2026 Daytona 500 Schedule: When And Where To Watch The NASCAR Marquee Race At Daytona International Speedway

The 2026 Daytona 500 will kick off the NASCAR Cup Series season with a week of racing at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The event stretches from Speedweeks practice sessions and qualifying to the main 500-mile race next Sunday, February 15.

The 68th running of ‘The Great American Race’ will start next week on Wednesday. The field will feature 41 drivers including defending champion William Byron. Here is the full schedule:

• Wednesday, February 11: Cup Series practice will start at 10 am ET for a 50-minute session. Later in the evening, single-car qualifying will begin at 8:15 pm ET on FS1. This session sets the front row for the Daytona 500 and the starting positions for the Duels.
• Thursday, February 12: The first qualifying race, Duel 1 will start at 7 pm ET and Duel 2 will follows at about 8:45 pm ET on FS1. The 60-lap races will set positions 3 through 40 on the Daytona 500 grid.
• Friday, February 13: NASCAR Cup Series teams will get another 50-minute practice session at 5:35 pm ET.
• Saturday, February 14 : The final Cup Series practice is set to run around 3 pm ET.
• Sunday, February 15: The 500-mile Daytona 500 will start at 2:30 pm ET at Daytona International Speedway. FOX will broadcast the race live across the USA.

Changes to the qualifying format this season will allow the top two open (non-charter) cars to secure spots via qualifying times independent of the Duel results. The remaining open cars will battle in the Duels for one of the final transfer positions.

Meanwhile, FOX Sports will handle television coverage of the Daytona 500 for the 23rd consecutive time, led by play-by-play announcer Mike Joy and analysts Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick on Sunday afternoon. The radio coverage will be available on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Daytona 500 Entry List For 2026

Just like last year, the Daytona 500 will have 41 teams competing for the prestigious Harley J. Earl trophy. Along with the 36 chartered teams, the field will have one automatic entry for Open Exemption Provision user Jimmie Johnson’s Legacy Motor Club team.

Here are the open car entry list for the 2026 Daytona 500.

1. No. 36 – Chandler Smith (Front Row Motorsports)
2. No. 40 – Justin Allgaier (JR Motorsports)
3. No. 44 – JJ Yeley (NY Racing Team)
4. No. 62 – Anthony Alfredo (Beard Motorsports)
5. No. 66 – Casey Mears (Garage 66)
6. No. 67 – Corey Heim (23XI Racing)
7. No. 78 – B.J. McLeod (Live Fast Motorsports)
8. No. 84 – Jimmie Johnson (Legacy Motor Club)
9. No. 99 – Corey LaJoie (RFK Racing)

The Daytona 500 weekend also has a rain forecast, which could end up delaying part of the Speedweek schedule.

Read More:

2026 Daytona 500 weather forecast: Is there a threat of rain at NASCAR’s season opener?

What changes has NASCAR made to Daytona 500 qualifying in 2026?

Grammy winner Nate Bargatze named Grand Marshall for 2026 Daytona 500

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