Ty Dillon will drive for 23XI Racing in Tuesday night’s Busch Clash at Daytona International Speedway, the team stated Wednesday, confirming a report by The Athletic.
Dillon will drive the car because 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace is not eligible for the event. Dillon is eligible by virtue of winning a stage last season. He won the opening stage in the playoff race at the Charlotte Roval for Germain Racing, which left the sport after the season.
The eligibility requirements for the Busch Clash are: 2020 Busch Pole Award winners; past Busch Clash winners, Daytona 500 race winners, and Daytona 500 pole winners who ran full time in 2020; 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoff drivers; 2020 NASCAR Cup Series race winners; and 2020 NASCAR Cup Series stage winners.
Wallace did not meet any of the criteria from last season when he was at Richard Petty Motorsports.
Tuesday night’s non-points event will be the first race for 23XI Racing, which is co-owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin.
Twenty-four drivers are eligible, including Dillon, who does not have a full-time ride this season. He is scheduled to drive four Xfinity races for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 54 car this season. JGR is aligned with 23XI Racing. After the Clash, Dillon will move over to Gaunt Brothers Racing and attempt to make the Daytona 500 in the No. 96 car.
The full list of eligible drivers for the Busch Clash are:
- Aric Almirola
- Ryan Blaney
- Alex Bowman
- Clint Bowyer
- Chris Buescher
- Kurt Busch
- Kyle Busch
- William Byron
- Cole Custer
- Matt DiBenedetto
- Austin Dillon
- Ty Dillon
- Chase Elliott
- Denny Hamlin
- Kevin Harvick
- Jimmie Johnson
- Erik Jones
- Matt Kenseth
- Brad Keselowski
- Joey Logano
- Ryan Newman
- Tyler Reddick
- Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.
- Martin Truex, Jr.
Bowyer, Johnson and Kenseth are not scheduled to compete in the event.
The Busch Clash will be held for the first time on Daytona’s road course, which also will be run on Feb. 21. The Busch Clash is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET Tuesday (Feb. 9) at FS1.
Very important for our team to get reps. This will be a crucial race for us to get just that. Special thanks to @tydillon for stepping in! https://t.co/wlBZLliUwx
— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) February 3, 2021
Pumped to wheel the @root_insurance Camry in the Clash and help the @23XIRacing team get started on the right foot! Thankful for the opportunity. pic.twitter.com/d9qyZ32tQZ
— Ty Dillon (@tydillon) February 3, 2021