Ryan Preece, the new Chase format and the regular-season finale combined for the on-track moment of the season in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Preece earned his first career Cup Series victory in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Aug. 29 at Daytona to jump into the Chase field.
The driver of the No. 60 RFK Racing Ford knew he almost certainly had to win the race to make the Chase, and restarted second for the overtime restart.
Preece took the lead through turns 1 and 2 on the final lap as Zane Smith spun on his outside via a bad block. After another incident on the other end of the backstretch, NASCAR threw the caution flag that ended the race with Preece clearly ahead of second-place Daniel Suarez.
While Preece and Austin Cindric clinched the final two Chase
berths, Shane van Gisbergen fell out of the top 16 after finishing 28th.
Here are the winners and losers from the NASCAR Daytona race:
NASCAR Daytona winners and losers
Winner: Ryan Preece
Ryan Preece made his 249th career Cup Series start on Aug. 29, and it's the most memorable one of his career.
It's a storyline Tom Cruise could take from for the Days of Thunder sequel: At a track where he had nasty flips in two crashes over the last few seasons and coming back from a spin in the first stage in a race he almost certainly had to win. Preece claimed a Chase berth with his first career victory.
Last year, Preece was 13th in points coming into the Daytona regular-season finale but well out of playoff contention, needing a victory to get into the final 16. Preece finished 14th, missing out on competing for a championship.
Preece and his team spoke confidently this year in a similar situation; 31 points behind SVG and 44 behind Austin Cindric coming into the weekend, Preece had to have a very good points day.
He did so, and now he's a Cup Series winner with a chance to run for the title.
RFK Racing gets two drivers (Preece, Chris Buescher) into the final 16 after missing the playoffs entirely in 2025.
Winner: The Chase format (in the regular season)
For at least one season, everyone got what they wanted with the new Chase format.
Preece revived the win-and-in dynamic by racing his way into the Chase via victory at Daytona, while those in support of the full regular season mattering got that too with Austin Cindric earning the spot over Shane van Gisbergen on points.
In the old playoff format, Preece still would have been running for a title after the win. But Cindric would have been out of the final 16, with SVG long ago clinched a spot via a win. This year, all three were racing for a Chase spot in the final lap.
All across the top 16, drivers were racing to the final laps for points positioning and Chase seeding.
More discussion can still be had about certain variables, like the Chase field size, the length of the Chase and the tracks in the final 10 weeks. But put a checkmark down next to the 2026 Chase format.
Loser: Shane van Gisbergen
Shane van Gisbergen's 31-point cushion over Ryan Preece coming into the regular-season finale grew further after he won Stage 1 at Daytona.
But SVG was not a factor the rest of the night, not earning a point in the second stage as Preece claimed nine and staying away from the front of the pack during the final 60 laps. Still, SVG was 12th at the time of a late-race caution.
The Trackhouse Racing No. 97 made a pit stop before the overtime restart, in need for fuel as others were really close to running out but giving away valuable track position. He restarted 27th, then was caught up in the final-lap wreck as Preece won to claim the final Chase spot.
Never one to hide his emotions, SVG was succinct in analyzing his fall out of the top 16.
"It's pretty fresh now. Congrats to (Preece). One night doesn't sum up our year," SVG said to NBC after the race. "I guess we haven't been good enough. It's been cool to be close. But, shame we're not in it."
Loser: Trackhouse Racing
Shane van Gisbergen's last-minute exit out of the Chase field punctuated a hugely disappointing regular season for Trackhouse Racing.
SVG finished the regular season in 17th in points despite two wins, while Ross Chastain was 19th while not truly threatening for a Chase spot.
Connor Zilisch is currently 34th in points, struggling throughout his rookie season.
Trackhouse's three drivers combined for two wins (all by SVG), six top-fives and 13 top-10s in 26 regular-season races.
In the 16-driver Chase field, Trackhouse shouldn't go 0-for-3.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: NASCAR Daytona winners, losers as Ryan Preece bursts into Chase field with 1st win
