68th Annual Daytona 500

The Great American Race • 200 Laps (500 Miles)
DATE: SUN, FEB 15, 2026
FIELD: 41 CARS (45 ENTERED)
START: 2:30 PM ET
TV: FOX | RADIO: MRN / SiriusXM
STAGES: 65 / 130 / 200

⏱️ Practice 1 Results (Wednesday AM)

Conditions: Clear, Fast. Ford & Chevy showed early speed.

  • 1. Austin Cindric (No. 2 Ford) 187.402 mph
  • 2. Ross Chastain (No. 1 Chevy) 186.931 mph
  • 3. Corey LaJoie (No. 99 Ford) 186.517 mph OPEN
  • 4. Bubba Wallace (No. 23 Toyota) 186.482 mph
  • 5. Daniel Suarez (No. 7 Chevy) 185.590 mph

🏁 The "Open" Contenders (45 Entries for 41 Spots)

Update: Jimmie Johnson (No. 84) has used the Open Exemption Provisional, expanding the field to 41 cars. The remaining 8 Open cars fight for 4 spots.

Car Driver Team Practice 1 Speed
99 Corey LaJoie RFK Racing 3rd (186.517)
67 Corey Heim 23XI Racing 8th (185.189)
84 Jimmie Johnson Legacy MC (Exempt) 10th (184.850)
40 Justin Allgaier JR Motorsports 19th (183.711)
62 Anthony Alfredo Beard Motorsports 26th (183.520)
36 Chandler Smith Front Row Motorsports 35th (182.919)
78 B.J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports 41st (181.247)
66 Casey Mears Garage 66 42nd (180.687)
44 J.J. Yeley NY Racing Team 43rd (179.548)

🕒 Qualifying Order (Wed Night)

Order determined by random draw. Single-car runs begin 8:15 PM ET.

  • 1st Out: Corey Heim (No. 67)
  • 2nd Out: Justin Allgaier (No. 40)
  • ...
  • 44th Out: Alex Bowman (No. 48)
  • 45th Out: Denny Hamlin (No. 11)

⚙️ Technical Data

  • Tire Code: D-5142 (Left) / D-5218 (Right)
  • Sets: 14 sets for the event.
  • Purse: $31,045,575 (Record High)

✨ Pre-Race Festivities

  • Grand Marshal: Nate Bargatze
  • Concert: Miranda Lambert
  • Pace Car: Kurt Russell