Site: Daytona Beach, Florida.
Schedule: Thursday, practice (Fox Sports 1, noon-1 p.m.), Can-Am Duel qualifying races, 7 p.m. (Fox Sports 1, 5-10 p.m.); Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, noon-1 p.m., 2-3 p.m.); Saturday, practice (Fox Sports 1, noon-2 p.m.); Sunday, race, 1 p.m. (Fox, noon-5 p.m.).
Track: Daytona International Speedway (tri-oval, 2.5 miles).
Race distance: 500 miles, 200 laps.
Last year: Joey Logano won the season-opening race. He surged ahead of the pack on a two-lap sprint to the finish and had command when a wreck behind him brought out a caution.
Fast facts: Chase Elliott became the youngest pole winner in race history at 20, topping front-row qualifying Sunday. He has replaced the retired Jeff Gordon in Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 24 Chevrolet. Matt Kenseth qualified second. The other starting positions will be set Thursday night in the qualifying races. … Tony Stewart is sidelined after fracturing his back in an accident on an all-terrain vehicle. He’s retiring at the end of the season. Brian Vickers is driving Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 14 Chevrolet. … Kyle Busch won the season title last year. He missed the first 11 races of the season after breaking his right leg and left foot in the Xfinity opener at Daytona. … Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the July race at the track.
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