TC Daily Pit Stop: Kyle Busch Scores First Daytona 500 Pole In 21st Attempt; Heim and Allgaier Lock In
TC Daily Pit Stop: Thursday, February 12, 2026
Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe Snag Front Row for 68th DAYTONA 500; Heim, Allgaier Lock In
Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch continues his quest for his first Daytona 500 win. The driver of the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet will begin his 21st attempt from the pole position, as he topped last year’s Daytona 500 polesitter, Chase Briscoe, in Wednesday night’s qualifying session.
The pole marks Busch’s first career pole in the Great American Race, and its the first pole for his new crew chief Jim Pohlman, who is making his first NASCAR Cup Series start as a crew chief this weekend.
While the top-two qualifying spots were the only starting positions locked on Wednesday night, two “Open” drivers were able to lock their positions in the Daytona 500 starting field by way of their qualifying speeds.
Corey Heim, who made it into the final round of the qualifying session, and Justin Allgaier, who was 14th-fastest, will make the Daytona 500. Corey LaJoie narrowly missed out on locking in on Wednesday night as he qualified one spot behind Allgaier.
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Qualifying Results
The Final Lap Podcast: Daytona 500 DRAMA! Keselowski Cleared? Kyle Busch Twist & Fantasy NASCAR
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Kyle Larson, HendrickCars.com Ink Five-Year Extensions with HMS
For those who were hoping to see Kyle Larson leave Hendrick Motorsports anytime soon, bad news occurred on Wednesday afternoon. The two-time and defending NASCAR Cup Series champion, and Hendrick Motorsports signed a five-year contract extension, which will keep Larson behind the wheel of the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet through the 2031 season.
Additionally, Hendrick Motorsports signed a multi-year contract extension with Cliff Daniels to keep the crew chief paired with the driver for years to come.
Larson has scored 26 of his 33 career NASCAR Cup Series wins since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2021.
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NASCAR Headlines:
Keselowski Making Progress in Recovery from Off-Season Broken Femur
Chastain Hoping to Benefit from Familiarity of New Crew Chief Brandon McSwain
Bubba Wallace, 23XI Looking to Take Step Toward ‘Big Three’ Disruption
Shane Van Gisbergen Endorses Chase Format; Looks to Continue Oval Upswing
Pala Casino Joins 23XI Racing to Sponsor Tyler Reddick in Two Races
2026 Paint Schemes
Paint schemes for the 2026 NASCAR Cup, O’Reilly Auto Parts, and Craftsman Truck Series season are flying in quickly as the season quickly approaches. Keep up with the latest paint scheme reveals with TobyChristie.com’s handy Paint Scheme Database.