NASCAR’s Cup Series will close its regular season on Saturday night with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway, a 400‑mile, 160‑lap event that awards 55 points for a victory under the series’ revamped 2026 playoff structure.
New Playoff Mechanics
The new format replaces the previous elimination system, expanding the Chase to the top 16 drivers after 26 races and granting a 55‑point bonus to any driver who wins a race, a change that can instantly secure a playoff berth even for those already eliminated from points contention.
Denny Hamlin has already locked the top seed with 1,001 points, while 13 drivers have already guaranteed spots, leaving five competitors — Bubba Wallace, Austin Cindric, Shane van Gisbergen, Brad Keselowski and Ryan Preece — to battle for the final three positions.
Wallace holds a 75‑point advantage over the cut line, Cindric is 44 points clear, and van Gisbergen sits 31 points above the threshold, while Keselowski trails by 66 points and must win to keep his hopes alive; Preece’s deficit is compounded by a 25‑point penalty from a May incident with Ty Gibbs.
Strategic Stakes
A victory at Daytona guarantees a Chase berth regardless of a driver’s standing in the points standings, a rule that could reshape strategies for those already eliminated but still capable of clinching a spot with a win.
Team Penske continues its recent dominance, having captured four of the last six Cup races, with Ryan Blaney earning his third win of the season at New Hampshire and entering Daytona as the defending race winner and a driver with four top‑10 finishes in nine Next Gen‑era starts.
Broadcast and purse
The race will be televised on NBC and streamed on SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90), with radio coverage on MRN; the purse for the event totals $11,233,037.
Weekend schedule and postseason path
The weekend’s schedule also includes the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Wawa 250 at Daytona on Friday, followed by the Craftsman Truck Series return to Bristol Motor Speedway on Thursday, September 17 for the UNOH 250, before the winner of Saturday’s race carries their Chase seeding into the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, the opening event of the 2026 postseason.