2026 Daytona 500 Practice Results: Austin Cindric paces opening practice

Daytona International Speedway was alive again on Wednesday as the NASCAR Cup Series officially opened the Daytona 500 with the first practice. 2022 race winner Austin Cindric led the 45-car field with a session-best lap of 48.025 seconds (187.402 mph) in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Ross Chastain and Corey LaJoie followed closely behind. Check out the full results below. 2026 Daytona 500 Practice Results What is the Daytona 500 Schedule? Wednesday, February 11 Thursday, February 12 Friday, February 13 Saturday, February 14 Sunday, February 15​Full practice results for the 2026 Daytona 500 as Austin Cindric leads the field at Daytona International Speedway. See the complete leaderboard.