Kyle Busch grabs Daytona 500 pole, chasing a win that has eluded him for 20 starts, see full lineup

Kyle Busch speaks with his crew during NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Daytona, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Kyle Busch won the pole for NASCAR’s season-opening Daytona 500 to give the driver with the longest active losing streak in “The Great American Race” a shot at the victory that has escaped him his entire career.

Busch is 0 for 20 in the Daytona 500 and hasn’t started in the top five since 2016, when he still drove for Joe Gibbs Racing. He started fourth and finished third that year, then was a career-best second to then-teammate Denny Hamlin in 2019.

“Kyle, we’ve got to get him this 500,” said team owner Richard Childress.

No driver has ever won their first Daytona 500 after 20 previous attempts. The late Dale Earnhardt won for Childress in his 20th start in 1998 — three years before Earnhardt was killed in a crash on the final lap of the 2001 race.

“Sounds really good right now — being able to qualify on my first pole for the Daytona 500, that’s pretty special,” said Busch, who wore custom-designed Olympic-themed racing shoes at Daytona International Speedway.

He earned the pole Wednesday night with a lap at 183.925 mph in a Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing, the team that signed him before the 2023 season when his contract was up with Gibbs and his salary was too high for most teams.

But his time in the No. 8 has been rocky for the two-time NASCAR champion. He’s won three races since joining RCR — all in his first season — and takes a 93-race losing streak into the Daytona 500.

Busch starts the year with new crew chief Jim Pohlman, who led Justin Allgaier to the 2024 championship in NASCAR’s second-tier series.

The pole runs continues a strong few weeks for Busch and his family: Older brother, Kurt, was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame last month.

“Feels really good for RCR as a group,” Busch said. “Just a valiant effort by everybody here. It would be really nice to be doing an interview like this about being No. 1 come Sunday night.”

RCR last put a car on the pole for the Daytona 500 in 2014 when Austin Dillon, grandson of the team owner, qualified first. Dillon won the race in 2018.

Chase Briscoe, last year’s pole-sitter, qualified second in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.

“It’s a really big deal, not only for myself, but I haven’t even checked my phone, I’m sure (Bass Pro Shops owner) Johnny Morris is ballistic already,” Briscoe said of his sponsor. “He gets super fired up for this race. He’s called me two or three times this week telling me he’s so excited to get here and asking me how the car is. It’s a big deal for him, as well. It should be awesome to be on the front row again Sunday.”

Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson will race under a provisional rule that allows for a 41st “world-class driver” trying to enter a Cup event. Johnson is a two-time Daytona 500 winner and finished third last year. He left full-time NASCAR racing after the 2020 season.

2026 DAYTONA 500 LINEUP:

1. Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing – Chevrolet
2. Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing – Toyota
3. Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske – Ford
4. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports – Chevrolet
5. Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske – Ford
6. Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports – Chevrolet
7. Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing – Chevrolet
8. Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports – Chevrolet
9. Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing – Ford
10. Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports – Chevrolet
11. John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club – Toyota
12. Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing – Toyota
13. Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing – Chevrolet
14. Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing – Ford
15. Daniel Suárez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports – Chevrolet*
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 HYAK Motorsports – Chevrolet
17. Casey Mears, No. 66 Garage 66 – Ford
18. Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports – Ford
19. Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing – Ford
20. Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing – Toyota
21. Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports – Chevrolet
22. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing – Toyota
23. Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team – Chevrolet
24. Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club – Toyota
25. Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports – Ford
26. Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing – Toyota
27. Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing – Toyota
28. Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing – Toyota
29. Corey Heim, No. 67 23XI Racing – Toyota
30. Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports – Ford
31. Jimmie Johnson, No. 84 Legacy Motor Club – Toyota
32. Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing – Chevrolet
33. Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing – Chevrolet
34. Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing – Chevrolet
35. AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing – Chevrolet
36. Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske – Ford
37. Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing – Chevrolet*
38. BJ McLeod, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports – Chevrolet
39. William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports – Chevrolet*
40. Justin Allgaier, No. 40 JR Motorsports – Chevrolet
41. Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing – Ford*

*Driver to start in the rear after switching to a backup car

(Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)