2026 United Rentals 300
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 33 in the 2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series | |||
| Date | February 14, 2026 | ||
| Location | Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.5 miles (4.0 km) | ||
| Distance | 120 laps, 300 mi (480 km) | ||
| Average speed | 116.618 miles per hour (187.678 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Richard Childress Racing | ||
| Time | 49.390 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 78 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | Rajah Caruth | JR Motorsports | |
| Time | 47.082 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | The CW | ||
| Announcers | Adam Alexander, Jamie McMurray, and Parker Kligerman | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Alex Hayden and Mike Bagley | ||
| Turn announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2), Kyle Rickey (Backstretch), and Tim Catalfamo (3 & 4) | ||
The 2026 United Rentals 300 was a NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race held on Saturday, February 14, 2026, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Contested over 120 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) superspeedway, it was the first race of the 2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series season, and the 45th running of the event.
Austin Hill, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would survive a wreck-filled race and continued his superspeedway prowess, winning both stages and led a race-high 78 laps from the pole position to earn his 15th career NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series win, his first of the season, and his 11th superspeedway win in the series. It was also his fourth win in the season-opening race in the last five years.[10] Justin Allgaier finished second, and Ryan Sieg finished third. Jordan Anderson and Sammy Smith rounded out the top five, while Ryan Ellis, Carson Kvapil, Blaine Perkins, Jesse Love, and Rajah Caruth rounded out the top ten.
Report
Background
Daytona International Speedway is one of three superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the other two being Atlanta Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.[11] The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long.[12] The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.[12]
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
Practice
The first and only practice session was held on Friday, February 13, at 4:30 PM EST, and would last for 50 minutes.[13]
Jeb Burton, driving for Jordan Anderson Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 48.735, and a speed of 184.672 miles per hour (297.201 km/h).[14]
Practice results
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 48.735 | 184.672 |
| 2 | 26 | Dean Thompson | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 48.853 | 184.226 |
| 3 | 17 | Corey Day | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 48.856 | 184.215 |
| Full practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Saturday, February 14, at 10:00 AM EST.[13] Since Daytona International Speedway is a superspeedway, the qualifying procedure used is a single-car, single-lap system with two rounds. In the first round, drivers have one lap to set a time and determine positions 11-38. The fastest ten drivers from the first round will advance to the second round, and whoever sets the fastest time in Round 2 will win the pole and determine the rest of the starting lineup.[15]
Austin Hill, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would score the pole after advancing from the preliminary round and setting the fastest time in Round 2, with a lap of 49.390, and a speed of 182.223 miles per hour (293.259 km/h).[16]
Three drivers would fail to qualify: Garrett Smithley, David Starr, and Joey Gase. Anthony Alfredo, who originally failed to qualify in his No. 96 car, would make a deal with Alpha Prime Racing to run their No. 4 car in the race, replacing Caesar Bacarella.[17]
Qualifying results
Race
Race results
Stage results
Stage One Laps: 30
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 2 | Jesse Love | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 1 | Carson Kvapil | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 31 | Blaine Perkins | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 00 | Sheldon Creed | Haas Factory Team | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 25 | Nick Sanchez | AM Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 20 | Brandon Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
Stage Two Laps: 30
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 1 | Carson Kvapil | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 88 | Rajah Caruth | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 99 | Parker Retzlaff | Viking Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 8 | Sammy Smith | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 31 | Blaine Perkins | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Final Stage results
Stage Three Laps: 60
| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 21 | Austin Hill | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 78 | Running | 75 |
| 2 | 13 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 50 |
| 3 | 10 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 34 |
| 4 | 17 | 32 | Jordan Anderson | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 4 | Running | 33 |
| 5 | 12 | 8 | Sammy Smith | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 1 | Running | 36 |
| 6 | 32 | 02 | Ryan Ellis | Young's Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 1 | Running | 31 |
| 7 | 11 | 1 | Carson Kvapil | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 47 |
| 8 | 14 | 31 | Blaine Perkins | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 36 |
| 9 | 2 | 2 | Jesse Love | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 27 | Running | 37 |
| 10 | 7 | 88 | Rajah Caruth | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 1 | Running | 34 |
| 11 | 26 | 4 | Anthony Alfredo | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 26 |
| 12 | 25 | 44 | Brennan Poole | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 25 |
| 13 | 19 | 38 | Patrick Emerling (i) | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 14 | 27 | 99 | Parker Retzlaff | Viking Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 28 |
| 15 | 36 | 28 | Kyle Sieg | RSS Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 22 |
| 16 | 37 | 45 | Lavar Scott (R) | Alpha Prime Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 21 |
| 17 | 34 | 07 | Josh Bilicki | SS-Green Light Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 20 |
| 18 | 8 | 48 | Patrick Staropoli (R) | Big Machine Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 19 |
| 19 | 38 | 30 | Carson Ware | Barrett–Cope Racing | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 18 |
| 20 | 20 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (i) | Young's Motorsports | Chevrolet | 120 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 21 | 33 | 52 | Daniel Dye (i) | AM Racing | Ford | 120 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 22 | 30 | 87 | Austin Green | Peterson Racing | Chevrolet | 118 | 0 | Running | 15 |
| 23 | 23 | 5 | Luke Fenhaus (R) | Hettinger Racing | Ford | 117 | 0 | Running | 14 |
| 24 | 5 | 00 | Sheldon Creed | Haas Factory Team | Chevrolet | 116 | 0 | Running | 18 |
| 25 | 22 | 27 | Jeb Burton | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 107 | 0 | DVP | 14 |
| 26 | 4 | 18 | William Sawalich | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 99 | 2 | DVP | 22 |
| 27 | 6 | 17 | Corey Day | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 99 | 0 | Accident | 10 |
| 28 | 9 | 54 | Taylor Gray | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 99 | 0 | Accident | 9 |
| 29 | 24 | 24 | Harrison Burton | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 98 | 0 | Accident | 8 |
| 30 | 15 | 20 | Brandon Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 92 | 0 | DVP | 8 |
| 31 | 3 | 41 | Sam Mayer | Haas Factory Team | Chevrolet | 91 | 6 | Accident | 6 |
| 32 | 29 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Jeremy Clements Racing | Chevrolet | 91 | 0 | Accident | 10 |
| 33 | 35 | 35 | Natalie Decker | Joey Gase Motorsports | Chevrolet | 91 | 0 | Accident | 4 |
| 34 | 31 | 92 | Josh Williams | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 77 | 0 | Engine | 3 |
| 35 | 18 | 26 | Dean Thompson | Sam Hunt Racing | Toyota | 68 | 0 | Suspension | 2 |
| 36 | 28 | 25 | Nick Sanchez | AM Racing | Ford | 32 | 0 | Accident | 4 |
| 37 | 16 | 19 | Gio Ruggiero (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 29 | 0 | Accident | 0 |
| 38 | 21 | 91 | Mason Maggio | DGM Racing | Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | Accident | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||||
Race statistics
- Lead changes: 15 among 8 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 7 for 36 laps
- Red flags: 1
- Time of race: 2 hours, 34 minutes and 21 seconds
- Average speed: 116.618 miles per hour (187.678 km/h)
Standings after the race
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References
- ^ "2026 schedule". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
- ^ "Daytona International Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
- ^ "NASCAR releases 2026 schedule, adding Chicagoland and shifting All-Star to Dover". NASCAR. August 20, 2025. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
- ^ "Entry list" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 13, 2026. Retrieved February 13, 2026.
- ^ "Practice Results" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 13, 2026. Retrieved February 13, 2026.
- ^ "Qualifying Results" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 14, 2026. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ "Starting Lineup" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 14, 2026. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ "Race Results" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 14, 2026. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 15, 2026. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ "Austin Hill scores fourth season-opening win in last five O'Reilly seasons at Daytona". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. February 14, 2026. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR. NASCAR Media Group. Archived from the original on August 11, 2010. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
- ^ a b "NASCAR Tracks — The Daytona International Speedway". Speedway Guide. Archived from the original on August 30, 2010. Retrieved August 15, 2010.
- ^ a b "2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series Daytona International Spring Race Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
- ^ Srigley, Joseph (February 13, 2026). "Jeb Burton Sets 'PR Lap' to Top O'Reilly Series Practice at Daytona". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved February 13, 2026.
- ^ "2026 NASCAR Qualifying Procedures". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
- ^ Srigley, Joseph (February 14, 2026). "Austin Hill Beats Teammate Jesse Love By 0.001 Seconds to Earn Daytona Pole". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved February 14, 2026.
- ^ Christie, Toby (February 14, 2026). "Viking, Alpha Prime Strike Deal For Alfredo To Race In No. 4 Car". Sports Illustrated. Racing America. Retrieved February 14, 2026.