Official starting lineup for the 2026 Daytona 500

Kyle Busch will lead the field to the green flag in this Sunday’s Daytona 500, driving the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Chase Briscoe will join him on the front row of “The Great American Race” after these two qualifying leads on Wednesday.

But after Thursday’s Duel qualifying races, won by Joey Logano and Chase Elliott, we now know the starting positions of the rest of the field. Corey LaJoie, Chandler Smith, JJ Yeley and Anthony Alfredo (who was disqualified) all missed the field, but 41 others will take part in the 2026 season opener on Sunday. Let’s review the entire grid, accompanied by photos for each of the challengers.

Advertisement

1. Kyle Busch – No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

2. Chase Briscoe – No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

3. Joey Logano – #22 Team Penske Ford

Joey Logano, Team Penske Ford

4. Chase Elliott – No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

5. Ryan Blaney – Team Penske Ford #12

Ryan Blaney, Team Penske Ford

6. Carson Hocevar – No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

7. Austin Dillon – No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

8. Kyle Larson – No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

9. Brad Keselowski – Ford RFK Racing n°6

Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford

10. Michael McDowell – No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

11. John-Hunter Nemechek – Legacy Motor Club Toyota No. 42

John-Hunter Nemechek, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

12. Christopher Bell – No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

13. Shane van Gisbergen – #97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

14. Josh Berry – Wood Brothers Racing Ford #21

Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford

15. Daniel Suarez – No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet (backup car)

Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – Chevrolet Hyak Motorsports #47

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet

17. Casey Mears – #66 Garage 66 Ford

Casey Mears, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford

18. Todd Gilliland – Ford #34 Front Row Motorsports

Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Motorsport Ford in front row

19. Ryan Preece – #60 RFK Racing Ford

Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford

20. Ty Gibbs – Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota #54

Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota #54

21. Alex Bowman – No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

22. Denny Hamlin – No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

23. Cole Custer – #41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet

Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Chevrolet

24. Erik Jones – Legacy Motor Club Toyota No. 43

Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

25. Noah Gragson – No. 4 motorsports Ford on the front row

Noah Gragson, No. 4 Motorsport Ford on the front row

26. Tyler Reddick – Toyota #45 23XI Racing

Tyler Reddick, No. 45 Toyota 23XI Racing

27. Bubba Wallace – Toyota #23 23XI Racing

Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota

28. Riley Herbst – Toyota #35 23XI Racing

Riley Herbst, No. 35 Toyota 23XI Racing

29. Corey Heim – Toyota #67 23XI Racing

Corey Heim, No. 67 Toyota 23XI Racing

30. Zane Smith – No. 38 Motorsport Ford on the front row

Zane Smith, No. 38 Motorsport Ford on the front row

31. Jimmie Johnson – Legacy Motor Club Toyota No. 84

Jimmie Johnson, Legacy Motor Club Toyota

32. Connor Zilisch – No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

33. Cody Ware – Chevrolet #51 Rick Ware Racing

Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet

34. Ty Dillon – No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

35. AJ Allmendinger – No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

AJ Allmendinger, Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

36. Austin Cindric – Team Penske Ford #2

Austin Cindric, No. 2 of the Penske Ford team

37. Ross Chastain – No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet (backup car)

Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing’s No. 1 Chevrolet

38. BJ McLeod – Chevrolet #78 Live Fast Motorsports

BJ McLeod, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet

39. William Byron – No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (backup car)

William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

40. Justin Allgaier – No. 40 JR Motorsports Chevrolet

Justin Allgaier, No. 40 JR Motorsports Chevrolet

41. Chris Buescher – No. 17 RFK Racing Ford (backup car)

Chris Buescher, RFK Racing Ford

Read also:

Advertisement

Joey Logano wins Duel #1 as Mears goes all-out in wreck to compete in Daytona 500

Chase Elliott wins Duel #2 in no-warning race

Anthony Alfredo disqualified and excluded from the Daytona 500 field

Duel shows why anything is possible in the Daytona 500

Kyle Busch and RCR claim 2026 Daytona 500 pole position

There were four winners after Daytona 500 qualifying

Noah Gragson’s Daytona 500 qualifying lap banned for using banned tactic

To read more articles on Motorsport.com visit our website.