NASCAR: Two likely additions to the Daytona 500 entry list

The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season is scheduled to get underway next month with the 66th annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Thus far, there are 39 confirmed entries for the "Great American Race", including three non-chartered cars.

RFK Racing have confirmed the No. 60 Ford for David Ragan, Beard Motorsports have confirmed the No. 62 Chevrolet for Anthony Alfredo, and Live Fast Motorsports have confirmed the No. 78 Chevrolet for B.J. McLeod. Of these three teams, only RFK Racing compete full-time, doing so with the chartered No. 6 Ford and No. 17 Ford for Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher, respectively.

If two more cars are added to the entry list for this 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked oval in Daytona Beach, Florida, then at least one of the non-chartered cars will fail to qualify for the race by the time the single-car qualifying session and the Bluegreen Vacations Duels are in the books.

Possible Daytona 500 additions

As of now, there are two additions to the entry list that are looking very likely, one from a part-time team and another from a full-time team with two cars that plan to expand to three for various races throughout the 2024 season.

The Money Team Racing, which have competed in each of the last two Daytona 500s, are said to be looking at entering the No. 50 Chevrolet in the race for the third straight year. The Floyd Mayweather Jr.-owned team competed in just one race after the Daytona 500 last year after competing in four total races in 2022, but their desire to return in 2024 has been well-publicized.

Then there is Legacy Motor Club, which have confirmed an expansion to three cars in select races throughout the 2024 season so that team co-owner Jimmie Johnson can compete like he did in 2023.

Johnson is set to compete in three races behind the wheel of the No. 84 Toyota with primary sponsorship from AdventHealth. While the Daytona 500 is not one of those races, that doesn't mean he won't compete with backing from another sponsor.

Legacy Motor Club also field the chartered No. 42 Toyota and the No. 43 Toyota for John Hunter Nemechek and Erik Jones, respectively.

The addition of the No. 50 Chevrolet and the No. 84 Toyota would bring the entry total to 41 -- but more importantly, it would bring the non-chartered entry total to five in a field that can only fit four, meaning that somebody would be left on the outside looking in.

There could, of course, be other entries that attempt to qualify for the race as well, with a plethora of two-car teams also being viewed as candidates to field third cars and a number of part-time teams potentially exploring the possibility of a Daytona 500 return.

The single-car qualifying session, which is set to lock two non-chartered entries into the Daytona 500 field, is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, February 14. The Bluegreen Vacations Duels, which are set to solidify the full starting lineup, are scheduled to take place on Thursday, February 15.

The Daytona 500 itself is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 18, with live coverage from Daytona International Speedway set for 2:30 p.m. ET on Fox. Begin a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action!