What’s Happening?

The Truck Series takes the week off, and the Xfinity Series returns to action as two of NASCAR’s three National Series head to Daytona International Speedway for the NASCAR Cup Series Regular finale.  

• Daytona International Speedway opened in 1959 as a replacement for NASCAR’s 4.150-mile race on the beaches of Daytona. The 2.5-mile tri-oval served as the model for Alabama’s Talladega Superspeedway, which opened in 1968.
• The NASCAR Cup Series has raced at the 2.5-mile tri-oval since 1959, with two highly anticipated race dates: February’s Daytona 500 and August’s Coke Zero Sugar 400. The Xfinity Series first raced at Daytona in 1982 and added its 250-mile race in 2002.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a three-time winner of the Xfinity Series summer race at Daytona, though Justin Haley, who finished second, is the only driver to win it multiple times, having done so twice. David Pearson has five wins in the Cup Series summer race; multiple active drivers have won the race, though none have done so multiple times.

Weekend TV Schedule (All Times EST)*

Friday, August 22: Xfinity Series Qualifying | Cup Series Qualifying | Xfinity Series Race

• 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM — Xfinity Series Qualifying on the CW App
• 5:05 PM – 6:30 PM — Cup Series Qualifying on TruTV
• 7:30 PM — Xfinity Series Wawa 250 Powered By Coca-Cola on the CW [TV] & MRN [Radio]

Saturday, August 23: Cup Series Race

• 7:30 PM – Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 on NBC [TV], Peacock [Streaming] & MRN [Radio]

Race Facts: Daytona International Speedway

Track Facts: Daytona International Speedway

• Year Opened: 1958
• Length: 2.5 Miles
• Banking: 31°
• Surface: Asphalt
• Rain Tires: No
• Lights: Yes

Wawa 250 Powered By Coca-Cola on the CW:

• Race Length: 160 Laps (400 Miles)
• Stages: 35 Lap Stage One, 60 Lap Stage Two, 65 Lap Final Stage
• Most Recent Race Winner: Ryan Truex

Coke Zero Sugar 400 on NBC:

• Race Length: 100 Laps (250 Miles)
• Stages: 30 Lap Stage One, 30 Lap Stage Two, 40 Lap Final Stage

2024 Cook Out 400 Results:

• First: Harrison Burton — No. 21
• Second: Kyle Busch — No. 8
• Third: Christopher Bell — No. 20
• Fourth: Cody Ware — No. 15
• Fifth: Ty Gibbs — No. 54

Top Storylines of the Weekend

• Once again, Daytona will host the NASCAR Cup Series Regular-Season finale. William Byron has already secured the championship, while two open playoff slots remain. Right now, Tyler Reddick and Alex Bowman maintain those spots, though most view it as likely that a current non-playoff driver will win the race, in which one driver will make it in on points.
• Last Summer’s race at Daytona was not the cutoff race for the playoffs. Nonetheless, the race played out like cutoff races of the past, with a thrilling finish that saw Harrison Burton lift the Wood Brothers from below the top 30 line and into the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. This was part of a stretch of three new winners from Richmond to Darlington, though Austin Dillon’s win at Richmond would not count towards playoff eligibility.
• Though the NASCAR Cup Series is one race out of its playoffs, the NASCAR Xfinity Series still has three races to go. After this weekend, the series heads to Portland for the next-to-last road course race of its season, then to WWT Raceway for the regular season finale. Four spots remain in the playoff picture, meaning that at least one to four will make it in on points.

Entry Lists

Cup Series

Notable and Open Entries:

• #4 – Noah Gragson
• #23 – Bubba Wallace
• #33 – Austin Hill
• #34 – Todd Gilliland
• #35 – Riley Herbst
• #38 – Zane Smith
• #44 – Joey Gase
• #45 – Tyler Reddick
• #66 – Casey Mears
• #78 – B.J. McLeod

Xfinity Series

Notable Entries:

• #5 – Caesar Bacarella
• #11 – Justin Haley
• #19 – Aric Almirola
• #32 – Rajah Caruth
• #92 – Natalie Decker

Note: This article will be updated as more information about the weekend comes out.