A History of NASCAR Drivers in the Rolex 24 at Daytona

It is racing’s red carpet.

The Rolex 24 at Daytona is well known for its prestige across the endurance racing world as one of its crown jewel events. However, it has also been the host of several appearances of some of the world’s most famous racing drivers across multiple disciplines.

NASCAR is no different. In 2026, full-time NASCAR Cup Series drivers Connor Zilisch and AJ Allmendinger are making returns to the Daytona International Speedway for the endurance racing prize.

But even dating back to the earliest days of the event, some of stock car racing’s best have made attempts — and even succeeded — in winning the sports car racing event.

All the way back in 1966, the first year the race was held as a 24-hour competition, Bobby Allison was the among the first prominent NASCAR figures to try his hand at the event when he was behind the wheel of a Chevrolet Corvair. While he never won, Allison made several trips to the Daytona International Speedway road course and in several cars, including prototypes. Unlike many drivers that are mentioned in this article, Allison competed in the Rolex 24 before he became more active in Cup Series competition.

The same cannot be said for 1973 Cup champion Benny Parsons, who competed in a BMW 3.5 CSL with David Hobbs in 1976. Also unlike Allison, Parsons not only finished the endurance classic, but finished 10th. Furthermore, when it comes to NASCAR legends competing in 1976, Parsons wasn’t alone. Only six spots below him finished David Pearson partnered with his brother Larry Pearson, who also raced that year in a Ford Torino.

During the 1980s, a wave of NASCAR drivers made starts.

While still in the early years of his NASCAR career, Terry Labonte made his first of seven entries into the 24-hour race in 1981 partnered with the aforementioned Pearson. In the same year he won his first of two Cup titles, he won his sole Rolex 24 class victory in a Chevrolet Camaro in 1984.

In 1983, Labonte was joined by eventual two-time Daytona 500 winner Sterling Marlin, who entered the race in a Chevrolet Corvette but failed to finish. Also present in 1983 was Darrell Waltrip, who was paired with racing legend AJ Foyt but failed to finish. In 1987, both Waltrip and Labonte were paired together in a Chevrolet Camaro but failed to finish.

Who didn’t fail to finish that year, however, was Bill Elliott, who won in his class while driving for Roush Racing. It wasn’t the last Roush Racing win with a NASCAR driver, either.

A year earlier, in 1986, Elliott shared an all-NASCAR driver entry with Ricky Rudd, Kyle Petty and Ken Schrader in a Folgers/Motorcraft Ford Mustang entry but unfortunately failed to finish. It was the only race attempt for both Schrader and Petty, while Rudd competed again the following year and finished fifth in class.

While in the 1990s NASCAR representation generally dwindled in the 24-hour race, Mark Martin made six appearances from 1988 to 1995. Partnered with his longtime NASCAR team owner Jack Roush and Roush Racing, Martin scored three class wins including one in 1991 when paired with racing journeymen and future NASCAR full-timers Robby Gordon and Wally Dallenbach Jr.

It wasn’t until the early 2000s when NASCAR drivers began to return to the event. Perhaps the most famous entry occurred in 2001. Two weeks before his untimely passing in the Daytona 500, Dale Earnhardt made his sole entry into the Rolex 24 partnered with Corvette. Alongside him and also making his maiden start into the race was his son Dale Earnhardt Jr. Their No. 3 entry ended up finishing fourth overall and second in class.

Three-time Cup champion Tony Stewart made his first of five Rolex 24 starts the following year in 2002. Like Kevin Harvick, who made his sole start in the event that year, Stewart failed to finish. However, Stewart would return two years later in 2004 alongside Earnhardt Jr. in a Crawford Daytona Prototype. In the final hour, their entry was leading overall in the event but suffered a suspension failure and, amazingly, resulted with fifth overall despite failing to finish. Earnhardt Jr. never made any more starts and Stewart only matched his best result of third in class in 2005.

While still rising through the NASCAR ranks, Paul Menard made his first of three starts in the race in 2003. His best finish was 15th in class in 2010.

Also in 2004 started seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, who made a whopping seven starts in the endurance race, making him the Cup champion with the most starts in the Rolex 24. However, despite his numerous attempts, Johnson’s best finish was second overall three times (in 2005, 2008 and 2021).

While the Chevrolet drivers made plenty of starts in the decade, so too did the Ganassi Racing drivers. In 2005, Casey Mears made his first of three starts in the race, with his second attempt resulting in an overall victory in 2006. Joining him in the Ganassi sister entry was Jamie McMurray, who made eight total starts in the race from 2005 to 2016 and earned an overall win in 2015.

In 2006, NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace made his sole entry into the event alongside Danica Patrick. Unfortunately, their entry did not finish.

Although not globally known for his NASCAR exploits, Juan Pablo Montoya made several starts in the Rolex 24, and among Cup Series race winners, has the most overall wins in the event with three, including in his first start in 2007.

Another prominent Chevrolet driver, Jeff Gordon, made his maiden start in 2007 with Wayne Taylor Racing. While he finished third overall, he returned in 2017 with the same team and won overall, joining Foyt, Mario Andretti and McMurray as the only drivers to have won both the Daytona 500 and the Rolex 24.

In 2008, Kurt Busch finished third overall in his only Rolex 24 start while driving a Penske-Taylor Racing prototype.

In the 2010s, NASCAR appearances dwindled slightly again but still saw some distinguished names making attempts.

In 2014, two-time Cup champion Kyle Larson made his first of three starts in the race for Ganassi. The following year in 2015, he joined his Ganassi teammate McMurray at the top step of the podium in his sole overall win in the event.

Austin Cindric, known for his road racing upbringing, has made six starts in the Rolex 24, with his first arriving in 2017. His most recent start in 2025 was his most successful, however, as it resulted in his only class podium when he finished third in a Ford Mustang GT3.

Three years after Gordon’s win in 2017, Kyle Busch flew the NASCAR banner when he wheeled a Lexus GT3 to a ninth-place in-class result in his sole start in the race in 2020.

The following year, both Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott made entries in 2021. Dillon competed alongside Cody Ware in the LMP2 class in a Rick Ware Racing entry and finished 10th overall. Elliott’s travels were slightly more successful, as he competed in the top DPi class and finished eighth overall with Action Express Racing.

Cup Series 2025 Rookie of the Year Shane van Gisbergen has plenty of experience in the Rolex 24 with six starts under his belt starting in 2014, and earned a class podium in 2015. Van Gisbergen was paired with Zilisch in 2025 but will not return with him for a start in 2026.

Zilisch will return to the Rolex 24 for the third time in his young career, and is attempting to win his second class win but first overall victory as he will join Action Express in the top GTP class.

Like Zilisch, Allmendinger returns to attempt another victory in the race as he won the event overall in 2012 with Meyer-Shank Racing — the same team he will join this weekend. It will be his 16th start in the race and his first since 2021.

NASCAR At Track Coordinator at Frontstretch

Dalton Hopkins began writing for Frontstretch in April 2021. Currently, he is the lead writer for the weekly Thinkin’ Out Loud column, co-host of the Frontstretch Happy Hour podcast, and one of our lead reporters. Beforehand, he wrote for IMSA shortly after graduating from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2019. Simultaneously, he also serves as a Captain in the US Army.

Follow Dalton on Twitter @PitLaneCPT