NASCAR Cup Series
By Zach Sturniolo
NASCAR.com
Published: 14 Feb, 2022
6 Minute Read
The most storied event in NASCAR finally sits on our doorstep. The Daytona 500 is here to officially kick off the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season and the Next Gen era. Everything you need — from the event schedule to the qualifying format — is right here.
The 64th annual Daytona 500 (Sunday, Feb. 20, 2:30 p.m. ET) carries rich history as one of the most coveted triumphs in all of racing. Legends such as Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Richard Petty and Mario Andretti have all tasted victory within the high banks of the mammoth, 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway.
On Feb. 20, 40 drivers will compete in the Great American Race. Let’s dive into how the field will take shape over the course of six days in Daytona Beach:
Qualifying for the Daytona 500 is unlike any other points race on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule.
Single-car qualifying on Feb. 16 (8:05 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will now have two rounds, with the top 10 speeds in Round 1 moving on to second round. The fastest two cars in Round 2 will lock in as the front-row starters for Sunday’s Great American Race.
The rest of the starting grid, however, follows a unique formula.
First, the single-car qualifying results will set the lineups for the Bluegreen Vacation Duels races on Thursday evening. Cars finishing first, third, fifth, seventh, etc. in single-car runs will comprise the field for Duel 1. The cars in even-numbered finishing positions in single-car qualifying will comprise the field for Duel 2. However, NASCAR will ensure there are an equal number of Open, or non-Charter teams, in each Duel race.
Then the results from the Bluegreen Vacation Duels will set the starting lineup for the Daytona 500. The finishers from Duel 1 will line up on the inside row in order of their Duel finish. Meanwhile, the finishers from Duel 2 will line up on the outside row in order of their Duel finish.
The fastest open team in each Duel race will qualify into the Daytona 500 field, while the two open teams with the fastest times from single-car qualifying that didn’t qualify through the duels will fill the last two spots in the 40-car field.
Additionally, the top-10 finishers in each Duel will receive points toward the regular-season championship. The winner will receive 10 points, the runner-up nine, and so on until the 10th-place finisher receives one point. No playoff points will be awarded through the Duel.
If rain washes out the Duel races, NASCAR will set the grid for the Daytona 500 by qualifying speeds, taking the four fastest Open cars to complete the 40-car field. If only the second duel is canceled, then the highest-finishing open team from the first duel and the three remaining fastest open teams from qualifying will advance.
FOX Sports will have the full slate of NASCAR action in Daytona, including practice, qualifying and the Bluegreen Vacations Duels. Practice begins Tuesday, Feb. 15 at 5:05 p.m. ET, followed by the second practice at 6:35 p.m.
Wednesday features Daytona 500 pole qualifying presented by Busch Light at 8:05 p.m. ET, setting the front row for the marquee event as well as the starting lineups for Thursday’s two qualifying races, the first of which goes green at 7 p.m. ET on Feb. 17.
Friday (6 p.m. ET) and Saturday (10:30 a.m.) will feature one practice session each day for the Cup Series stars. Then, all that’s left is Sunday’s 64th running of the Great American Race.
See the full rundown of TV and national radio coverage below:
RELATED: Active drivers with a Daytona 500 win | See every Daytona 500 winner
Entry
Veh #
Driver
Organization
Crew Chief
Veh Mfg
Sponsor
1
Ross Chastain
TrackHouse Racing
Phil Surgen
Chevrolet
Advent Health
2
Austin Cindric
Team Penske
Jeremy Bullins
Ford
Discount Tire
3
Austin Dillon
Richard Childress Racing
Justin Alexander
Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road
4
Kevin Harvick
Stewart Haas Racing
Rodney Childers
Busch Light #BUSCHRACETEAM
5
Kyle Larson
Hendrick Motorsports
Cliff Daniels
HendrickCars.com
6
Brad Keselowski
RFK Racing
Matt McCall
Kohler Generators
7
Corey Lajoie
Spire Motorsports
Ryan Sparks
Built.com
8
Tyler Reddick
Randall Burnett
3CHI
9
Chase Elliott
Alan Gustafson
NAPA Auto Parts
10
Aric Almirola
Drew Blickensderfer
Smithifeld
11
Denny Hamlin
Joe Gibbs Racing
Chris Gabehart
Toyota
FedEx Express
12
Ryan Blaney
Jonathan Hassler
Menards\Blue DEF\PEAK
13
14
Chase Briscoe
John Klausmeier
Mahindra Tractors
15
David Ragan
Rick Ware Racing
Michael Hillman
Select Blinds Ford
16
Daniel Hemric (i)
Kaulig Racing
Matt Swiderski
Heritage Pool Supply Group
17
Chris Buescher
Scott Graves
Fastenal
18
Kyle Busch
Ben Beshore
M&M’s
19
Martin Truex Jr.
James Small
Bass Pro Shops
20
Christopher Bell
Adam Stevens
DeWalt
21
Harrison Burton
Wood Brothers Racing
Brian Wilson
Motorcraft \ Dex Imaging
22
Joey Logano
Paul Wolfe
Shell Pennzoil
23
Bubba Wallace
23XI Racing
Bootie Barker III
McDonald’s
24
William Byron
Ryan Fugle
Axalta
27
Jacques Villeneuve
Team Hezeberg
Josh Reaume
25
31
Justin Haley
Trent Owens
LeafFilter Gutter Protection
26
34
Michael McDowell
Front Row Motorsports
Blake Harris
Love’s Travel Stops
38
Todd Gilliland
Seth Barbour
First Phase Credit Card
28
41
Cole Custer
Mike Shiplett
HaasTooling.com
29
42
Ty Dillon
Petty GMS Motorsports
Jerame Donley
Black Rifle Coffee Company
30
43
Erik Jones
David Elenz
FOCUSfactor
44
Greg Biffle
NY Racing Team
Jay Guy
32
45
Kurt Busch
Billy Scott
Monster Energy
33
47
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
JTG Daugherty Racing
Brian Pattie
Kroger/ Irish Spring
48
Alex Bowman
Greg Ives
Ally
35
50
Kaz Grala
TMT Racing
TBA
Pit Viper Sunglasses
36
51
Cody Ware
Billy Plourde
Nurtec ODT Ford
37
55
JJ Yeley (i)
Motorsports Business Management
George Church
Hex.com
62
Noah Gragson (i)
Beard Motorsports
Darren Shaw
Beard Motorsports/Southpoint
39
66
Timmy Hill (i)
Jeff Weaver
Bumper.com
40
77
Landon Cassill (i)
Kevin Bellicourt
Fox Nation
78
BJ Mcleod
Live Fast Motorsports
Lee Leslie
NASCAR Ignition
99
Daniel Suarez
Travis Mack
Tootsies Orchid Lounge
(i) = Ineligible for driver championship points
The 2021 Daytona 500 began with a bang when Christopher Bell and Aric Almirola collided on the backstretch on Lap 15, triggering a 16-car accident that took out contenders like Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman and 2008 race winner Ryan Newman.
With a Daytona 500 victory on the line, chaos broke loose on the final lap.
Joey Logano led Brad Keselowski and Michael McDowell down the backstretch with eager drivers in tow. Keselowski got a run on his then-teammate at Team Penske and looked low, but Logano moved to defend. Those decisions resulted in calamity as Logano spun low, Keselowski went into the outside wall and then was T-boned by Kyle Busch, collecting numerous cars in the carnage.
RELATED: Scenes from the 2021 Daytona 500
Meanwhile, at the front of the field, McDowell edged ahead of Chase Elliott and Austin Dillon at the moment of caution and was declared the winner for the first time in his NASCAR Cup Series career.