How & Where to Watch the Daytona 500? Schedule, Revised Time, Prize Money, Donald Trump Presence & More

It is almost time for NASCAR’s grand season-opener, the Daytona 500, to go green under the lights of Florida. With an exciting Speedweek, the Cup Series will soon take on the 500-mile event on the 2.5-mile superspeedway with Kyle Busch leading the pack. The grandstands are once again sold out, but there will be millions of spectators watching through live TV and streaming services.

How to watch the Daytona 500?

Apart from the fans witnessing the event from the grandstands, the entire coverage will also be shown via FOX, which is responsible for many events in the season’s first half. The grand event’s pre-race show will begin at 11:30 AM, featuring many renowned faces from the sport’s history. Apart from the TV broadcast, the race can also be watched at FOXSports.com, the FOX Sports App, and FOX One.

While Amazon Prime and NBC also have streaming rights for NASCAR, they won’t be available for the Daytona race. Later, when they start broadcasting the races, fans can take up to a 30-day free trial on Amazon Prime to watch the races.

However, the race will not be streamed for free on any of the broadcasts.

What time is the Daytona 500 on TV?

The 68th running of the Great American Race will take place at 1:30 PM ET, with the green flag scheduled for 2:13 PM ET. As mentioned, the pre-race show will kick off at 11:30 AM ET. The race timings in the surrounding country of Mexico will be one hour earlier than Eastern Time, beginning at 12:30 PM.

Owing to weather concerns, the original start time of the race was moved up by one hour. The race is set to be quite exciting. Reigning Cup Series champion Kyle Larson will mark a stunning return to the track alongside the fierce competition.

How much does it cost to attend the Daytona 500?

The cost of the Daytona 500 tickets can vary. When first put up for sale, the tickets ranged between $135 to $473. However, the price had changed quite a bit, with the range extending all the way over $700 earlier this week.

But the race had been sold out long before, as the trend has been for many consecutive years. The Great American Race is one of the most prestigious motorsports events in the US, and the tickets often sell out like hot pancakes.

The race can sometimes run hot, owing to the average 3-hour runtime. But the fans can bring their own beer to Daytona if they comply with the rules. They should bring it in a soft-sided cooler or a clear bag under the specified size limits. Furthermore, glass bottles are strictly prohibited. Beers will also be available to purchase at the track, ranging from $12 to $14 for a 16-oz domestic beer, with premiums possibly higher.

However, people coming from outside of Florida might have to spend a lot more on suites, considering they sometimes cost more than $5,000 per person. These factors make the Daytona 500 one of the most expensive events to attend.

The winning purse hasn’t been publicized for this year. However, a speculation can be drawn from the purse at the event last year, which was $30,331,250, encompassing the total prize money.