NASCAR: 3 drivers will be going home from 2020 Daytona 500

Three drivers will be going home from the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season opening Daytona 500, as the entry list contains 43 drivers.

The entry list for the 62nd annual Daytona 500, the opening race of the 36-race 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, was released earlier this week, and for the first time since last year’s Daytona 500, a Cup Series entry list contains more than the maximum field size of 40 cars.

A total of 43 cars are on the entry list for this 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked Daytona International Speedway oval in Daytona Beach, Florida.

As a result, three drivers will ultimately fail to qualify and end up going home before the race actually takes place on Sunday, February 16.

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The single-car qualifying session for the race is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 9, and it is set to determine the front row for the race itself and the starting lineups for the two Bluegreen Vacations Duels, which will ultimately set the entire starting lineup for the main event on Thursday, February 13.

In total, there are 36 chartered entries, including 33 that are set to be driven by full-time drivers, that are guaranteed to compete in the season opener and in each of the other 35 races on the schedule.

For the Daytona 500, there are seven non-chartered entries, including three that are slated to be driven by full-time drivers. The drivers of only four of these seven cars will end up qualifying for the race.

Here is the entry list for the 62nd annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

Rank – Driver – Car, Team, Manufacturer
1 – Quin Houff – #00, StarCom Racing, Chevrolet
2 – Kurt Busch – #1, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet
3 – Brad Keselowski – #2, Team Penske, Ford
4 – Austin Dillon – #3, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet
5 – Kevin Harvick – #4, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford
6 – Ryan Newman – #6, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford
7 – Tyler Reddick – #8, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet
8 – Chase Elliott – #9, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet
9 – Aric Almirola – #10, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford
10 – Denny Hamlin – #11, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota
11 – Ryan Blaney – #12, Team Penske, Ford
12 – Ty Dillon – #13, Germain Racing, Chevrolet
13 – Clint Bowyer – #14, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford
14 – Brennan Poole – #15, Premium Motorsports, Chevrolet
15 – Justin Haley – #16, Kaulig Racing, Chevrolet
16 – Chris Buescher – #17, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford
17 – Kyle Busch – #18, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota
18 – Martin Truex Jr. – #19, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota
19 – Erik Jones – #20, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota
20 – Matt DiBenedetto – #21, Wood Brothers Racing, Ford
21 – Joey Logano – #22, Team Penske, Ford
22 – William Byron – #24, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet
23 – Reed Sorenson – #27, Premium Motorsports, Chevrolet
24 – Corey LaJoie – #32, Go Fas Racing, Ford
25 – Michael McDowell – #34, Front Row Motorsports, Ford
26 – David Ragan – #36, Rick Ware Racing, Ford
27 – Ryan Preece – #37, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet
28 – John Hunter Nemechek – #38, Front Row Motorsports, Ford
29 – Cole Custer – #41, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford
30 – Kyle Larson – #42, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet
31 – Darrell Wallace Jr. – #43, Richard Petty Motorsports, Chevrolet
32 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – #47, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet
33 – Jimmie Johnson – #48, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet
34 – Chad Finchum – #49, MBM Motorsports, Toyota
35 – Joey Gase – #51, Rick Ware Racing, Chevrolet
36 – B.J. McLeod – #52, Rick Ware Racing, Ford
37 – J.J. Yeley – #54, Rick Ware Racing, Ford
38 – Brendan Gaughan – #62, Beard Motorsports, Chevrolet
39 – Timmy Hill – #66, MBM Motorsports, Ford
40 – Ross Chastain – #77, Spire Motorsports, Chevrolet
41 – Alex Bowman – #88, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet
42 – Christopher Bell – #95, Leavine Family Racing, Toyota
43 – Daniel Suarez – #96, Gaunt Brothers Racing, Toyota

The chartered entries that are not slated to be driven by full-time drivers are the #36 Rick Ware Racing Ford (usually the #53 Rick Ware Racing car), the #52 Rick Ware Racing Ford and the #77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet.

Meanwhile, the three full-time drivers who will be vying for one of the four open positions in the starting lineup are J.J. Yeley, Timmy Hill and Daniel Suarez. The drivers with whom they will be competing for these four spots are Justin Haley, Reed Sorenson, Chad Finchum and Brendan Gaughan.

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Fox is set to broadcast the single-car qualifying session for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500 live from Daytona International Speedway beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, February 9 while Fox Sports 1 is set to broadcast the Bluegreen Vacations Duels live from the track beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET next Thursday, February 13. The race itself is set to air live on Fox beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET next Sunday, February 16.

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