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The Starting Lineup For The 2026 Daytona 500 Is Set
© Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Starting Lineup For The 2026 Daytona 500 Is Set

Originally posted on The Spun  |  By Daniel Bates  |  Last updated Feb 14, 2026 8:40 PM ET

With this weekend's qualifying results all wrapped up, the starting lineup for NASCAR's most iconic race is officially set.

The 2026 season will kick off with the 68th running of the Daytona 500 as another year of NASCAR action is upon us — which will reportedly happen one hour earlier due to inclement weather in the area.

NASCAR officials made the call earlier today that the official start will be moved ahead to 1:30 PM ET with the green flag set for roughly 45 minutes later at 2:13 PM ET.

DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 16: Chase Briscoe, driver of the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota and Austin Cindric, driver of the #2 Discount Tire Ford lead the field on a pace lap prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2025 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)James Gilbert/Getty Images

2026 Daytona 500 starting lineup revealed

Without much further ado, here's the order fans can expect when they flip on "The Great American Race" on Sunday:

  1. Kyle Busch
  2. Chase Briscoe
  3. Joey Logano
  4. Chase Elliott
  5. Ryan Blaney
  6. Carson Hocevar
  7. Austin Dillon
  8. Kyle Larson
  9. Brad Keselowski
  10. Michael McDowell
  11. John Hunter Nemechek
  12. Christopher Bell
  13. Shane van Gisbergen
  14. Josh Berry
  15. Daniel Suarez
  16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
  17. Casey Mears
  18. Todd Gilliland
  19. Ryan Preece
  20. Ty Gibbs
  21. Alex Bowman
  22. Denny Hamlin
  23. Cole Custer
  24. Erik Jones
  25. Noah Gragson
  26. Tyler Reddick
  27. Bubba Wallace
  28. Riley Herbst
  29. Corey Heim
  30. Zane Smith
  31. Jimmie Johnson
  32. Connor Zilisch
  33. Cody Ware
  34. Ty Dillon
  35. A.J. Allmendinger
  36. Austin Cindric
  37. Ross Chastain
  38. B.J. McLeod
  39. William Byron
  40. Justin Allgaier
  41. Chris Buescher

Kyle Busch wins pole position at Daytona

For Kyle Busch, this year's pole is just the start of what he hopes will be an eventual win at Daytona International Speedway.

While the 40-year-old NASCAR veteran has accomplished a tremendous amount in his racing career, the Richard Childress driver has yet to take the checkered flag at Daytona in any of his 20 starts.

No driver has ever won the 500 after their first 20 attempts, but Busch is hoping to change that with Sunday's result.

“Sounds really good right now — being able to qualify on my first pole for the Daytona 500, that’s pretty special,” Busch said, via WAKA 8 News. “Feels really good for RCR as a group. Just a valiant effort by everybody here. It would be really nice to be doing an interview like this about being No. 1 come Sunday night.”

The late Dale Earnhardt won in his 20th start for the same team back in 1998. Will history be made almost three decades later?

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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