Duel at Daytona International Speedway
Daytona Beach, Florida – February 12, 2026
AUSTIN CINDRIC No. 2 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 8TH FINISH: 17TH DAYTONA 500 STARTING POSITION: 36TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang Dark Horse took to Daytona International Speedway on Thursday night for the second of two 150-mile qualifying races that set the final starting lineup for the Daytona 500. Rolling off from the eighth position, Cindric immediately settled into the draft and maintained a strong presence inside the top 10 through the opening laps as the field ran tightly packed and two wide around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. Working the bottom lane, he kept the No. 2 Ford in contention while the momentum shifted between the inside and outside lines. As the race approached the halfway mark, the shuffle of the draft pushed Cindric just outside the top 10 as lane momentum continued to ebb and flow. Despite the constant movement in the pack, he remained composed and relatively quiet on the radio through the opening half, focused on maintaining position and keeping the car clean. A quick, two-second fuel-only stop with 12 laps to go ensured the No. 2 Ford had what it needed to reach the checkered flag. In the closing laps, the pack charged three wide with Cindric leading the low lane as drivers jostled for position in the final dash to the finish. He ultimately crossed the line in 17th, bringing home a clean Discount Tire Ford Mustang Dark Horse and solidifying his starting position for Sunday’s 68th running of the Daytona 500.
CINDRIC’S THOUGHTS: “The third lane was super dominant there at the end with the laps on tires, but we actually probably overachieved on the pit cycle there and was able to come out second on the cycle, but I had too big of a gap to some of the cars behind. I zig zagged and got hooked up with Todd. We were making the bottom work for quite a while, but it just lost strength and that’s kind of where we faded back and then you’re just taking runs after you lose track position, so it’s a shame we don’t have a better starting spot for our Discount Tire Ford, but I definitely learned a lot from tonight and I’m looking forward to applying it on Sunday.”
RYAN BLANEY No. 12 MENARDS/PEAK FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 11TH FINISH: 2ND DAYTONA 500 STARTING POSITION: 5TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Ryan Blaney came away with a second-place finish in the first of two Duel races at Daytona to secure a fifth-place starting position in Sunday’s 68th running of the Daytona 500. Blaney worked the No. 12 Menards/Peak Ford Mustang Dark Horse methodically between lanes before moving up to lead the outside line around the halfway point of the qualifying race. On lap 45, Blaney was called to pit road with the first group of cars for fuel only when a spin at the back of the pack coming on to the pit lane brought out the caution shortly after. After the remainder of teams pitted for fuel under yellow, Blaney lined up to take the ensuing restart from fourth in the running order behind teammate Joey Logano with 11 laps remaining. Blaney was able to push Logano clear to the lead with seven to go, but a multi-car incident on the backstretch reset the field and set up a green-white-checkered finish as the Penske teammates lined up with each other at the front of the outside row. The two battled as the inside line fought to draw even with Logano as Blaney continued to push him at the front, but the caution flag flew for an incident in turn three as the field was coming to the checkered with Blaney scored second in the running order.
BLANEY’S THOUGHTS: “Luckily, we were just ahead of the chaos. There were a couple close calls. That one before the green-white-checkered I actually got tagged in the left-rear by [William Byron], but it was just very minimal and nothing happened. I got control of the race with Joey [Logano] and myself after the pit stop and that caution happened. Then we were just able to line up and push really well together and maintain control of the race and run it to the end. I’m proud of the effort. Good teamwork tonight with a couple of fast cars and I look forward to going to Sunday. I’m happy the thing is in one piece.”
JOEY LOGANO No. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 6TH FINISH: 1ST DAYTONA 500 STARTING POSITION: 3RD
RACE RUNDOWN: Joey Logano came away with his fourth-career Duel at Daytona win Thursday night, leading 15 laps in an overtime finish as the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse team secured a third-place starting spot for Sunday’s 68th running of the Daytona 500. Logano worked between the inside and outside lanes at the start of the scheduled 60-lap event before he was called to pit road on lap 45 with the first group of teams taking fuel only. Logano was first to the line after the stop, but a caution for a spin at the back of the group coming to pit road allowed the Shell-Pennzoil Ford to assume the lead after the rest of the field pitted under yellow. Logano took the restart from the outside of row one with 11 laps to go before Penske teammate Ryan Blaney pushed him to the lead with seven laps remaining as the duo worked to fend off a charge from the inside lane. With four laps left, the No. 23 spun on the backstretch at the front of the field to bring out the caution and set up a green-white-checkered finish as Logano and Blaney were able to get by unscathed. The teammates once again chose the top two spots in the outside row prior to the overtime restart as Blaney was able to push Logano clear once again with the field coming to take the white flag. With Logano continuing to maintain the lead down the backstretch and into turn three, the caution flag flew for a multi-car wreck with the No. 22 scored as the leader, signaling the end of the race as Logano secured the checkered flag.
LOGANO’S THOUGHTS: “We definitely learned a lot. It was great teamwork all the way through. Ryan Blaney was a fantastic teammate there, which is expected. He’s always been that for us and we try to work together the best we can and when we’re able to do that correctly, we can see success together like this. First of all, I’ve got to thank him. Obviously, Nick Hensley, my gas man, that gave us position off of pit road to where we could defend and not have to try to move forward, so he did a great job. And Coleman Pressley up on the roof did a fantastic job with the info. It’’s all the things you work on over the offseason, but it’s awesome when it all comes together and you’re able to actually work out the plan. A lot of times people say there’s a plan and it goes out the window on lap one, but for us we were able to work it all the way to the end.”
Up next, NASCAR Cup Series drivers will take to the track Friday afternoon for the second practice session of the week, which is set for 5:35 p.m. ET on FS1.
