NASCAR to Daytona with Denny Hamlin clinched and Ryan Preece's potty mouth in play

The Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona closes out NASCAR’s regular season and sets up the new postseason chase format, with Denny Hamlin already clinching first place. The piece outlines how points reset after Daytona: Hamlin gets a 25-point cushion based on winning the regular-season points race, while second has a 10-point advantage over third and spots 3 through 16 are separated by five-point gaps—leaving 16th at 100 points behind. Behind Hamlin are Ryan Blaney, Ty Gibbs and Tyler Reddick in the “Big Four,” though the order could change before fifth-place Christopher Bell. Separately, Ryan Preece’s chances were hurt after an on-track verbal exchange with Ty Gibbs at Texas Motor Speedway in early May.