Casey Mears entered 2025 having run just one NASCAR Cup Series race since the end of the 2016 season, his 13th and final full season in the sport. That one race was the 2019 season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
So when he made his surprise Cup Series return at Martinsville Speedway, it had been more than six years since he had run a Cup race. He ended up running four more before the season concluded, giving him 494 career starts.
He set a goal to get to 500 in 2026, and start number 500 is set to come this weekend in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Casey Mears set for 500th career NASCAR Cup Series start
Mears opened up the 2026 season with Garage 66, the same team for which he drove in all five of his starts a year ago. He ended the team's Daytona 500 drought, becoming the team's first driver to qualify for the "Great America Race" since 2020, but after they withdrew the No. 66 Ford from the entry list the following weekend at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway), he hasn't been back with the organization for any more races since.
Mears joined Beard Motorsports on a multi-race deal but did not qualify for the April race at Talladega Superspeedway due to the cancelation of qualifying and the No. 62 team's lack of owner points. He finally made his first official start with the team in mid-June at Pocono Raceway, and he has since competed at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Daytona International Speedway, and Talladega.
That put him at 499.
The team did not enter the No. 62 Chevrolet this past weekend at Martinsville, setting up the 48-year-old Bakersfield, California, native to make his 500th career start in the season finale at Homestead-Miami.
With four non-chartered (open) cars on the entry list for just the fifth time this season, the Cup Series is set to see its first full field for a non-superspeedway race since the July 2025 street race in Chicago. All four open cars are locked into the race.
Aside from the No. 62 Chevrolet, the open cars include the No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet, the No. 66 Garage 66 Ford, and the No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota. They are set to be driven by J.J. Yeley, Chad Finchum, and Corey Heim, respectively.
Mears has not confirmed that he necessarily plans to retire after making his 500th start, so it would not be surprising to see him back in select races for a third consecutive year in 2027.
NBC is set to provide live coverage of the Straight Talk Wireless 400 from Homestead-Miami Speedway beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, November 8. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss any of the action from the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season finale!
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