When the entry list for this past weekend's NASCAR Cup Series race at the Chicago Street Course was announced, it was confirmed that the Grant Park 165 would become the first non-Daytona 500 race since November 2018 for which a driver failed to qualify.
There were 41 cars going for 40 spots, effectively five for four since the 36 chartered cars are all locked in. The DNQ battle was set to come down to Kaulig Racing's Will Brown, Richard Childress Racing's Austin Hill, Garage 66's Josh Bilicki, 23XI Racing's Corey Heim, and Live Fast Motorsports' Katherine Legge.
On paper, the battle seemed rather easy to predict: Bilicki vs. Legge.
Kaulig Racing, Richard Childress Racing, and 23XI Racing all run multi-car Cup Series teams, while Garage 66 and Live Fast Motorsports are generally backmarkers when they run select races with their one-car programs throughout the year.
As it turns out, David beat Goliath in an unlikely fashion.
Heim made contact with the wall in the first qualifying group, and his time was beaten by all four of the other drivers. Legge did end up being the last driver in the field, so even if Heim hadn't damaged the No. 67 Toyota and actually qualified for the race, Bilicki still would have been safe.
Bilicki, in his third start of the year, ended up finishing in a season-best 21st place behind the wheel of the No. 66 Ford in Sunday's race. It was his best Cup finish since he placed 16th at Atlanta Motor Speedway for Spire Motorsports back in March 2022, and it was a massive statement to the many doubters who felt he'd be the one left on the outside looking in.
After all, MBM Motorsports, the team now known as Garage 66, were the team that most recently failed to qualify for a non-Daytona 500 race, with Timmy Hill being the driver who did not qualify for the aforementioned race at Texas nearly seven seasons ago.
This weekend, there are only 37 cars on the entry list at Sonoma Raceway, but the No. 66 Ford is not one of them. The only returning non-chartered (open) car is the No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet, and Legge, who finished in a career-high 19th place in Chicago, is once again set to drive it.
Garage 66 do plan to run the No. 66 Ford again later this month, and with Bilicki behind the wheel once again. They are planning to enter the car in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 27, though it remains to be seen whether or not the entry list for this crown jewel race will once again eclipse 40 cars, ensuring another DNQ.
As for this weekend, live coverage of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 is scheduled to begin on TNT Sports at 3:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, July 13 from Sonoma Raceway.