26 in the regular season:
1) #45-Tyler Reddick, 58
2) #22-Joey Logano, 46
3) #9-Chase Elliott, 43
4) #38-Zane Smith, 41
5) #47-Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 39
6) #6-Brad Keselowski, 39
7) #17-Chris Buescher, 39
8) #23-Bubba Wallace, 37
9) #77-Carson Hocevar, 36
10) #12-Ryan Blaney, 36
11) #35-Riley Herbst, 35
12) #7-Daniel Suarez, 35
13) #21-Josh Berry, 33
14) #8-Kyle Busch, 29
15) #5-Kyle Larson, 29
16) #4-Noah Gragson, 27
Outside the top 16:
17) #71-Michael McDowell, 26
18) #24-William Byron, 25
19) #42-John Hunter Nemechek, 25
20) #10-Ty Dillon, 23
See the Driver Points Standings and Owner Points Standings.
Race Updates:
Two accidents on the final lap. They race to the checkered and Reddick wins it over Stenhouse. Rest of the top 10 to be determined but it appears to be Logano Elliott Keselowski Smith Buescher Herbst Berry Wallace.
White flag for Hocevar over McDowell Jones Reddick Stenhouse Logano Byron Wallace Elliott Keselowski.
Lap 199 – Two to go. Still McDowell ahead of Hocevar.
Lap 198 – McDowell still leads with three to go. Then Hocevar Reddick Logano Wallace.
Lap 197 – Green flag with 4 laps remaining. The top 10: McDowell Reddick Hocevar Byron Keselowski Buescher Wallace Gragson Nemechek and Berry.
Lap 194 – Pit road is open. Quickie yellow. Much of the field stays out, including McDowell. He’s going to try to stretch the fuel.
Lap 192 – CAUTION is out. Bell and Hamlin go together coming to the trioval. Heavy damage to Bell. He stops on track. McDowell still the leader over Reddick Hocevar Byron Keselowski Buescher Wallace Gragson Nemechek and Berry.
Lap 191 – Ten to go: McDowell still leads over Keselowski Buescher Berry Reddick.
Lap 190 – Eleven laps remaining. Pit stops continue a few at a time. McDowell the leader.
Lap 188 – A few more pit stops. Logano over McDowell Blaney Smith and Elliott.
Lap 187 – Chastain Hocevar Busch Stenhouse and McDowell the top 5.
Lap 184 – More pit stops this time. Primarily Fords. Busch now the leader. Custer ran out of fuel on that lap.
Lap 184 – Buescher leads Berry Gragson Custer and Keselowski. The four drivers that just pitted got separated coming off pit road. Hamlin Jones and Johnson among those on pit road this time.
Lap 181 – Pit stops begin with Wallace Heim Bell and Herbst on the low line coming in. Buescher takes the lead.
Lap 179 – The pace of the race is picking back up as pit stops near. Wallace Custer Buescher Bell Preece the top 5.
Lap 176 – Twenty five to go. Wallace leads Custer and Buescher. Drivers starting to try to get in position for pit stops.
Lap 171 – Thirty laps remaining. Pit stops coming. Wallace still out front. He has led 30 laps today so far.
Lap 168 – The field is finally starting to break up a bit. Wallace leads but then Custer Buescher Bell Preece Berry Heim Chastain Gragson Herbst.
Lap 166 – Wallace still out front. Pit stops expected around twenty to go.
Lap 161 – Wallace the leader. No change in the field. Three wide. Saving fuel. Waiting for pit stops….
Lap 156 – The current top 10: Heim Wallace Bell Herbst Buescher Custer Berry Elliott Preece Gragson. The field is now in the fuel window. They all need to pit once more.
Lap 151 – Fifty laps remaining. Bell leads that lap as he Heim and Wallace continue to hold the front row with the field three wide.
Lap 145 – The field remains three wide. Wallace Heim and Bell are trading the lead at the line.
Lap 141 – Bell to the lead at the line. Wallace and Heim along side.
Lap 140 – Wallace back out front. The field is three wide.
Lap 138 – Heim takes the lead. Gilliland Allgaier and Bowman are officially done for the day.
Lap 136 – Green for the start of the final stage. 65 laps remaining. Fox says rain could be moving in over the next hour. The end of the race is about an hour away at this pace.
Lap 135 – Again, several on pit road for a splash of gas.
Lap 132 – Pit road is open. Leaders are in. Off pit road: Wallace Heim Buescher Herbst Bell Custer Berry. NASCAR now lists 20 cars in the last accident.
Lap 131 – Stage two is officially complete. Wallace Blaney Nemechek Busch Herbst Heim Buescher Reddick Logano Suarez the top 10.
Lap 128 – The stage is going to end under caution. Drivers in that accident that are now off track or a lap or more down: SVG Allgaier Gilliland Cindric Bowman.
Lap 126 – Unofficially 17 cars in the accident. Wallace is now the lead over Blaney.
Lap 124 – CAUTION for a big wreck. Allgaier Hamlin SVG Bowman Busch Cindric Gilliland Nemechek Smith Logano Larson Chastain and others. Allgaier had just taken the lead then squeezed Hamlin into the outside wall, causing a chain reaction.
Lap 123 – Hamlin out front at the line. Ahead of Busch Allgaier Blaney and Wallace. Eight laps to go in stage 2.
Lap 119 – Now Busch back in front. Must of the field still double wide but drivers starting to jockey for position at the end of the stage.
Lap 118 – Larson gets back to the lead.
Lap 116 – Busch is back out front. Fifteen laps remaining in stage 2.
Lap 110 – Larson leads for the first time today.
Lap 106 – After starting on the pole, Busch is back to the lead over Larson Blaney SVG and Hamlin. The field primarily runs double wide. 25 laps left in stage 2.
Lap 102 – SVG to the lead.
Lap 101 – The race is halfway complete and official. 1 hour, 41 minutes, 57 second in. Rain looks like it could hold off until then end of the race. Chastain leads.
Lap 99 – Chastain back out front. Briscoe comes back on track but is 11 laps down.
Lap 97 – Cindric to the lead over Buescher Blaney Chastain and SVG.
Lap 94 – Chastain still leads. Hamlin to second.
Lap 92 – Back to green. Stenhouse Chastain Larson Hocevar Hamlin Busch Cindric Wallace Buescher TDillon the top 10. 35 drivers on the lead lap. Nine laps until halfway and an official race. Rain is still a ways out but could arrive before the end of the race.
Lap 91 – Zilisch comes back on track.
Lap 90 – Several drivers back on pit road for more fuel before they go green.
Lap 89 – Zilisch Briscoe and ADillon are all behind the wall. Leaders come down pit road. Some fuel only stops. Off pit road: Chastain Larson Hamlin Busch Cindric
Lap 86 – CAUTION for Briscoe Zilisch ADillon Ware Gibbs on the frontstretch. TDillon the leader.
Lap 85 – Allgaier to the lead. Zilisch up to second.
Lap 83 – Chastain leads Wallace Allgaier Ware and Hamlin. Much of the field now three wide.
Lap 81 – Ware is now the leader over Wallace Larson Reddick and Hamlin.
Lap 79 – Hamlin back to the front.
Lap 78 – Wallace to the lead.
Lap 76 – Hamlin is the lead for the first time today.
Lap 73 – Cindric to the lead.
Lap 72 – Green flag for the start of the second stage. Blaney leads Buescher Allmendinger Hocevar Cindric Briscoe Reddick Smith McDowell Bell.
Lap 71 – Several drivers come back to pit road to top off on fuel.
Lap 68 – Pit road is open. Lead lap cars are in. Tires and fuel all around. Off pit road: Hocevar Blaney Buescher Suarez Cindric Briscoe Preece Herbst Hamlin Smith.
Lap 66 – CAUTION out for the end of the first stage: Smith Cindric Blaney Hocevar Suarez Buescher McDowell Preece Bowman Gragson the top 10. Ware gets the free pass.
Lap 64 – It’s 3:13pm/et, the originally scheduled start time of the race. So they were able to get 64 laps in by moving the start up. Still no immediate threat of rain.
Lap 64 – Two laps to go in the stage. Smith Cindric Blaney Buescher Preece.
Lap 61 – Five to go in the first stage: Smith Cindric Blaney Bowman and Gilliland the top 5.
Lap 59 – More cars come to pit road
Lap 58 – Many Toyotas to pit road. Johnson spins coming down but refires the car and continues on. No caution. Elliott now leads.
Lap 57 – A few drivers come to pit road including Logano Keselowski Nemechek. Still on track, Byron got into the outside wall again but continues on.
Lap 56 – Ten to go in stage 1, Briscoe leads Elliott and Hamlin.
Lap 50 – Busch comes to pit road along with Berry, Allmendinger TDillon and Mears.
Lap 48 – Busch, who has not pitted, is expected on pit road in the next few laps.
Lap 46 – Twenty laps left in the first stage. Everyone will pit before the end. Briscoe leads Gibbs Logano SVG and Keselowski.
Lap 40 – Briscoe now the lead over Logano. Sounds like most drivers will hit pit road again in the next 10-15 laps.
Lap 35 – Field is now three wide. Logano leads Briscoe Gibbs Busch and Nemechek.
Lap 33 – Mears loses a lap. He’s the only driver a lap down.
Lap 32 – Logano takes the lead back from Nemechek. Then Busch Keselowski and Briscoe in the top 5.
Lap 27 – Most of the field likely cannot make it to the end of the stage without pitting again. Some will be close.
Lap 21 – Now Nemechek back out front. Most of the field double wide. The only driver not in the lead pack is Mears.
Lap 20 – Logano back to the lead.
Lap 17 – Nemechek is the leader over Keselowski Berry Logano and Busch
Lap 16 – Fox pays tribute to Greg Biffle on lap 16.
Lap 14 – McLeod is officially done for the day.
Lap 13 – Logano to the lead.
Lap 12 – Back to green flag. Busch Logano Briscoe Nemechek SVG Keselowski Elliott Berry Bell Gibbs. Byron restarts 38th after pitting three times under caution.
Lap 11 – Other than Busch, everyone else that stayed out on track earlier comes to pit road for fuel.
Lap 10 – After pit stops: Busch Chastain Hocevar McDowell Buescher Ware Wallace Johnson Stenhouse Allgaier. Logano, who was off pit road first, is 12th. McLeod is behind the wall, everyone else remains on the lead lap.
Lap 8 – Pit road is open. Many are in for fuel. Busch stays out to retake the lead. Logano off pit road first.
Lap 6 – CAUTION for a spin by McLeod. Mears, Allgaier, and Gragson have some damage as well. Byron got up into the outside wall.
Lap 5 – Nemechek to the lead over Busch Keslowski Briscoe and SVG.
Lap 4 – Keselowski moves to second.
Lap 3 – Fox honors Dale Earnhardt with a silent lap.
Lap 2 – Busch leads the first lap with most of the field double wide.
• 2:14pm/et – Green flag at Daytona. Busch and Briscoe on the front row. First stage is 65 laps. No weather issues until later.
• 2:01pm/et – Engines have been fired.
• 1:46pm/et – Pre-race activities are underway.
• As of 1:00pm/et, the weather is good at the track. The National Weather Service now says there’s a 30% chance of rain at 5:00pm, increasing to 50% at 6:00pm.
• 11:30am/et – Fox RaceDay is on the air with pre-race coverage.
• As of close of the garage Saturday night, just four drivers will be going to the rear for the start: Chastain, Suarez, Buescher, and Byron. The list will be updated as needed.
• As of 6:30am/et, the National Weather Services forecast says: “A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 79. Windy, with a south wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph.” The rain chances do increase into the evening.
Race details:
Broadcast: FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 200 laps / 500 miles
Stages: 65 / 130 / 200
Average time of race: 3:34:24
Pit road speed: 55 mph
Caution car speed: 70 mph
Fuel Window: 48 laps
Timing (all times local & subject to change)
Invocation: 1:47:35 p.m.
National Anthem: 1:48:55 p.m.
Command: 2:02:00 p.m.
Green Flag: 2:13:00 p.m.
Cars to the rear for Daytona 500:
#1-Ross Chastain (backup car)
#7-Daniel Suarez (backup car)
#17-Chris Buescher (backup car)
#24-William Byron (backup car)
Due to potential weather forecasted for the Daytona Beach area late Sunday, NASCAR today announced the DAYTONA 500 will move up one hour from its originally scheduled time to now begin at 1:30 p.m. ET.[Full Release]
Final practice for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over after 50 minutes. The results:
#60-Ryan Preece 192.818
#17-Chris Buescher 192.782
#6-Brad Keselowski 192.583
#12-Ryan Blaney 192.480
#22-Joey Logano 192.472
Slowest: #84-Jimmie Johnson 181.730mph
Most laps run: #22-Joey Logano, 32 laps.
Best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 7 drivers): #6-Brad Keselowski 191.510mph
Notes: Many teams chose not save their cars and not practice. Just 18 drivers got on track.
See the fastest speeds, best 10 consecutive lap average, laps run on the Final Daytona 500 Practice speeds page.
Friday practice for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over. The results:
#3-Austin Dillon 195.626
#48-Alex Bowman 195.452
#40-Justin Allgaier 195.071
#9-Chase Elliott 195.020
#47-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. 194.974
Slowest: #78-B.J. McLeod, 181.576mph
Most laps run: #34-Todd Gilliland & #38-Zane Smith, 34 laps.
Best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 31 drivers): #40-Justin Allgaier, 193.216mph
Notes: #16-Allmendinger, #66-Mears and #60-Preece did not practice. Their teams are still repairing damage from Thursday night’s Duels. #51-Ware’s team chose not to practice.
See the fastest speeds, best 10 consecutive lap average, laps run on the Friday Daytona 500 Practice speeds page.
Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway have been made.
Pole winner #8-Kyle Busch chose pit stall 1.
Outside pole sitter #19-Chase Briscoe took the 41st stall, the first one coming onto pit road.
See all pit choices on the Daytona 500 Pit Stall chart.
Field set for Daytona 500: With the conclusion of the Duels, the lineup is set for Sunday’s Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
#8-Kyle Busch and #19-Chase Briscoe earned the front row based on their qualifying speeds Wednesday night.
The rest of the top 10: #22-Joey Logano, #9-Chase Elliott, #12-Ryan Blaney, #77-Carson Hocevar, #3-Austin Dillon, #5-Kyle Larson, #6-Brad Keselowski, and #71-Michael McDowell.
After the front row, the odd numbered starting positions were based on the finishes in Duel 1, the even number positions were based on Duel 2 finishing spots.
#62-Anthony Alfredo, who originally made the race based on his finish in the second duel, has his finish disallowed. #78-B.J. McLeod made the race in his place.
Open teams that made the race: #67-Corey Heim (qualifying speed), #40-Justin Allgaier (qualifying speed), #66-Casey Mears (duel 1 finish) , #78-B.J. McLeod (duel 2 finish), #84-Jimmie Johnson (open exemption provisional).
With Johnson, the starting field will be 41 cars.
Drivers that did not make the race: #36-Chandler Smith, #44-J.J. Yeley, #62-Anthony Alfredo, #99-Corey LaJoie.
See the full field on the Daytona 500 Starting Lineup page.
Joey Logano, Chase Elliott win 150-mile Duels as DAYTONA 500 field is set: 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.[Read More]
#22-Joey Logano and #9-Chase Elliott won their Duel races Thursday night. Open teams that made the race: #66-Casey Mears (duel 1 finish), #78-B.J. McLeod (duel 2 finish), #67-Corey Heim (qualifying speed), #40-Justin Allgaier (qualifying speed), #84-Jimmie Johnson (open exemption provisional). DNQ: #36-Chandler Smith, #44-J.J. Yeley, #62-Anthony Alfredo, #99-Corey LaJoie.
#9-Chase Elliott won the second Duel for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
#77-Carson Hocevar finished second, followed by #5-Kyle Larson, #71-Michael McDowell, #20-Christopher Bell, #21-Josh Berry, #47-Ricky Stenhouse Jr, #34-Todd Gilliland, #54-Ty Gibbs, and #11-Denny Hamlin.
#62-Anthony Alfredo, in 18th was the top finishing open driver, However his finish was disallowed following post-race inspection.
#78-B.J. McLeod, who originally finished 18th, made the race as a result of the DNQ.
#44-J.J. Yeley finished 21st and did not make the race.
The second Duel race set the outside lane of the starting lineup for the Daytona 500.
There were no cautions and 12 lead changes among 10 leaders.
See complete results on the Duel #2 race results page.
Duel 2 Race Fast Facts:
Chase Elliott won the America 250 Florida Duel 2 at DAYTONA, his third victory in the DAYTONA 500 Qualifying Race.
Finishing the highest among the Open Cars, Anthony Alfredo has raced his way into the DAYTONA 500.
A total of 51 different drivers have won the Duel at DAYTONA.
Connor Zilisch (15th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Race Updates – Duel 2:
Checkered flag for Elliott. He wins over Hocevar Larson McDowell and Bell. Alfredo is the top open driver.
White flag for Elliott.
Lap 59 – Two to go. Still Elliott. He leads Hocevar by .099 second.
Lap 58 – Three to go. Top 5 are single file. Elliott still leads.
Lap 56 – Five laps to go. Still 18 cars in the lead pack. Elliott leads Hocevar. Alfredo still in position to make the race.
Lap 54 – Now Elliott is out front over Hocevar Hamlin Cindric and Gilliland.
Lap 53 – Hocevar to the lead.
Lap 52 – Alfredo is now in 18th but still the top open driver. McLeod is 21st, Yeley has gone a lap down and runs 22nd.
Lap 51 – Ten laps remaining. Reddick leads Hocevar Elliott Hamlin McDowell Herbst Jones Larson Cindric and Smith.
Lap 49 – Allgaier and Yeley pit and everyone has now been in.
Lap 48 – Herbst to the lead. Zilisch to pit road. Then the rest of the field pits and Allgaier to the point.
Lap 47 – Several Chevy teams to pit road. Zilisch to the lead.
Lap 45 – Several Toyota teams plus, Elliott and McLeod, come to pit road.
Lap 43 – McDowell to the lead over TDillon Alfredo Stenhose and Zilisch. Everyone trying to get in position for pit stops.
Lap 41 – Twenty laps remaining. Expect pit stops soon. TDillon back to the lead. Then Briscoe Stenhouse Elliott and McDowell. Alfredo is 6th.
Lap 34 – Now Briscoe back out front.
Lap 33 – Ty Dillon takes the lead. Briscoe back to second, then Stenhouse Elliott and Hamlin.
Lap 31 – Race is halfway complete. All green so far. Briscoe still leads Hamlin and Elliott. TDillon is up to fourth. Alfredo now 9th, McLeod 20th, Yeley 21st.
Lap 26 – Still a calm race with Briscoe leading Hamlin Elliott Larson and TDillon. Pit stops are currently expected earlier than in duel 1.
Lap 21 – Open drivers running positions: Alfredo 15th, Yeley 19th, McLeod 20th.
Lap 16 – Briscoe continues to lead Hamlin Elliott Larson and Jones. Calm race so far with the field primarily double wide.
Lap 8 – Briscoe Hamlin Elliott Larson Bell the top 5.
Lap 6 – Briscoe continues to lead Hamlin. Alfredo runs 13th, McLeod is up to 16th, Yeley is 20th.
Lap 3 – Allgaier falls to the back of the back to save his car.
Lap 2 – Briscoe leads the first lap. Hamlin second.
• 9:04pm/et – Green flag for the second Duel race.
• 8:54pm/et – Engines are fired.
• Engines are expected to be fired at 8:54pm/et.
• Open drivers in the second duel: #44-J.J. Yeley, #62-Anthony Alfredo, #78-B.J. McLeod. The top finisher gets the final spot for the Daytona 500.
#22-Joey Logano won the first Duel for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway in an overtime finish.
#12-Ryan Blaney finished second, followed by #3-Austin Dillon, #6-Brad Keselowski, #42-John Hunter Nemechek, #97-Shane van Gisbergen, #7-Daniel Suarez, #66-Casey Mears, #60-Ryan Preece, and #48-AlexBomwan.
#66-Casey Mears was the top finishing open driver and will race Sunday.
The other open drivers:
#36-Chandler Smith was involved in an accident late in the race. He was able to continue to but finished 16th.
#99-Corey LaJoie was involved in an accident on the final lap while running in the top five and finished 19th.
#84-Jimmie Johnson finished 15th but will make the race through an open exemption provisional.
The first Duel race sets the inside lane of the starting lineup for the Daytona 500.
There were 3 cautions for 7 laps and 9 lead changes among 6 drivers.
See complete results on the Duel #1 race results page.
Duel 1 Race Fast Facts:
Joey Logano won the America 250 Florida Duel at DAYTONA, his fourth victory in the Daytona 500 Qualifying race.
As the highest finishing Open Car, Casey Mears in the No. 66 has raced his way into the Daytona 500.
Race Updates – Duel 1:
Checkered flag for Logano after the caution comes out on the final lap. Blaney finishes second. LaJoie hard into the wall. Allmendinger also collected. Mears will make the Daytona 500.
White flag: Logano leads Keselowski.
Lap 62 – Green flag for the first overtime attempt. LaJoie restarts 4th, Smith 19th, Mears back on the lead lap in 21st.
Lap 58 – Under caution it’s: Logano, Blaney, Keselowski, LaJoie, Nemechek, Suarez, ADillon, SVG, Allmendinger, Bowman.
Lap 56 – CAUTION for and accident on the backstretch. Wallace had just jumped to the lead but was hit in the rear by ADillon and spun. Byron, Buescher made contact and collected and Smith. Smith continues but had front end damage. LaJoie back up to 4th.
Lap 55 – With 6 laps remaining: Logano, Blaney, Buescher, ADillon, Wallace, Keselowski, Byron, Smith, LaJoie, Nemechek. Smith got caught in the middle and fell back.
Lap 52 – Smith has now moved up to 4th and LaJoie back to 7th. Field still double file. Logano back to the lead.
Lap 51 – Pretty much double file through the field. Buescher leads Logano by .0008 second. LaJoie now 5th, Smith 6th.
Lap 50 – Green flag with 11 laps remaining. Open cars: LaJoie 5th, Smith 8th, Mears 23rd and a lap down.
Lap 49 – Getting ready to go back to green: Logano, Buescher, Keselowski, Blaney, LaJoie, Preece, Nemechek, Smith, ADillon, Busch the top 10.
Lap 46 – CAUTION comes out for Gragson and Mears. Logano was off pit road first.
Lap 45 – Green flag pit stops begin. Fords pit. Custer takes the lead. Mears and Gragson make contact coming onto pit road.
Lap 41 – Twenty laps remaining: Preece, Buescher, LaJoie, Keselowski, Nemechek, Busch, Logano, Blaney, Smith, Chastain.
Lap 39 – Now much of the field three wide as drivers start to get into position for pit stops.
Lap 38 – A second line has formed on the outside. Busch and Blaney made an attempt to move up but still run 5th and 6th.
Lap 36 – No changes up front. Everyone will need to pit before the end of the race. The fuel window is listed as 48 laps, but probably isn’t that much.
Lap 31 – Race is halfway complete. The four RFK drivers still lead. D500 pole sitter Busch is fifth.
Lap 25 – Chandler Smith is slowly moving up, now in 10th place. Mears has fallen to 22nd. LaJoie remains third.
Lap 20 – No one pushing the pace too much early in the race. The top half dozen cars are nose to tail with the rest of the field side by side.
Lap 17 – LaJoie still runs 3rd, the highest open driver. Smith is currently in 14th, Mears in 16th.
Lap 11 – With 10 laps complete: Preece, Buescher, LaJoie, Keselowski, Nemechek, ADillon, Blaney, Bowman, Logano, Byron the top 10.
Lap 9 – ADillon back out front over Nemechek.
Lap 6 – Nemechek to the lead.
Lap 5 – ADillon takes the lead.
Lap 2 – Preece leads the first lap.
• 7:20pm/et – Green flag for the first Duel race.
• 7:09pm/et – Engines are fired.
• 7:01pm/et – Pre-race ceremonies are underway.
• Open drivers in this Duel competing for a starting spot in the Daytona 500 are: Corey LaJoie, Chandler Smith, and Casey Mears. The highest finishing driver makes the race. The other two will DNQ.
• The first Duel is scheduled to go green at 7:21pm/et. Weather is not expected to be an issue tonight.
Duel races info:
Broadcast: FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 60 laps / 150 miles
Stages: No stage breaks
Average time of race: Duel 0:56:46; Duel 2: 0:56:56
Pit road speed: 55 mph
Caution car speed: 70 mph
Fuel Window: 48 laps
Timing (all times local & subject to change)
- Driver Introductions will begin promptly at 6:30 p.m.
- All drivers will be introduced prior to the 1st Duel.
Invocation: 7:01:20 p.m.
National Anthem: 7:02:00 p.m.
Command: 7:09:00 p.m.
Green Flag: 7:21:00 p.m.
Duel Races Pit stall selections
Kyle Busch wins pole for Sunday’s Daytona 500: 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.[Read More]
#8-Kyle Busch won the Busch pole for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway with speed of 183.925, for his first Daytona 500 pole, second pole at Daytona and 35th pole of his career.
#19-Chase Briscoe will start the race in second.
The rest of the field will be set after the Duel races on Thursday night. Qualifying sets the lineup for those races.
#8-Kyle Busch will start on the pole for the first duel, followed by #60-Ryan Preece, #67-Corey Heim, #48-Alex Bowman, and #17-Chris Buescher.
#19-Chase Briscoe is the pole sitter for the second duel, followed by#11-Denny Hamlin, #5-Kyle Larson, #9-Chase Elliott, and #54-Ty Gibbs.
The fastest two open team drivers: #67-Corey Heim and #40-Justin Allgaier are locked into the race based on their qualifying speeds.
The remaining open drivers: #99-Corey LaJoie, #62-Anthony Alfredo, #36-Chandler Smith, #78-B.J. McLeod, #66-Casey Mears, and #44-J.J. Yeley, need to race their way in. The top open driver in each Duel, that is not already locked in, makes the race.
#84-Jimmie Johnson will make the race through an open exemption provisional.
See the Qualifying results, Duel #1 Starting Lineup and Duel #2 Starting Lineup page.
Daytona International Speedway – Qualifying Fast Facts:
Kyle Busch won the Pole Award for the DAYTONA 500 with a lap of 49.006 seconds, 183.651 mph.
This is his 35th pole in 751 NASCAR Cup Series races – 35 poles are 2nd most among active drivers.
This is his first pole and first top-10 start in 2026. First Daytona 500 pole in his 21st race.
This is his second pole in 42 races at Daytona International Speedway.
Chase Briscoe (second) posted his first top-10 start of 2026 and his sixth in 11 races at Daytona International Speedway.
Ryan Preece (third) posted his third top-10 start at Daytona International Speedway.
Connor Zilisch (23rd) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
Qualifying Order
NASCAR Cup Series pre-qualifying inspection is complete at Daytona. There were no multiple failures.
Paint Schemes – Getty
Paint Schemes – Joel Bray
Driver and Car Shots
Opening practice for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over after 50 minutes. The results:
#2-Austin Cindric 187.402
#1-Ross Chastain 186.931
#99-Corey LaJoie 186.516
#23-Bubba Wallace 186.842
#7-Daniel Suarez 185.589
Slowest: #66-Casey Mears, 179.547mph
No speeds: #34-Todd Gilliland and #71-Michael McDowell.
Most laps run: #45-Tyler Reddick and #84-Jimmie Johnson, 20 laps.
Best 10 consecutive lap avg (of 3 drivers): #43-Erik Jones, 183.536mph
Notes: The session was primarily single car runs in preparation for qualifying tonight.
See the fastest speeds, best 10 consecutive lap average, laps run on the First Daytona 500 Practice speeds page.
The entry list for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is posted, 45 teams/drivers [for 41 spots] are listed.
The 36 chartered teams are entered, as well as nine open teams that must race their way into the field.
The open teams are: #36-Chandler Smith, #40-Justin Allgaier, #44-J.J. Yeley, #62-Anthony Alfredo, #66-Casey Mears, #67-Corey Heim, #78-B.J. McLeod, #84-Jimmie Johnson, #99-Corey LaJoie.
Since 45 cars are entered, four drivers will miss the race. Johnson will make the field through an open exemption provisional which will expand the field to 41.
See the full entry list on the Daytona 500 Entry List page.
Daytona 500 qualifying procedures (updated for 2026)
Crew Rosters
Statistical Advance: Analyzing The DAYTONA 500 – A statistical look at some of the top performers at Daytona International Speedway.
Goodyear Tire Notes:The 2026 Daytona 500 will be run with the same Goodyear Racing Eagle tire setup that was used in last year’s race, giving teams a familiar look for the Great American Race. The left-side tire NASCAR Cup Series teams will use has raced at Daytona International Speedway since 2022. The right-side tire was introduced at last year’s Daytona 500. Together, this tire setup was used at all four traditional superspeedways in 2025: two at Daytona and two at Talladega Superspeedway. The tire specifications and allocations will be in place for the entire event, including Thursday’s Duels.
At Track Schedule
Race rules and information:
