The engines are roaring once again as the 68th running of the Daytona 500 officially kicks off the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season this Sunday, February 15. Also known as “The Great American Race,” this year’s event carries even higher stakes as it marks the return of the revived “Chase” championship format.
The packed field of 41 drivers will take the green flag for 200 laps across the high-banking of the 2.5 mile of Daytona International Speedway.
The season-opener race for NASCAR’s premier division will see veteran driver Kyle Busch on the pole alongside Chase Briscoe on the front row. Hendrick Motorsport star William Byron is currently the defending winner of this prestigious race and will look for his third consecutive triumph.
What time does the NASCAR race start?
Start Time: 1:30 p.m. ET
Date: Sunday, Feb. 15
How to watch the NASCAR race today? TV channel details
The 2026 Daytona 500 will air live today, Sunday, February 15, on FOX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. With FOX Sports having the broadcasting rights of the complete event of the Daytona weekend.
Canada
Fans from Canada can watch the race live on TSN at 1:30 pm ET.
UK
Race fans from the UK can watch the action on Viaplay at 6:30 pm GMT on Feb 15 (Sunday).
India
Fans from India need to access a VPN service provider to watch the race at 12 am IST on Feb 15.
New Zealand
NASCAR fans from NZ can catch the race at 9 pm NZST on Sunday, Feb 15.
Australia
Viewers can watch the action live on FOX Sports Australia at 7 pm AEST.
2026 Daytona 500 live streaming options
Catch every lap of the season-opening Daytona 500 live on the FOX Sports app (available on iOS and Android) or at FOXSports.com. If you don’t have cable, you can watch the race through free trials on major streaming platforms like YouTube TV, Fubo, Hulu, or Sling TV.”
Starting lineup for 2026 Daytona 500
- Kyle Busch – No. 8
- Chase Briscoe – No. 19
- Joey Logano – No. 22
- Chase Elliott – No. 9 5
- Ryan Blaney – No. 12 6.
- Carson Hocevar – No. 77
- Austin Dillon – No. 3
- Kyle Larson – No. 5
- Brad Keselowski – No. 6
- Michael McDowell – No. 71
- John Hunter Nemechek – No. 42
- Christopher Bell – No. 20
- Shane van Gisbergen – No. 97
- Josh Berry – No. 21
- Daniel Suarez – No. 7
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – No. 47
- Casey Mears – No. 66
- Todd Gilliland – No. 34
- Ryan Preece – No. 60
- Ty Gibbs – No. 54
- Alex Bowman – No. 48
- Denny Hamlin – No. 11
- Cole Custer – No. 41
- Erik Jones – No. 43
- Noah Gragson – No. 4
- Tyler Reddick – No. 45
- Bubba Wallace – No. 23
- Riley Herbst – No. 35
- Corey Heim – No. 67
- Zane Smith – No. 38
- Jimmie Johnson – No. 84
- Connor Zilisch – No. 88
- Cody Ware – No. 51
- Ty Dillon – No. 10
- A.J. Allmendinger – No. 16
- Austin Cindric – No. 2
- Ross Chastain – No. 1
- BJ McLeod – No. 78
- William Byron – No. 24
- Justin Allgaier – No. 40
- Chris Buescher – No. 17
Drivers who did not qualify for the Daytona 500 are Corey LaJoie (No. 99), Chandler Smith (No. 36), Anthony Alfredo (No. 62) and JJ Yeley (No. 44).
