Daytona 500 primer: Everything to know about the 2024 season-opening race
The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season is one month away. The teams will soon head to Daytona International Speedway to compete in the Daytona 500.
There will be 40 drivers that suit up and attempt to complete all 200 laps around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. The winner will secure a potential spot in the Cup playoffs.
Here is what to know about the crown jewel race that marks the start of the Cup Series season.
Time and date
The Daytona 500 will take place Sunday, Feb. 18, at 2:30 p.m. ET. Fox will provide coverage with Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick in the booth.
Non-chartered entries
The Daytona 500 will feature the 36 chartered entries that have a guaranteed spot in the lineup. There will be several non-chartered entries that will aim to join the 40-car lineup.
Four teams have announced plans to compete in this season's Daytona 500.
David Ragan will drive the No. 60 Ford Mustang for RFK Racing. Anthony Alfredo will drive the No. 62 Chevrolet Camaro for Beard Motorsports. Jimmie Johnson will drive the No. 84 Toyota Camry for Legacy Motor Club. BJ McLeod will drive the No. 78 Chevrolet Camaro for Live Fast Motorsports.
Qualifying
The Daytona 500 is different from other Cup races in that it has multiple days of on-track action to determine the starting lineup.
The process starts with single-car qualifying, which takes place Wednesday, Feb. 14. NASCAR will do a random draw to determine the qualifying order.
One driver will win pole. Another will secure a spot on the front row during this session. One non-chartered car from each group will secure a spot in the Daytona 500 based on their qualifying speed.
The qualifying format will continue on Thursday, Feb. 15, with the Bluegreen Vacation Duel races. The field will split into two groups for these 60-lap races, which will determine the rest of the Daytona 500 starting lineup. One non-chartered car from each Duel race will secure a spot in the Daytona 500.
Support series
There will be a packed weekend of racing. The Craftsman Truck Series will start its season on Friday, Feb. 16. The ARCA Menards Series and Xfinity Series will both race on Saturday, Feb. 17.
Dignitaries
The United States Air Force Thunderbirds will return to Daytona for the 14th consecutive season — 15th overall — to perform a flyover for the sold-out crowd ahead of the 66th Running of the Daytona 500.
NASCAR has more announcements to make about the grand marshal, honorary starter and pace car driver.
Past winners
There are several active Daytona 500 winners who will be in the lineup for the Feb. 18 race. The majority have guaranteed spots due to charters. One will have to race his way into the crown jewel race.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the Daytona 500 for the first time in his career last season. He held off 2015 Daytona 500 champion Joey Logano in overtime. Both will be back in the lineup this season.
Austin Dillon (2018), Michael McDowell (2021) and Austin Cindric (2022) are the other drivers who have celebrated one Daytona 500 win. All will be back in the lineup and in search of another season-opening win.
Denny Hamlin returns to Daytona in search of his fourth Daytona 500 win. He won in 2016 and then went back-to-back in 2019 and '20.
Jimmie Johnson is the other multi-time Daytona 500 winner. He won in 2006 and '13. Johnson does not have a guaranteed spot in the lineup and will have to qualify on speed or during one of the Duel races.