Travis Pastrana and Jimmie Johnson will qualify for the 2023 Daytona 500 race.
Travis Pastrana and Jimmie Johnson qualified for the 2023 Daytona 500 in a special qualifying session for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race on Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway in Florida.
The two drivers, who have each recently announced plans to scale back their racing programs, posted the two fastest speeds among non-charters.
Pastrana will drive a Toyota Camry for 23XI Racing, a team founded in 2020 by NBA legend Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin. The team currently has two cars in the Cup Series, driven by Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick.
Johnson will drive a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Legacy Motor Club (formerly Petty GMS Motorsports), co-owned by Richard Petty and Maurice J. Gallagher Jr.
The 2023 Daytona 500 will be held on February 19.
Pastrana is perhaps most widely known for his recent "Gymkhana" videos, but he is also a competitive rally driver and has had success in motocross. He is also the founder of the nitro rallycross series in which he currently competes. He announced in early February that he would be cutting back on his racing schedule in order to spend more time with his family.
Johnson is a seven-time NASCAR champion. He is returning to the series on a limited basis after two years in IndyCar. Like Pastrana, Johnson announced plans last year to step away from full racing in order to spend more time with his family and take on other activities. One of his attempts is to drive a specially prepared NASCAR race car in this year's 2024 Hours of Le Mans.