Fast-facts ahead of Sunday's Great American Race, the Daytona 500
DAYTONA 500
The Place: Daytona International Speedway
Track Length: 2.5 Mile Asphalt Oval
The Date: Sunday, February 15
The Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
The Purse: $31,045,575
TV: FOX, 2 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90)
Distance: 500 miles (200 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 65),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 130), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)
Key Winning Trends
2026 is the 78th year of NASCAR Cup Series racing and the 68th Daytona 500
A driver won both their Duel race and the 500 just three times in the last 30 years (most recent: Matt Kenseth, 2012)
8 of last 11 Daytona 500s were won by drivers getting their first 500 win
Nine drivers got their first Cup win in the Daytona 500 (most recently Austin Cindric, 2022)
Denny Hamlin (3) and William Byron (2) are the only repeat winners in the last 16 Daytona 500s
Six Daytona 500s were won in a backup car: 1969, 1983, 1992, 2009, 2018, 2024
Last defending Champion to win the 500: Dale Jarrett in 2000, his third win in the 500
Joey Logano led in the last 9 Daytona 500s -- tied with Buddy Baker for the 2nd longest streak behind Petty (11)
Late-Race Dynamics
All three times the winner led only the final lap came in the last nine races
The winner didn't lead for the first time until Lap 157+ in seven of the last nine 500s
Only once has a stage winner gone on to win the race (Hamlin, 2020 -- Stage 2)
Leader at halfway has won only twice since 1992 (Hamlin: 2016, 2020)
The driver that led the most-laps won only one of the last nine 500s (Hamlin, 2020)
14 of 67 Daytona 500s ended with a last lap pass (21%), including 5 of the last 10
Finish Dynamics
Final green flag stretch was 2 laps or less in 17 of the last 21 Daytona 500s
Only two of the last 21 Daytona 500s had a final green run longer than six laps
Six of the last eight ended in overtime; the other two ended under caution
Four of the last six ended under caution
The 2023 Daytona 500 went 530 miles due to two OT attempts -- longest in history
Two of the four Daytona 500s with the most lead changes came in the last three years: 2023: 52, 2025: 55
Last 11 Daytona 500 Winners
8 of the last 11 won by first-time Daytona 500 winners
Date Race Winner
2/22/2015 Joey Logano 1st Win
2/21/2016 Denny Hamlin 1st Win
2/26/2017 Kurt Busch 1st Win
2/18/2018 Austin Dillon 1st Win
2/17/2019 Denny Hamlin
2/16/2020 Denny Hamlin
2/14/2021 Michael McDowell 1st Win
2/20/2022 Austin Cindric 1st Win
2/19/2023 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 1st Win
2/19/2024 William Byron 1st Win
2/16/2025 William Byron
Manufacturer Storylines
Chevrolet drivers won the Daytona 500 the last three years -- longest streak by a make in the last 18 years
All three of Toyota 's Daytona 500 wins came with Denny Hamlin
A Chevrolet driver has not led the most laps in the Daytona 500 since 2015 (Jeff Gordon)
Ford drivers led 59% of the laps raced at Daytona in the Next Gen car
Ford won the pole for 13 of the 20 drafting track races with qualifying in the Next Gen car
Heartbreaking Near Misses in Daytona 500 History
1959: Johnny Beauchamp lost by a bumper to Lee Petty
1963: Ned Jarrett and Fred Lorenzen had to pit late for fuel, Tiny Lund stayed out and won. Lorenzen won a 500 but Jarrett never did
1969: Charlie Glotzbach lost an 11-second lead and was passed by LeeRoy Yarbrough on the back stretch on the last lap -- first last lap pass in the
Daytona 500
1974: Fuel Crisis 450 miles. Richard Petty took the lead with 11 laps remaining after both front tires on Donnie Allison's car were punctured by debris
1979: Donnie Allison crashed on the last lap battling with Cale Yarborough for the lead
1983: Joe Ruttman led 57 laps and was running 2nd on the final lap when a late charge sent him back to 4th
1989: Alan Kulwicki cut a tire while leading late, allowing Darrell Waltrip to win
2007: Mark Martin lost by inches to Kevin Harvick
2008: Tony Stewart got passed on the last lap
2011: David Ragan penalized for a restart violation while leading in overtime
2016: Martin Truex Jr lost by inches to Denny Hamlin
2017: Kyle Larson passed on the last lap after running out of fuel
2018: Aric Almirola was spun while leading on the backstretch of the final lap
2022: Bubba Wallace lost by 0.036 sec in overtime
Cup Series Champions in the 2026 Daytona 500 Field
Jimmie Johnson 7
Joey Logano 3
Kyle Busch 2
Kyle Larson 2
Ryan Blaney 1
Chase Elliott 1
Brad Keselowski 1
2026 Season Changes
NEW Return to the Chase with 16 drivers making a 10-race Chase to win the Championship
NEW Connor Zilisch is in the #88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet with crew chief Randall Burnett
Shane van Gisbergen's number changes from #88 to #97
Daniel Suarez replaces Justin Haley in the #7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Ross Chastain's new crew chief Brandon McSwain replaces Phil Surgen
Noah Gragson's new crew chief Grant Hutchens replaces Drew Blickensderfer
Kyle Busch's new crew chief Jim Pohlman replaces Randall Burnett
SWITCH Rick Ware Racing: Ford to Chevrolet (technical alliance with RCR, ECR engines)
SWITCH Haas Factory Team: Ford to Chevrolet (technical alliance with Hendrick, Hendrick engines)
750 HP Increased horsepower on ovals under 1.5-mile and road courses (up from 670hp in 2025)
The World Center of Racing
In the early 1950s it became apparent that the days of racing on the Beach and Road Course were numbered. Bill France Racing, Inc. was
established in 1953. The contract to secure land was signed on November 8, 1957 and construction began November 25, 1957. The dream
became a reality with the first Daytona 500 on February 22, 1959.
Today the 483-acre complex, once swampland, boasts the most diverse schedule of racing on the globe, earning it the title of "World
Center of Racing."
The Streamline Hotel, the 1940s-era beachside inn known as the birthplace of NASCAR, was purchased in 2014. Now fully restored in Art
Deco style including the rooftop bar where Bill France Sr and others met in 1947 to discuss the formation of NASCAR.