DAYTONA BEACH — They'll run the Daytona 500. That much we know.
We know where they'll run it: Daytona International Speedway.
We know why they run it: it's the most-watched stock car race in North America, and for NASCAR, its most popular.
We know how they'll manage it: 40 cars hoping to complete 200 laps, divided into three stages, around a 2.5-mile track. Math: 200 x 2.5 = 500.
It's the when That's in question, and with that in mind, let's dive into the 66th edition of The Great American Race.
When is the Daytona 500?
Currently, the Daytona 500 is scheduled to start at 2:30 PM on Sunday, although that is subject to change depending on the weather. More on that below.
What channel is the Daytona 500 shown on?
The Daytona 500 will be broadcast on Fox.
Where is the Daytona 500?
The Daytona 500 is held every year at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
How many laps does the Daytona 500 take?
The Daytona 500 is scheduled to last 200 laps, although that number could grow if the caution flag comes out late. Last year's Great American Race was the longest ever at 212 laps after it was restarted in green and white.
Weather update for the Daytona 500
As of Friday morning, the forecast for the weekend remains very poor. There is an 80% chance of rain Saturday morning, rising to 90% by Saturday night.
Rain chance for Sunday's Daytona 500 reaches 70%
Daytona 500 predictions
News-Journal Sports Editor Ryan Britt and Sports Columnist Ken Willis provide their predictions for the winner of the Great American Race as well as some predictions for the NASCAR Cup Series season. Bret took Brad Keselowski to the win this week while Kane went with fan favorite Chase Elliott.
Daytona 500 wallet
The wallet distribution for Speedweek is as follows:
- Daytona 500: $28,035,991
- Xfinity Series: $3,510,021
- Truck series: $1,058,336
Starting grid for the Daytona 500
- Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
- Michael McDowell, No. 34, front row of Ford sports cars
- Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
- Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
- Alex Bowman, No. 48 Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports
- Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
- John Hunter Nemechek, no. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
- Eric Jones, No. 43 Legacy Car Club Toyota
- Harrison Burton, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
- Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
- Zane Smith, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
- Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford
- Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford
- Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
- Justin Haley, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford
- Jimmie Johnson, No. 84 Legacy Car Club Toyota
- Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
- Ryan Preece, No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Kaz Grala, No. 36, front row Ford sports car
- Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- A. J. Allmendinger, no. 16 College Racing Chevrolet
- Cor Lajoie, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
- David Ragan, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
- Todd Gilliland, No. 38 Front Row Ford Motorsports
- Josh Perry, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
- Ricky Stenhouse, No. 47 GTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
- Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- Daniel Hemric, No. 31 College Racing Chevrolet
- Riley Herbst, No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford
- Anthony Alfredo, No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet
- Noah Gragson, No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford,
- +1000: Joey Logano
- +1100: Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin
- +1200: Ryan Blaney
- +1400: Chase Elliott
- +1500: Kyle Busch, Christopher Bell
- +1600: Kyle Larson
- +1750: Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher, William Byron
- +2000: Michael McDowell, Ty Gibbs
- +2250: Martin Truex Jr
- +2500: Ross Chastain, Eric Jones, Tyler Reddick
- +3000: Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Alex Bowman, Austin Cindric
- +4000: Austin Dillon
- +5000: Corey LaJoie, Ryan Brees, Chase Briscoe
- +6000: Josh Perry, Carson Hocevar, John Hunter Nemechek, Daniel Suarez, Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, Harrison Burton
- +7500: Riley Herbst, Zane Smith, Jimmie Johnson, David Ragan, Justin Haley
- +10000: Anthony Alfredo, Daniel Hemric, Todd Gilliland, Kaz Grala
Who won the Daytona 500 in 2023?
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won last year and is the champion of the event.
Who has won the most Daytona 500 races?
Richard Petty has the most Daytona 500 wins with seven.
- 1959: Lee Petty, No. 42 Small Enterprise Oldsmobile
- 1960: Junior Johnson, No. 27 John Mansone Chevrolet
- 1961: Marvin Bunch, No. 20 Smokey Unique Pontiac
- 1962: Fireball Roberts, No. 22 Jim Stevens Pontiac
- 1963: Tiny Lund, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
- 1964: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Plymouth Enterprise
- 1965: Fred Lorenzen, No. 28 Holman-Moody Ford
- 1966: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Plymouth Enterprise
- 1967: Mario Andretti, No. 11 Holman-Moody Ford
- 1968: Cale Yarborough, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Mercury
- 1969: Leroy Yarbrough, No. 98 Junior Johnson & Co. Ford
- 1970: Hamilton House, No. 40 Plymouth Minor Institution
- 1971: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Plymouth Enterprise
- 1972: A.J. Foyt, No. 21 Wood Brothers Mercury
- 1973: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Dodge
- 1974: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Dodge
- 1975: Benny Parsons, No. 72 LG DeWitt Chevrolet
- 1976: David Pearson, No. 21 Wood Brothers Mercury
- 1977: Cale Yarborough, No. 11 Junior Johnson & Co. Chevrolet
- 1978: Bobby Allison, No. 15 Bud Moore Engineering Ford
- 1979: Richard Petty, No. 43 Small Enterprise Oldsmobile
- 1980: Buddy Baker, No. 28 Ranier-Lundy Oldsmobile
- 1981: Richard Petty, No. 43 Little Buick Foundation
- 1982: Bobby Allison, No. 88 Digard Motorsports Buick
- 1983: Cale Yarborough, No. 28 Ranier Lundy Pontiac
- 1984: Cale Yarborough, No. 28 Ranier Lundy Chevrolet
- 1985: Bill Elliott, No. 9 Milling Racing Ford
- 1986: Jeffrey Bodine, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1987: Bill Elliott, No. 9 Milling Racing Ford
- 1988: Bobby Allison, No. 12 Stavola Brothers Racing Buick
- 1989: Darrell Waltrip, No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1990: Derek Cobb, No. 10 Whitcomb Racing Chevrolet
- 1991: Ernie Irvan, No. 4 Morgan-McClure Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1992: Davey Allison, No. 28 Robert Yates Racing Ford
- 1993: Dale Jarrett, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet
- 1994: Sterling Marlin, No. 4 Morgan-McClure Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1995: Sterling Marlin, No. 4 Morgan-McClure Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1996: Dale Jarrett, No. 88 Robert Yates Racing Ford
- 1997: Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 1998: Dale Earnhardt, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- 1999: Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 2000: Dale Jarrett, No. 88 Robert Yates Racing Ford
- 2001: Michael Waltrip, No. 15 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet
- 2002: Ward Burton, Bill Davis Racing Dodge
- 2003: Michael Waltrip, No. 15 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet
- 2004: Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 8 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet
- 2005: Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 2006: Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 2007: Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- 2008: Ryan Newman, No. 12 Penske Racing Dodge
- 2009: Matt Kenseth, No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford
- 2010: Jimmy McMurray, No. 1 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
- 2011: Trevor Bayne, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
- 2012: Matt Kenseth, No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford
- 2013: Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 2014: Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
- 2015: Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
- 2016: Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- 2017: Kurt Busch, No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
- 2018: Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
- 2019: Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- 2020: Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- 2021: Michael McDowell, No. 34, front row Ford Sports Car
- 2022: Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
- 2023: Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 GTG Daugherty Chevrolet
