PREVIEW: Thanks to several part-time entries, qualifying will be of consequence for both Daytona races
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
PHOTO: Steven Taranto, @STaranto92
Friday, August 28, 2026 (Green Flag 7:40 P.M. ET, CW)
O’REILLY Race 24 of 33
Regular Season Finale
Winn-Dixie 250 Powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Parker Retzlaff
ENTRY LIST
The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series returns to action for the first time since Iowa, nearly three weeks ago, and boasts an entry list of 39 drivers for 38 spots, meaning one team will fail to qualify for the Regular Season Finale.
RETURNING: #4-Alpha Prime Racing
Back in February, Caesar Bacarella qualified this part-time entry at Alpha Prime Racing, but handed the wheel over to Anthony Alfredo, who failed to qualify in the debut of Viking Motorsports’ second team. As Alfredo has since turned around his season with several impressive finishes, Bacarella is again entered in the #4, this time running a brown scheme on his Prime Bites Chevrolet. This would be the #4 team’s first start since that February race, and the first for Bacarella this season – if he qualifies, noting he’s the lone “go-or-go-homer” on this list.
MISSING: #9-JR Motorsports
Not among this week’s entrants is Ross Chastain, who finished 4th last time out in Iowa. Chastain, who finished last in last Sunday’s Cup race in Loudon, will instead focus on his Cup effort and his longshot run at a place in the Chase.
DRIVER CHANGE: #32-Jordan Anderson Racing Bommarito Autosport
Daniel Dye and sponsor Champion Container pull double-duty this weekend in what will be his first start for Jordan Andersons team and first in the series since Las Vegas, when he last ran the second entry for the now shuttered AM Racing. Dye takes the place of Carson Brown, who after his 15th-place series debut in Iowa has just this week been named as Jesse Love’s replacement in Richard Childress’ #2 entry for 2027.
DRIVER SWAP: #38-RSS Racing
DRIVER CHANGE: #39-RSS Racing
Four months after his popular first ARCA Menards Series victory in Talladega, Andy Jankowiak will make his NASCAR national series debut. He pilots RSS Racing’s Ford, which will carry Ryan Sieg’s car number #39 to help assure his place in the field. His red-and-black machine carries sponsorship from Coastal Conservation Association of Florida. Ryan Sieg will run the #38 in his place, carrying sponsorship from Superior Integrity Services on top of SciAps.
DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Young’s Motorsports
While the preliminary entry list showed no driver listed in the Randy Young #42, run last time out in Iowa to a 25th-place finish with Nathan Byrd, it’s since been announced that Natalie Decker will drive. Returning to the scene of her controversial accident with Sam Mayer in February, Decker carries sponsorship from the series “Chad Powers” on Hulu. Decker’s third and most recent series start of 2026 was back at Pocono, where engine trouble sidelined her after just 17 laps.
DRIVER CHANGE: #47-Mike Harmon Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #53-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
Dawson Cram returns to the Harmon team this week, set to make just his second series start at Daytona and first in more than two years, dating back to a 31st-place run for JD Motorsports in the 2024 season opener. Fuku Energy Drink is the listed sponsor. Cram takes the place of Carson Ware, who finished last in Iowa after contact from Jesse Love put him in the wall. Ware will also run this week, taking the place of 32nd-place Iowa finisher Tyler Tomassi in Joey Gase’s #53 entry. Ware carries sponsorship from Foundations to Freedom.
RETURNING: #71-DGM Racing x JIM
Mario Gosselin’s part-time third entry is back in the garage for the first time since Leland Honeyman, Jr.’s 35th-place showing in Sears Point this past June. Honeyman and sponsor DPR Construction return, marking Honeyman’s eighth series start of 2026 and first since a 28th in the summer race at Atlanta, driving Gosselins #92.
DRIVER SWAP: #91-DGM Racing x JIM
DRIVER CHANGE: #92-DGM Racing x JIM
Speaking of the #92, welcome back Josh Williams, who seeks his 12th series start of the season and his own first since Sears Point, where he finished under power in the 27th spot. Optum returns a sponsor. Williams takes the place of Mason Maggio, who finished 34th in Iowa after late-race suspension issues, and moves to DGM’s #91, taking the place of 26th-place Iowa finisher Derek Lemke.
CUP INVADERS: None
Saturday, August 29, 2026 (Green Flag 7:47 P.M. ET, NBC)
CUP Race 26 of 36
Regular Season Finale
Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Riley Herbst
ENTRY LIST
There are 41 drivers entered for 40 available starting spots, marking only the third time all season that a “full” field of 40 will take the green flag and the first since Talladega in April, where 41 were also entered.
DRIVER CHANGE: #35-23XI Racing
On Saturday morning, it was announced that Riley Herbst is still feeling effects of his brutal Turn 3 accdent at Loudon last week, and will not race after qualifying the car on Friday. Taking his place is Harrison Burton, the 2024 race winner, who will now complete double-duty after a strong run for Sam Hunt Racing on Friday.
NUMBER CHANGE: #42-Legacy Motor Club
Following the one-off number change for Dollar Tree’s 40th anniversary last Sunday in Loudon, John Hunter Nemechek returns to his familiar #42. Pye-Barker Fire & Safety will sponsor his ride for Saturday.
RETURNING: #44-NY Racing Team
Joey Gase will attempt Saturday’s race, not in the NextGen Chevrolet he revealed earlier this week, but with John Cohen’s #44 team. The NFPA, or National Fire Protection Association, continues its sponsorship of Gase along with new associate backer LED Pros, which makes its series debut. Gase will run double-duty with his own #55 in tonight’s race. Saturday would mark Gase’s 95th series start and his first since his 30th-place showing in Talladega, also while driving Cohen’s car.
RETURNING: #62-Beard Motorsports
Casey Mears, the last lap surprise from February’s first Duel race, looks to help the Beard Motorsports team bounce back from their DNQ in this February’s Daytona 500 with Anthony Alfredo, plus mid-race crashes Mears had in this car at both Pocono and Indianapolis in addition to his own washed-out DNQ at Talladega in the spring. The result would be Mears’ 498th career Cup start and his 29th in a Cup race at Daytona.
RETURNING: #66-Garage 66
Carl Long’s team, for whom Mears ran in February, also returns to action with Gray Gaulding aboard and sponsorship from Randy Blain Construction. Gaulding, who has earned several strong runs on the superspeedways in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, seeks his first Cup start since 2023, when he ran 29th for Rick Ware Racing at Gateway. This would be only the second-ever Cup start at Daytona for Gaulding, his first since the 2018 Daytona 500, where he ran 20th for BK Racing.
RETURNING: #67-23XI Racing
Corey Heim looks to continue his impressive not-quite-rookie season with sponsorship from Celsius on 23XI Racing’s part-time third entry. This marks Heim’s first Cup start since his win in the Brickyard 400 and just his second at Daytona, following a 28th-place showing this past February in the 500.
RETURNING: #78-Live Fast Motorsports
Closing out the contingent of “open” teams for Saturday is B.J. McLeod’s single-car effort, which brings Daniel Dye to the conclusion of his double-duty effort this weekend. Dye seeks his fourth career Cup start and first since Indianapolis, where a crash in the closing stages left him next-to-last in a field of 39. This team made the field for this year’s Daytona 500, only to fall out early with a freak mechanical issue that put McLeod in last place.
Thursday, September 17, 2026
TRUCKS Race 19 of 25
Chase Race 1 of 7
UNOH 200 at Bristol
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Clayton Green
The Truck Series returns in three weeks to begin their “Chase” in Bristol.
TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (August 28, 1999): In the Goody’s Headache Powder 500 at Bristol, the race that saw Dale Earnhardt wreck Terry Labonte out of the lead on the final lap, Robert Pressley earned his 5th career last-place finish after his #77 Jasper Engines & Transmissions Ford fell out with crash damage following an early incident, credited with 140 completed laps.
