NASCAR: The drivers already locked into the 2021 Daytona 500
By Asher Fair
Leading up to the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500, 36 drivers are already locked into the race thanks to the charter system.
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season is slated to get underway in just a couple of days, as the 63rd annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway is the first of 36 races on the schedule and is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 14.
Several drivers who attempt to qualify for this 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked oval in Daytona Beach, Florida will fail to do so.
There are only 40 starting positions available and 44 cars on the entry list.
But even before single-car qualifying and the Bluegreen Vacations Duels, 36 of those 40 spots are already taken, albeit not in any specific order yet.
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That is because 36 of the 44 cars on the entry list are chartered entries, meaning that they are guaranteed starting positions in each of the 36 races on the schedule.
So the battle to get into the Daytona 500 isn’t simply 44 cars for 40 spots. It’s 36 cars locked in, and a completely separate battle involving the other eight cars for the other four spots. Of those 36 chartered entries, 33 are set to be driven by full-time drivers. The other three are set to be shared by multiple drivers throughout the season.
Here is a list of the 33 full-time drivers of chartered entries who are locked into the Daytona 500.
23XI Racing
- #23 Toyota – Bubba Wallace
Chip Ganassi Racing
- #1 Chevrolet – Kurt Busch
- #42 Chevrolet – Ross Chastain
Front Row Motorsports
- #34 Ford – Michael McDowell
- #38 Ford – Anthony Alfredo
Hendrick Motorsports
- #5 Chevrolet – Kyle Larson
- #9 Chevrolet – Chase Elliott
- #24 Chevrolet – William Byron
- #48 Chevrolet – Alex Bowman
JTG Daugherty Racing
- #47 Chevrolet – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Joe Gibbs Racing
- #11 Toyota – Denny Hamlin
- #18 Toyota – Kyle Busch
- #19 Toyota – Martin Truex Jr.
- #20 Toyota – Christopher Bell
Live Fast Motorsports
- #78 Ford – B.J. McLeod
Petty Ware Racing
- #51 Chevrolet – Cody Ware
Richard Childress Racing
- #3 Chevrolet – Austin Dillon
- #8 Chevrolet – Tyler Reddick
Richard Petty Motorsports
- #43 Chevrolet – Erik Jones
Rick Ware Racing
- #52 Ford – Josh Bilicki
Roush Fenway Racing
- #6 Ford – Ryan Newman
- #17 Ford – Chris Buescher
Spire Motorsports
- #7 Chevrolet – Corey LaJoie
StarCom Racing
- #00 Chevrolet – Quin Houff
Stewart-Haas Racing
- #4 Ford – Kevin Harvick
- #10 Ford – Aric Almirola
- #14 Ford – Chase Briscoe
- #41 Ford – Cole Custer
Team Penske
- #2 Ford – Brad Keselowski
- #12 Ford – Ryan Blaney
- #22 Ford – Joey Logano
Trackhouse Racing Team
- #99 Chevrolet – Daniel Suarez
Wood Brothers Racing
- #21 Ford – Matt DiBenedetto
And here is a list of the three part-time drivers of chartered entries who are locked into the Daytona 500.
Rick Ware Racing
- #15 Chevrolet – Derrike Cope
- #53 Ford – Joey Gase
Spire Motorsports
- #77 Chevrolet – Jamie McMurray
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The other four Daytona 500 starters are slated to be determined via single-car qualifying this evening and the Bluegreen Vacations Duels tomorrow evening. Both sessions are set to be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 from Daytona International Speedway beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET on their respective dates. Fox is set to broadcast the 63rd annual Daytona 500 live beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, February 14.