Chandler Smith will attempt to run the Daytona 500 for the Garage 66 team after NASCAR did not approve Mike Wallace for the ride.
Smith, 22, made three Cup starts in 2023 for Kaulig Racing. He failed to make the Daytona 500 for Garage 66, then known as MBM Motorsports, that year.
Smith will race full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Front Row Motorsports this season after racing full-time in the Xfinity Series last year.
“I am very excited to have the opportunity to compete in the Daytona 500 with Garage 66,” Smith said in a team release. “Participating in the Great American Race is such an honor, and I can’t thank (sponsor) QuickTie and Carl Long enough for helping put this together.
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The team announced earlier this month that Wallace would be in the team’s No. 66 car at Daytona. Wallace has 197 Cup starts. His last Cup start came in the 2015 Daytona 500. He won the 2000 Truck Race at Daytona and the summer 2004 Xfinity race there.
NASCAR confirmed on January 13 that it had not approved Wallace for the Cup Series.
That left Garage 66 and Long, the team’s co-owner, looking for a new driver and sponsor.
“The last few days have been a whirlwind of phone calls and emails after Mike Wallace was not approved to be the driver for our entry in the Daytona 500,” Long said in a team statement. “After several days of non-stop communication with available drivers who could race a Ford, the pieces came together to place Chandler Smith in our car.”
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The Feb. 2 exhibition race will feature 23 cars in a 200-lap main event.
The team will be one of at least eight vying for the four open Daytona 500 spots.
These other drivers and teams are:
Jimmie Johnson with the Legacy Motor Club
Martin Truex Jr. with Tricon Garage
Justin Allgaier with JR Motorsports
Beard Motorsports with Anthony Alfredo
Experience fast motorsports with BJ McLeod
NY Racing with JJ Yeley
Hélio Castroneves with Trackhouse Racing
The Daytona 500 will take place on February 16.
