Ryan Preece won the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday afternoon. That was his initial points win in the Cup Series .
The win counted for championship points and secured the final playoff spot. This earned him a place in the playoff grid.
Late in the race, Carson Hocevar crashed while running near the second position at that time. His race finished early due to the wreck.
The Daytona result finalized the 16-driver NASCAR Chase grid. Points were reset ahead of the 10-race playoff run .