Austin Cindric won't sleep well in the week entering Daytona International Speedway. Following the NASCAR Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Cindric sits 15th in the standings with a 44-point advantage over the Chase bubble. Ryan Preece sits 17th in the standings behind Cindric and Shane van Gisbergen.
While a 44-point gap seems pretty decent, this isn't an ordinary regular-season finale. NASCAR is introducing a new superspeedway package with zero practice at Daytona. No one will know how the new package races until the green flag for the 2026 Coke Zero Sugar 400 is waving in the air.
Therefore, it could be a chaotic race, which Cindric doesn't want. Preece can earn a maximum of 76 points, but he would have to sweep both stages,
earn the fastest lap, and win the race. Nothing is guaranteed, and Cindric will have to stay out of trouble to increase his chances of making the Chase on Saturday night.
This article originally appeared on Motorsports Wire: Austin Cindric enters Daytona with Chase bubble pressure in 2026
