2026 Daytona 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 36 in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
|
2026 Daytona 500 logo | |||
| Date | February 15, 2026 | ||
| Location | Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (800 km) | ||
| Weather | Partly Cloudy with a temperature around 81 °F (27 °C); wind out of the west at 20 miles per hour (32 km/h). | ||
| Average speed | 147.107 miles per hour (236.746 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Richard Childress Racing | ||
| Time | 49.006 | ||
| Qualifying race winners | |||
| Duel 1 Winner | Joey Logano | Team Penske | |
| Duel 2 Winner | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | |
| Laps | 40 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports | |
| Time | 45.584 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, and Kevin Harvick | ||
| Nielsen ratings | 7.489 million | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Alex Hayden, Mike Bagley, and Todd Gordon | ||
| Turn announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2), Kyle Rickey (Backstretch), and Tim Catalfamo (3 & 4) | ||
The 2026 Daytona 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race and the 68th running of the event. It was held on Sunday, February 15, 2026, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It was the first race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.
The race saw 65 lead changes, with the total of 26 different leaders (out of a 41-car field) being a Daytona 500 record. 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick avoided multiple accidents on the final lap and passed Chase Elliott just before the start/finish line to claim both his and the team's first Daytona 500 victory, as well as the ninth win of his Cup Series career and his first since the 2024 Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished 2nd, and Joey Logano finished 3rd. Elliott and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five, and Zane Smith, Chris Buescher, Riley Herbst, Josh Berry, and Bubba Wallace rounded out the top ten.