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The NASCAR Cup Series arrives at its most famous venue – Daytona International Speedway – for a Saturday night race filled with qualifying implications.
There are only two races left in the regular season before The 10-race qualifying begins on September 8. At Atlanta Motor Speedway. Twelve of the 16 playoff spots are locked, leaving four spots available for drivers who haven’t won. Those drivers have two remaining chances to secure a spot: either win at Daytona or next weekend at Darlington Raceway, or if they’re on the bubble, collect enough points to secure one of the remaining spots.
Since Daytona can be an unpredictable race, an unexpected win from the bottom of the line wouldn’t be a huge surprise. Recent winners of the Daytona summer race include Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Erik Jones, Justin Haley, Austin Dillon and Chris Buescher.
Will Daytona deliver another surprise on Saturday night? Here’s everything you need to know to prepare for the Coke Zero Sugar 400:
What time does the NASCAR Cup Series start at Daytona?
The Coke Zero Sugar 400 starts at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
What TV channel is broadcasting the NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona?
NBC will broadcast the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and has a pre-race program that starts at 7 p.m. ET.
Will there be a live stream of the NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona?
Coke Zero Sugar 400 can be streamed live on NBCSports website And the NBC Sports app. The race is also available to stream live on Fubo.
How many laps are there in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona?
The Coke Zero Sugar 400 will consist of 160 laps around the 2.5-mile track for a total of 400 miles. The race will include three segments (laps per stage) – Stage 1: 35 laps; Stage 2: 60 laps; Stage 3: 65 laps.
Who won the last NASCAR Cup races at Daytona?
William Byron won the season-opening Daytona 500 on February 19, 2024, taking the lead on a restart with four laps to go before overtaking Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman when a crash occurred as Byron flew the white flag on the final lap.
One year ago, on August 26, 2023, Chris Buescher won in overtime, edging out his Roush Fenway Racing teammate and co-owner Brad Kesolowski by 0.098 seconds after leading on a green-white-checkered restart.
Which drivers have already secured their spots in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs?
Drivers can clinch playoff spots with a regular-season win. Here is a list of the 12 drivers with at least one win this season (with wins and points before the Cup Series race at Daytona):
Kyle Larson 4 (782); William Byron 3 (728); Denny Hamlin 3 (711); Christopher Bell 3 (703); Tyler Reddick 2 (814); Ryan Blaney 2 (732); Chase Elliott 1 (804); Brad Keselowski 1 (677); Alex Bowman 1 (627); Joey Logano 1 (561); Daniel Suarez 1 (526); Austin Cindric 1 (460).
Note: Austin Dillon won the August 11 race at Richmond, but three days later, NASCAR stripped him of an automatic playoff spot after reviewing the final lap of the race and contact from the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing team. Dillon wrecked Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin on the final lap before taking the checkered flag. An appeals panel upheld the penalty.
What is the race lineup for the Coca-Cola Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona?
(Vehicle number in parentheses)
1. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford
2. (38) Todd Gilliland, Ford
3. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
4. (41) Ryan Press, Ford
5. (4) Josh Perry, Ford
6. (14) Chase Briscoe, Ford
7. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet
8. (2) Austin Cindric, Ford
9. (5) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
10. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
11. (8) Kyle Busch, Chevrolet
12. (6) Brad Keselowski, Ford
13. (17) Chris Buescher, Ford
14. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
15. (10) Noah Gragson, Ford
16. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
17. (19) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota
18. (23) Bubba Wallace, Toyota
19. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
20. (21) Harrison Burton, Ford
21. (48) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet
22. (99) Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet
23. (33) Austin Hill, Chevrolet
24. (1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet
25. (45) Tyler Reddick, Toyota
26. (54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota
27. (20) Christopher Bell, Toyota
28. (31) Daniel Hemrick, Chevrolet
29. (62) Parker Retzlaff, Chevrolet
30. (71) Zane Smith, Chevrolet
31. (42) John Hunter Nemchek, Toyota
32. (16) Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet
33. (15) Cody Ware, Ford
34. (7) Corey LaJoie, Chevrolet
35. (47) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet
36. (51) Justin Haley, Ford
37. (77) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet
38. (78) P.J. McLeod, Chevrolet
39. (44) Joey Gas, Chevrolet
40. (43) Eric Jones, Toyota
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