The entry list for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway is set following the confirmation that Corey LaJoie is set to drive the No. 01 Ford for Rick Ware Racing.
The No. 01 Ford is the 45th confirmed car on the entry list for the 67th edition of the 200-lap "Great American Race" around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked Daytona Beach, Florida oval, and Cup Series races are generally capped at 40 cars.
All 36 chartered entries are locked into each race, meaning that there are nine non-chartered (open) entries set to battle for the remaining four open spots.
Nine open cars vying for Daytona 500 spots
Aside from LaJoie, Justin Allgaier is set to drive the No. 40 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, J.J. Yeley is set to drive the No. 44 Chevrolet for NY Racing Team, Martin Truex Jr. is set to drive the No. 56 Toyota for Tricon Garage, Anthony Alfredo is set to drive the No. 62 Chevrolet for Beard Motorsports, Chandler Smith is set to drive the No. 66 Ford for Garage 66, B.J. McLeod is set to drive the No. 78 Chevrolet for Live Fast Motorsports, Jimmie Johnson is set to drive the No. 84 Toyota for Legacy Motor Club, and Helio Castroneves is set to drive the No. 91 Chevrolet for Trackhouse Racing.
The fastest two drivers (among open cars) in the single-car qualifying session and the top finishers in the two 60-lap Bluegreen Vacations Duel races (among open cars) lock into the field.
On paper, this means that five drivers will fail to qualify. That might very well prove to be the case. But if one of those five drivers ends up being Castroneves, then only four drivers would fail to make the race, as the four-time Indy 500 winner is locked into the field regardless due to the "world-class driver" provisional he was issued by NASCAR.
If Castroneves ends up being one of the four drivers who qualifies either on speed or on Duel result, then five drivers would indeed end up missing the race.
Single-car qualifying is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, February 12, and it is set to be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 beginning at 8:15 p.m. ET. The Bluegreen Vacations Duel races are scheduled to take place on Thursday, February 13, and they are set to be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET.
The Daytona 500 itself is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 16, and it is set to be broadcast live on Fox beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV and catch all of the action from the "World Center of Racing"!