Ross Chastain, a 33-year-old native of Alva, Florida, secured the top starting position for Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. This achievement marks his first Busch Light Pole of the season and the third of his career. Driving the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, Chastain clocked a best lap of 184.396 mph, edging out Chris Buescher of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing by a narrow margin of 0.051 seconds.
The race, which serves as the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season finale, is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on NBC, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. For Chastain, who is supported by crew chief Brandon McSwain—a fellow Floridian from Auburndale—this performance represents his best qualifying effort in 16 career races at the 2.5-mile track. It is his first series pole since his appearance at Watkins Glen in 2023.
Reflecting on the milestone, Chastain described the experience as almost indescribable. He noted that while starting position does not guarantee a victory in the intense, close-quarter racing environment of Daytona, the team’s success in selecting the right package for all three Trackhouse Chevrolets was a significant achievement. He recalled his childhood days camping outside Turn 1 at the speedway, calling the pole position a major life achievement he will never forget.
Ryan Preece, driving the No. 60 RFK Ford, secured the fourth spot on the grid, marking his best start of the season. Preece is currently 17th in the championship standings, trailing Austin Cindric and Shane Van Gisbergen—who hold the 15th and 16th spots—by 44 and 31 points, respectively. The top 16 drivers in the standings will advance to the 10-race Chase, which begins next weekend at Darlington Raceway.
Austin Hill, behind the wheel of the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet, qualified third, while 23XI Racing’s Riley Herbst, the only Toyota driver to reach the final session, will start fifth. Shane Van Gisbergen will begin the race from the sixth position, followed by rookie teammate Connor Zilisch in seventh. Team Penske’s Austin Cindric and Joey Logano will start eighth and ninth, with reigning series champion Kyle Larson rounding out the top 10.
The qualifying session saw a notable absence of the top four drivers in the points standings from the second round. Denny Hamlin, the No. 1 seed for the Chase, finished 30th, while defending Daytona winner Ryan Blaney managed only the 19th quickest time. Ty Gibbs and Tyler Reddick, currently third and fourth in the championship, will start 14th and 17th, respectively.
Daytona has historically been unpredictable, with nine different winners across the last 11 races at the venue, including seven different victors in the previous eight summer events. Last year, Ryan Blaney won from the pole, a feat not accomplished at the track since Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2015.
A total of 40 drivers are set to take the green flag on Saturday. Gray Gaulding was the only entrant who failed to qualify; had he succeeded, it would have been his first NASCAR Cup Series start since 2023. The report also notes that for Trackhouse to pick the right package and execute through two rounds, but tonight and today for a new package. The report also notes that it’s very important to note we chose the right things as a team,” said Chastain, whose Trackhouse team advanced all three Chevrolets into the 10-car field qualifying round. The report also notes that i was a kid sitting in the grandstands and we camped outside Turn 1. The report also notes that all the cars were not driving well, and we made ours go faster not driving well, all the cars were bouncing. The report also notes that which gets underway next weekend at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, the top 16 drivers in the standings will advance to the 10-race Chase to decide the 2026 season champion. The report also notes that but also still have a very reasonable shot at some good points,” said Cindric, who will roll off seventh, i think having a good starting spot gives us an opportunity to learn about our car. The report also notes that so that’s giving us a chance to start checking boxes early in the race, that first stage is super short.
