NASCAR guarantees Jimmie Johnson entry into 2026 Daytona 500
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jimmie Johnson will race in the 2026 Daytona 500 after NASCAR granted him a provisional guaranteeing his entry into the race.
NASCAR confirmed to TRE that Johnson received the open exemption provisional. The OEP guarantees Johnson entry into the race but not the prize money.
The field will also expand to 41 drivers, opening the door for four other open teams to make the race. Here are the seven slated to race so far:
- Justin Allgaier: No. 40 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports
- Corey Heim: No. 67 Toyota for 23XI Racing
- Casey Mears: No. 66 Ford for Garage 66/MBM Motorsports
- BJ McLeod: No. 78 Chevrolet for Live Fast Motorsports
- J.J. Yeley: No. 44 Chevrolet for NY Racing Team
- No. 62 Chevrolet for Beard Motorsports (driver unknown yet)
- No. 33(?) Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing (driver unknown yet)
Last year, NASCAR introduced the OEP to guarantee a world-class driver entry into a race with an open team. Helio Castroneves received it first.
With no OEP, Johnson had to race his No. 84 Carvana Toyota Camry XSE into the Daytona 500 last year. Ultimately, he fended off J.J. Yeley in the closing laps of their Duel to make the race.
Johnson has never missed a Daytona 500 in any of his 22 attempts that will soon be 23 in 2026. He has the most Daytona 500 starts of any active NASCAR Cup Series driver but still has 10 starts to go to tie Dave Marcis, who has the most Daytona 500 starts of all-time:
- Dave Marcis: 33 Daytona 500 starts
- Richard Petty, Terry Labonte: 32 starts each
- Michael Waltrip: 30 starts
- Bill Elliott, Mark Martin, Ricky Rudd: 29 starts each
While Johnson still has a few years to go to crack the top-five all-time for Daytona 500 starts, he will notably tie Jeff Gordon for all-time Daytona 500 starts.
In 2002, Gordon selected Johnson to race for Hendrick Motorsports in the NASCAR Cup Series – kicking off the seven-time champion’s legendary win with 83 wins, including two in the Daytona 500 (2006, 2013).
Gordon made 23 Daytona 500 starts and won it three times – 1997, 1999 and 2005. His final Daytona 500 start was in 2015.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com