DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 10, 2026) — Superspeedway weekends at Daytona International Speedway are like a perfectly engineered draft: fast, unpredictable and packed with horsepower. The United Rentals 300 (5 p.m. ET Saturday on The CW) looms as the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season opener, bringing 42 entries for 38 starting spots — and one name that stands above the rest this weekend: Carson Hocevar. A young gun with triple-duty energy, Hocevar will tackle this race, the Fresh From Florida 250 Trucks opener and the Daytona 500 Duels, then hop back into late models for New Smyrna’s Clyde Hart Memorial 200 on Tuesday. What a flex.
Here’s what to know entering the action:
• Hocevar the weekend warrior: The lone full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver entered in the United Rentals 300, Hocevar brings speed and star quality to the series’ biggest stage. At 23 and already a Cup regular full of audacious moves and infectious enthusiasm, he’s arguably NASCAR’s best marketing asset this week — and one of the most exciting wheelmen in the sport.
• Superspeedway specialists galore: While Hocevar headlines the crossover, the O’Reilly field is stacked with drivers who thrive in pack racing. Jesse Love returns to defend his series championship and his Daytona form after capturing the title with 22 top-10s and multiple victories last season. Austin Hill, another Richard Childress Racing ace, has been one of the strongest performers at superspeedways historically, regularly finding his way to the front.
• RCR & Chevy strength: It’s no secret Richard Childress Racing runs strong at plate tracks — with a Chevy engine under the hood, the organization consistently packages speed and drafting savvy into race-winning setups. The combination of veteran engineers and elite drivers means RCR will be a threat from start to finish.
• Star-studded entry list: From seasoned veterans like Sheldon Creed and Justin Allgaier to emerging talents like Sam Mayer, William Sawalich, Gio Ruggiero and Rajah Caruth, the lineup reads like a superspeedway showcase. Every one of these drivers knows Daytona isn’t a place to conserve — it’s a place to attack, whether you’re chasing points or spotlight moments.
• Draft, strategy and chaos: Daytona’s 2.5-mile tri-oval and its 31-degree banking are tailor-made for big packs, strategic alliances and last-lap fireworks. With only four entries missing the grid on Saturday, practice and qualifying will be more than warm-ups — they’ll set the tone for who’s in contention when the draft tightens and the high line gets hooked.
On a weekend where a driver like Hocevar takes on ambitions across three of NASCAR’s biggest stages, Thursday through Saturday could feel like racing boot camp with checkered flags. The United Rentals 300 promises the kind of superspeedway battle fans talk about for seasons — competitors jockeying for position, engines on the edge and finish-line drama you can feel in your bones.
So buckle up, because at Daytona, the draft never sleeps and the action never stops. This one should be a blast from green to checkers.
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