PREVIEW: Opening week of 2026 NASCAR season sees massive shake-up in O’Reilly and Truck Series lineups
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
IMAGE: Niece Motorsports, @NieceMotorsport
Thursday, February 12, 2026 (Green Flag 7:21 P.M. ET, FS1)
CUP Exhibition Races
Duels at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finishers: Zane Smith (Race 1), Alex Bowman (Race 2)
ENTRY LIST
There are 45 drivers entered for 41 spots in this year’s running of “The Great American Race,” though the 41st spot is already secured to Jimmie Johnson as he declared for the Open Exemption Provisional. This means that four of the eight remaining “open” teams – not counting Johnson – will fail to qualify.
DRIVER CHANGE: #6-RFK Racing
DRIVER SWAP / RETURNING: #99-RFK Racing
Just this week - and not a moment too soon - Brad Keselowski was cleared to race as doctors note his injured leg has healed well enough following an offseason skiing accident. Keselowski seeks his first Daytona 500 victory in one of a combined ten entries in the Cup Series and Truck Series bearing the iconic number font run by the late Greg Biffle. Among these is Corey LaJoie, Keselowski’s relief driver in last Wednesday’s Clash, who came within one spot and one corner of racing into the main event. LaJoie will run a returning legacy number for RFK as the #99 returns for a part-time effort with Trimble as sponsor. LaJoie has been a good dark horse pick. Last year, he led 10 laps and was among the leaders when the field wrecked on the final lap, one year after he finished 4th. Incidentally, LaJoie’s entry is listed as “199” in the official entry list as Trackhouse Racing has apparently not released the #99 they have held since their founding in 2021, but have not yet entered since Daniel Suarez’ release at the end of 2025.
RETURNING: #36-Front Row Motorsports
DRIVER CHANGE: #66-Garage 66
Last year, Chandler Smith looked to have a car more than fast enough to race its way into the Daytona 500. But, much to the chagrin of team owner Carl Long, Smith wrecked in the early laps, leaving Garage 66 with a destroyed car and no spot in the 500. This time around, Casey Mears drives the #66 in place of 13th-place Clash LCQ finisher Chad Finchum, carrying sponsorship from SI Yachts and the Gracie Foundation. Mears, a Top Five finishers of the 2006 Daytona 500, looks to put Long’s car into the 500 field for the first time since 2020. In the meantime, Smith will land a ride in a part-time fourth entry for Front Row Motorsports carrying sponsorship from QuickTie and Matheus Lumber. He eyes his first Cup start in a points-paying race since 2023, when he ran 11th in the fall race at Talladega for Kaulig Racing. FRM’s #36 last started the 500 two years ago, where Kaz Grala finished 38th after an early crash.
RETURNING: #40-JR Motorsports
Another returning storyline from last year was that of JRM qualifying for its first-ever Cup Series race, the realization of a longtime dream for one Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and a return to the series for O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Justin Allgaier. Allgaier raced into his most recent Cup start and finished a strong 9th despite fender damage that’s since been immortalized in diecast. This year, the marketing push with sponsor Traveller Whiskey is even stronger as Allgaier runs a similar scheme with a noticeably old-school number font and contingency-style decals from their supporting backers.
RETURNING: #44-NY Racing Team
Construction firm Barnett Southern Corporation sponsors J.J. Yeley as he and John Cohen’s NY Racing Team seek a return to the Daytona 500 field. The phrase “Built to Work” adorns Yeley’s car, appropriate given the herculean efforts he’s made in the qualifying races driving for such small teams. He came close to racing his way into each of the last two runnings of the Duel at Daytona, during which the #44 team has gradually built their schedule. The team made 10 races last year after making eight in 2024. But Yeley is still seeking his first 500 start since 2015, and Cohen his first since 2022 with the late Greg Biffle.
MISSING: #50-Team AmeriVet
Not among this week’s entrants is the AmeriVet team with which Bowman Gray legend Burt Myers drove to a 14th-place finish in last Wednesday’s last chance qualifier.
RETURNING: #62-Beard Motorsports
As he embarks on the next phase of his NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series career as Parker Retzlaff’s teammate at the now two-car Viking Motorsports, Anthony Alfredo looks to build on his strong run at Talladega last spring as he makes another run with Beard Motorsports with Dude Wipes as sponsor. Alfredo missed the cut for last year’s 500 and most recently finished 27th in the 2024 running with this same Beard team.
RETURNING: #67-23XI Racing
Fresh off his record-shattering Truck Series championship, a strangely underemployed Corey Heim kicks off a second year of racing part-time in Cup, this time beginning a 12-race schedule on top of limited Truck Series starts. Heim seeks his eighth career Cup start in his first 500 attempt, his first run since a career-best 6th-place finish under the lights at Bristol last summer. 23XI Racing has qualified this part-time third entry into the 500 once before in 2023 with 11th-place finisher Travis Pastrana, who this year will attempt Friday’s Truck Series race.
RETURNING: #78-Live Fast Motorsports
Ever since he sold his Charter, fan favorite underdog B.J. McLeod has revamped his superspeedway program. He’s challenged for the lead and earned some solid finishes by coming home on the lead lap. This year, McLeod hopes his 150th career Cup start will come in his first 500 start since 2023, though he has started each 400-mile Cup race run here since 2021 with a best finish of 7th in the 2022 running. This time around, McLeod carries sponsorship from Superior Logistics. And if the speed isn’t quite there in tonight’s qualifying, he’ll be one to watch on Thursday night.
RETURNING: #84-Legacy Motor Club
Last month, Jimmie Johnson declared for the Open Exemption Provisional (OEP), securing him the 41st and final starting spot in Sunday’s race. The seven-time series champion and two-time Daytona 500 winner earned his best finish in a non Hendrick Motorsports entry in this race just last year, where he escaped the last-lap wreck to come home 3rd. His subsequent 700th career Cup start in the Coca-Cola 600 didn’t go as well as an early crash left him in last place. Sunday will be his first start since that night, again with Carvana as sponsor.
Friday, February 13, 2026 (Green Flag 7:53 P.M. ET, FS1)
TRUCKS Race 1 of 25
Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Parker Kligerman
ENTRY LIST
There are 44 drivers entered for just 36 starting spots in Friday’s season opener for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, meaning eight teams will be sent home.
DRIVER CHANGE: #1-TRICON Garage
After a season of ups and downs for Joe Gibbs Racing in last year’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, Taylor Gray will kick off his Daytona weekend with his first Truck Series start since the 2024 finale at Phoenix, when he closed out his latest full-time season with TRICON Garage’s #17 team. Still in search of his first series win, Gray returns in TRICON’s #1 entry, taking the place of 28th-place Phoenix finisher Brent Crews. Top Liner is the listed sponsor.
DRIVER SWAP: #11-TRICON Garage
DRIVER CHANGE: #52-Halmar Friesen Racing
Also still looking for his first win is Kaden Honeycutt, who takes the lightning-fast #11 in place of the graduated Corey Heim. Honeycutt’s move was revealed late last season leading to Honeycutt parting ways with Niece Motorsports, then through quirk of fate, relieving an injured Stewart Friesen for a strong Playoff run. Friesen now returns to his #52 after healing from his dirt modified crash last summer.
DRIVER CHANGE: #2-Team Reaume
DRIVER CHANGE: #22-Team Reaume
TEAM UPDATE: #33-Team Reaume
Josh Reaume returns as team owner in 2026 of what is now Team Reaume, formerly Reaume Brothers Racing. Reaume, who finished 18th in this race last year, is listed as driver of his #22, replacing 32nd-place Phoenix finisher Mason Maggio. Jason White of Canada takes the #2 in place of 20th-place Phoenix performer Clayton Green with More Core as sponsor. White, a superspeedway specialist in recent years, finished 8th in this race last year and most recently took 30th after electrical issues last fall in Talladega. Frankie Muniz returns for a sophomore season in the #33.
NEW TEAM: #4-Niece Motorsports
MISSING: #41-Niece Motorsports
It was finally confirmed just yesterday that social media superstar Cleetus McFarland (Garrett Mitchell) is cleared to attempt his first ever NASCAR nationally sanctioned event, taking the wheel of Niece Motorsports’ #4 Chevrolet with sponsorship from Black Rifle Coffee. Taking the place of Niece’s #41 entry, which Tyler Reif ran to a 9th-place finish last fall, McFarland will bring his brash patriotic style to the track, as he has done on both short tracks and more recently in ARCA. In memory of his friend Greg Biffle, he will carry door and roof numbers in the style of Biffle’s along with his other three teammates at Niece.
DRIVER CHANGE: #5-TRICON Garage
RETURNING / DRIVER SWAP: #27-Rackley-W.A.R.
In his first four seasons running part-time in both the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Truck Series, Nick Leitz has gradually built up valuable track time driving for small teams like Team Reaume, SS-Green Light Racing, DGM Racing x JIM. Most recently, he landed his best ride in O’Reilly last fall at Phoenix, where Sam Mayer’s suspension ultimately landed him in RSS Racing’s #28, yielding a 20th-place finish. This year, Leitz lands in perhaps his best ride yet, driving TRICON’s #5 with SEM Products as sponsor. Making his first series start since Richmond last summer, Leitz takes the place of Toni Breidinger, who this year moves to the part-time second entry at Rackley-W.A.R. Breidinger ran full-time last year, but this season scales back to just eight starts beginning with Friday in the Rackley #27, teamed with Dawson Sutton in the flagship #26.
RETURNING: #6-Norm Benning Racing
As reported here last month, Norm Benning was still looking for sponsorship to finish work on his former Henderson Motorsports truck, which was seriously damaged in an engine fire at Talladega last fall. Benning has pushed forward with his effort for an eighth series start Daytona, and is entered in his familiar #6. Last year, Benning crossed the finish line in the Top Ten before an early caution scored him back in 16th. UPDATE: As reported on my Twitter account on Wednesday, Benning will also run a Greg Biffle tribute scheme on his white Chevrolet, which has acquired a good Ilmor motor thanks to associate sponsor Insuranble, Inc. of Pennslyvania.
DRIVER CHANGE: #7-Spire Motorsports
The first of no fewer than five Cup Series regulars entered in both the Truck Series race and Sunday’s Daytona 500 is Michael McDowell, the 2021 winner of “The Great American Race” itself. McDowell takes the place of 12th-place Phoenix finisher Stefan Parsons in Spire’s flagship #7, which next week in Atlanta will see Kyle Busch begin his yearly harvest of uncontested victories in the lower divisions of NASCAR.
NEW TEAM: #10-Kaulig RAM Racing
The first of the new RAM entries at Kaulig Racing goes to Daniel Dye, who slides over from Kaulig’s closed O’Reilly Auto Parts Series team with Mopar as sponsor. With the benefit of NASCAR’s new OEM provisionals at Kaulig’s disposal, Dye will make his first Truck Series start since November 2024, when he closed out his last full-time season for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. After running the #43 before, he this time retains the #10 he ran in O’Reilly last year.
NEW TEAM: #12-Kaulig RAM Racing
Second among the Kaulig RAM entries is that of Brenden “Butterbean” Queen, now stepping up to full-time and a bid at Rookie of the Year with Cummins as sponsor. Queen has made just ten combined starts in O’Reilly and Truck Series competition, but has already amassed three top-ten finishes and a 4th in the 2024 Truck Series race at North Wilkesboro – not to mention last year’s ARCA title on the heels of eight series wins. That ARCA title began with a win in Daytona, which he looks to one-up on Friday.
DRIVER CHANGE: #13-ThorSport Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #62-Halmar Friesen Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #88-ThorSport Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #98-ThorSport Racing
John Hunter Nemechek will drive Halmar’s second entry, the #62, for Daytona, as Phoenix 23rd-place finisher Cole Butcher makes the jump to ThorSport’s #13 in place of 6th-place Jake Garcia, who moves to ThorSport’s #98 in place of Phoenix runner-up Ty Majeski, who this year climbs aboard the iconic Menards #88 in place of 13th-place Matt Crafton, who has stepped away from full-time Truck Series competition. Nemechek’s #62 ride, which up until now made only infrequent starts, will have a leg-up in Owner Points thanks to a swap with teammate Stewart Friesen in the flagship #52. DriveValue.com sponsors Nemechek, who seeks his 150th series start and first since the spring of 2023 at Atlanta.
NEW TEAM: #14-Kaulig RAM Racing
Timothy “Mini” Tyrrell, winner of Kaulig’s “Race for the Seat” contest, will likewise compete for Rookie of the Year in the third of Kaulig’s RAM entries. Winner of three CARS Tour races last season, including the Throwback Classic at Hickory Motor Speedway.
NEW TEAM: #16-Kaulig RAM Racing
MISSING: #16-McAnally-Hilgemann Racing
The fourth RAM goes to longtime Kaulig racer Justin Haley, who reunites with the team after Daniel Suarez took his place in Spire Motorsports’ #7 Chevrolet on the Cup side. Carrying Celsius as sponsor, Haley seeks his first Truck Series start since March of last year, when he finished 11th for Spire at Las Vegas. This team also acquires the 24th-place Owner Points rank from McAnally’s own #16 entry which ran four races last season.
NEW TEAM: #25-Kaulig RAM Racing
The fifth RAM – Kaulig’s “all-star” entry – will this week go to three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and former team co-owner Tony Stewart. This marks “Smoke’s” first NASCAR national series start since he closed out his final full-time Cup season in November 2016. It’s been even longer since Stewart has competed in the Truck Series: his sixth and most recent series start came at Dover on June 4, 2005, where he finished runner-up to Kyle Busch (interestingly, Dover’s Truck race returns this season, its first running since 2020). Both of Stewart’s Truck wins came at Richmond, which was in consecutive seasons of 2002 and 2003.
RETURNING: #28-FDNY Racing
Jim Rosenblum’s longtime team returns to action for the first time since Pocono last summer, where Bryan Dauzat was flagged off the track for failing to meet minimum speed after only nine laps. Dauzat returns to the driver’s seat, looking to bounce back from his DNQ in this race last year.
DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Niece Motorsports
Taking the place of 11th-place Phoenix finisher Matt Mills is a returning Travis Pastrana, who joins Cleetus McFarland among this week’s lineup at Al Niece’s team. Pastrana carries sponsorship from BRUNT Workwear, a longtime backer of fellow competitor Mason Maggio. This would be only the seventh series start for Pastrana and his first since this race three years ago, when he finished 13th in Niece’s #41.
DRIVER CHANGE: #45-Niece Motorsports
Still another Niece entry goes to still another Daytona 500 champion. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., winner of the 2023 running of “The Great American Race,” takes the place of 27th-place Phoenix finisher Bayley Currey. This would be Stenhouse’s first-ever Truck Series start after 110 races in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and 472 in Cup. Interestingly, just like Pastrana, Stenhouse also picks up a team sponsor that has long associated with another driver: J.F. Electric and Utilitra, both backers of previous #42 driver Matt Mills.
RETURNING: #56-Hill Motorsports
Timmy Hill looks to embark on his 120th series start after a truncated eight-race 2025 season where he focused on developing a team in ARCA. Hill’s most recent start came last fall at Martinsville, where he finished 16th. While most known for his breakthrough start in the 2020 Daytona 500 or his near-victory over Jeremy Clements in an O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race two years later, Hill’s Truck Series career shows no finished worse than 16th in all five of his Daytona starts, completing 100% those laps.
MISSING: #66-ThorSport Racing
ThorSport has not fielded their part-time #66 entry which last fall at Phoenix was driven by Luke Baldwin to a 16th-place finish.
RETURNING: #69-Motorsports Business Management
Along with their bid at the Daytona 500, team owner Carl Long brings his young Truck Series team to Daytona. Following a test at Rockingham with Derek White behind the wheel, this week sees Tyler Tomassi in the team’s #69 Ford. This would mark Tomassi’s tenth series start, his first since a 27th-place showing at Talladega last season, and his first in this race.
MISSING: #71-Spire Motorsports
As of this writing, the status of Spire Motorsports’ #71 team is unknown after driver Rajah Caruth graduated to the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series full-time with both Hendrick Motorsports and Jordan Anderson Racing (see below).
MISSING: #74-Mike Harmon Racing
Mike Harmon is likewise not fielding a truck this week after entering Caleb Costner at Phoenix last fall, an effort that yielded a 22nd-place finish.
RETURNING / DRIVER SWAP: #75-Henderson Motorsports
DRIVER CHANGE: #77-Spire Motorsports
Joining Michael McDowell among Spire Motorsports’ Truck Series effort is his Cup teammate Carson Hoceevar, who moved even closer to his first Cup win last year. Hocevar will run the #77 with sponsorship from IKEA and Best Buy. Hocevar takes the place of Corey LaJoie, who finished 7th at Phoenix last fall. On top of his Cup effort with RFK, LaJoie will drive for a returning Henderson Motorsports with sponsorship from Built.com, Alliance Driveway Solutions, and Kingdom Truck Sales.
DRIVER CHANGE: #81-McAnally-Hilgemann Racing
Kris Wright and his family’s F.N.B. Corporation land another full-time ride for 2026. This time, he’ll pilot McAnally’s #81 entry, taking the place of last year’s Connor Mosack. As of this writing, Mosack isn’t entered in this weekend’s Cup, O’Reilly, or Truck Series races. Friday would mark Wright’s 50th series start, his first in the Truck Series since an 11th-place showing last fall at Talladega.
RETURNING: #90-Terry Carroll Racing
Another part-timer looking to make his first start at Daytona is Justin S. Carroll, who has never started a NASCAR national series race on a superspeedway. The biggest track on which he’s competed in the series is Pocono, where he finished 28th in 2024.
DRIVER CHANGE: #91-McAnally-Hilgemann Racing
With the closure of Kaulig Racing’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, Christian Eckes looks to regain his footing after a rough 2025 season. He returns to the Truck Series with the McAnally-Hilgemann team, for whom he made two starts last year, finishing 12th at Richmond and 9th at Loudon near the end of the season. In place of the part-time #16, Eckes takes the place of Jack Wood in the #91 and carries sponsorship from Columbia Bank.
RETURNING: #95-GK Racing
Clay Greenfield returns to action with his single-truck outfit for his first attempt since a DNQ last summer at Bristol. He last took the green flag in this series last year, when he qualified a strong 9th before a wreck left him 33rd.
RETURNING: #97-CR7 Motorsports
After failing to qualify for his only series attempt in this race three years ago, Jason Kitzmiller will drive the returning part-time second entry for CR7 alongside full-timer Grant Enfinger in the flagship #9. A.L.L. Construction is the listed sponsor for Kitzmiller, just as it had in 2022.
MISSING: #02-Young’s Motorsports
Randy Young’s team doesn’t have a truck entered this week as they continue to focus on their O’Reilly Auto Parts Series program. This includes their own flagship #02 with which Nathan Byrd drove at Phoenix last fall. It was confirmed this team’s Owner Points rank of 29th was transferred to Kaulig Racing’s #10 for driver Daniel Dye. Young’s part-time #20, ranked 33rd in Owner Points, also transferred its rank to Kaulig’s #14 for Timothy Tyrrell.
CUP INVADERS: #7-Michael McDowell, #45-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., #62-John Hunter Nemechek, #75-Corey LaJoie, #77-Carson Hocevar
Saturday, February 14, 2026 (Green Flag 5:15 P.M. ET, CW)
O’REILLY Race 1 of 33
United Rentals 300 at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Daniel Dye
ENTRY LIST
There are 42 drivers entered for 38 available starting spots in the debut race for O’Reilly Auto Parts as title sponsor of what was the XFINITY Series.
NEW TEAM: #0-SS-Green Light Racing
MISSING: #14-SS-Green Light Racing
Garrett Smithley returns to his familiar “Number Nuthin’” for 2026. But with JD Motorsports now closed, the #0 is fielded by Bobby Dotter’s SS-Green Light Racing in place of their #14 effort, the car Smithley most recently drove last fall in Phoenix for a 31st-place finish.
DRIVER CHANGE: #4-Alpha Prime Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #99-Viking Motorsports
As the former JD Motorsports #4 takes the place of the #45 as Alpha Prime’s part-time “all-star” entry and acquires the 39th-place Owner Points rank from their other part-time car, the former Our Motorsports #5, Caesar Bacarella drives the #4. Bacarella takes the place of 27th-place Phoenix finisher Parker Retzlaff, who jumps to Viking Motorsports’ full-time #99 in place of Connor Mosack. As with the Truck Series, Mosack isn’t entered this week.
NEW TEAM: #5-Hettinger Racing
After briefly appearing in the Truck Series last season, Hettinger Racing returns to embark on their first O’Reilly Auto Parts Series attempt with Luke Fenhaus driving and sponsorship from Jobber, Dun-rite, and ICS. After both RSS Racing and Haas Factory Team switched from Ford to Chevrolet (see below), Hettinger will field one of the only Fords in the field. The team, which acquired the 31st-place Owner Points from Cope Family Racing’s #70 (see below), plans to enter a second car, the #15, later this season.
TEAM CLOSED: #10-Kaulig Racing
TEAM CLOSED: #11-Kaulig Racing
TEAM CLOSED: #16-Kaulig Racing
RETURNING / DRIVER CHANGE: #24-Sam Hunt Racing
TEAM UPDATE / DRIVER SWAP: #25-AM Racing
TEAM UPDATE: #26-Sam Hunt Racing
DRIVER CHANGE: #48-Big Machine Racing
NEW TEAM: #52-AM Racing
Kaulig Racing suspends operations of their three O’Reilly Auto Parts Series teams, freeing up drivers Daniel Dye, Brenden Queen, and Christian Eckes. All three have found their way back to the Truck Series – Dye and Queen in two of Kaulig’s new RAM trucks, and Eckes in the McAnally-Hilgemann #91 (see above). However, just this week, news broke that Dye would also land in a new second team for AM Racing after a planned sale of AM to Sigma Performance Services (SPS) fell through over the offseason. Dye will now run part-time in the O’Reilly Series in AM’s new #52 alongside the flagship #25 of Nick Sanchez, formerly of Big Machine Racing. Sanchez had already been swapped out of Big Machine’s #48 entry after the end of last season as former Sam Hunt part-timer Patrick Staropoli prepares to go full-time racing. Staropoli’s old ride, the former part-time #24, will this year run full-time with Harrison Burton joining a returning Dean Thompson in the #26.
DRIVER CHANGE: #19-Joe Gibbs Racing
After Aric Almirola scored the 2025 Owners Championship with his runner-up finish at Phoenix last fall, the #19 will this week go to Giovanni Ruggiero, who scored his first Truck Series victory last fall at Talladega. First Auto Group, which sponsored Ruggiero that day, will back his first effort in JGR’s #19.
DRIVER SWAP / MANUFACTURER CHANGE: #28-RSS Racing
RETURNING / MANUFACTURER CHANGE / DRIVER SWAP: #38-RSS Racing
MANUFACTURER CHANGE / DRIVER SWAP: #39-RSS Racing
MANUFACTURER CHANGE / DRIVER CHANGE: #41-Haas Factory Team
DRIVER CHANGE: #91-DGM Racing x JIM
MANUFACTURER CHANGE: #00-Haas Factory Team
DRIVER SWAP: #07-SS-Green Light Racing
The earlier-mentioned switch from Ford to Chevrolet for both RSS Racing and the Haas Factory Team coincides with Sam Mayer returning from his one-race suspension at Phoenix to his full-time entry in the #41. Mayer moves 37th-place Phoenix finisher Ryan Sieg back to his otherwise familiar #39 in place of brother Kyle Sieg, 12th in Phoenix, who replaces 20th-place Nick Leitz in the #28. Meanwhile, RSS’ returning #38 is driven by Patrick Emerling, 35th last November, who was bumped from Bobby Dotter’s #07 by Josh Bilicki and sponsor Mando. Bilicki was replaced by Mason Maggio in the #91 for DGM Racing x JIM, a car carrying sponsorship from Success Unlocked.
NEW TEAM: #30-Barrett-Cope Racing
MISSING: #70-Cope Family Racing
Racing veteran Stanton Barrett has joined forces with Derrike and Elyshia Cope at Cope Family Racing to form Barrett-Cope Racing, changing car numbers from the Copes’ #70 to Barrett’s often used #30. The team also brings on Carson Ware with his Costa Oil sponsorship, replacing last fall’s Phoenix driver Leland Honeyman. Most critically, the Barrett-Cope team take the 5th-place in Owner Point rank from Richard Childress Racing’s #2 entry – the same team that propelled Jesse Love to the driver’s championship – having freed up Cope Family Racing’s 31st-place rank to Hettinger’s #5 team.
RETURNING: #32-Jordan Anderson Racing
Jordan Anderson and his part-time #32 entry rejoin his O’Reilly Auto Parts team’s three-car effort for the first time since Talladega last fall, where Anderson finished 32nd after an early crash. In his last three Daytona starts in this #32, Anderson has finished in the Top Ten each time, taking 4th, 6th, and 7th. Similar to Timmy Hill in the Truck Series, he has completed every lap he has attempted in an O’Reilly race at Daytona with no finishes worse than 22nd.
DRIVER CHANGE: #35-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
DRIVER CHANGE: #53-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
NEW TEAM: #55-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
Natalie Decker picked up new sponsorship from T.N. Dickinson’s Witch Hazel and will join forces with Joey Gase’s now three-car team, taking the place of 29th-place Phoenix finisher Stefan Parsons in the #35. This would be only the 14th O’Reilly Auto Parts Series start for Decker, her fist since she ran here last summer and finished 22nd for DGM Racing x JIM in what became her only start of 2025. Gase himself, who finished 30th last fall in the #53, moves to the team’s new #55, leaving room for a returning David Starr in the #53 with sponsorship from Apex Wireless. Starr’s most recent start came last fall at Talladega, where he ran 18th in the #35. Gase’s new #55 ride will inherit the #53 team’s 37th-place rank in Owner Points as the #53 takes Sam Hunt Racing’s #24 team’s 36th-place rank.
DRIVER SWAP: #42-Younng’s Motorsports
NEW TEAM: #96-Viking Motorsports
Looking to complete a triple-duty weekend, Carson Hocevar and his Ziegler Auto Group sponsor step in for double-duty Anthony Alfredo at Randy Young’s #42 as Alfredo moves to a new second team at Viking Motorsports, bringing Dude Wipes to the #96 as teammate to Parker Retzlaff in the #99. Hocevar takes over the 21st-place Owner Point ranking from Kaulig Racing’s shuttered #11 team while Alfredo gets the 33rd-place ranking from Alpha Prime’s #45 entry.
DRIVER CHANGE: #45-Alpha Prime Racing
MISSING: #71-DGM Racing x JIM
RETURNING / DRIVER SWAP: #92-DGM Racing x JIM
NEW TEAM: #02-Young’s Motorsports
After back-to-back seasons as runner-up in the ARCA Menards Series standings and his first two O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts last season, Lavar Scott takes over for Josh Williams with Urban Affairs Coalition as sponsor. Williams returns to DGM Racing x JIM once more, this time in the returning #92 with Optum as sponsor, and acquires the 29th-place Owner Points rank from DGM’s shuttered #71 team driven last year by Ryan Ellis. After parting ways with DGM at the end of last season, Ellis moves to Randy Young’s new second O’Reilly Auto Parts team, the #02. Tablo TV continues as sponsor. Ellis gains the benefit of the 14th-place Owners Points rank inherited from Kaulig Racing’s shuttered #16 team.
MISSING: #74-Mike Harmon Racing
As with his Truck Series effort from last season, Mike Harmon will not field a car this week on the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Last fall, Harmon fielded a car for Dawson Cram, who finished 36th.
RETURNING: #87-Peterson Racing Group
Trans-Am’s Peterson team makes a second bid at starting their own O’Reilly Auto Parts Series team with driver Austin Green, having before joined forces with Jordan Anderson Racing. This time, Green is again the driver, now looking at a full season under the Peterson banner with their familiar #87. Green has been adding oval races to his once exclusive road course schedule, though all eight of his top-ten finishes in 21 series starts have all come on road and street courses.
DRIVER CHANGE: #88-JR Motorsports
After Connor Zilisch moved to full-time Cup Series competition following his own record-shattering 2025 in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, two-time race winner Rajah Caruth graduates from the Truck Series to run this car part-time. Caruth seeks to complete the season with other teams including Jordan Anderson Racing’s #32.
CUP INVADERS: #42-Carson Hocevar
Sunday, February 15, 2026 (Green Flag 2:13 P.M. ET, FOX)
CUP Race 1 of 36
Daytona 500 at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finisher: A.J. Allmendinger
The Daytona 500 completes the week on Sunday.
TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (February 11, 1971): Before the recent rule change, this day in 1971 marked the last time the Duel races at Daytona counted as Cup Series points-paying races. Both races’ last-place finishers dropped out after just one lap, each driving 1969 Chevrolets. In Race 1, Joe Hines had engine issues in the #80, while Race 2 saw Ken Mesienhelder flagged off the track. Both failed to make the field for the Daytona 500.
