NASCAR is set to kick off its season Sunday with the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., but an unexpected issue popped up less than an hour before the green flag.
Fans and media members observed a brush fire that broke out behind turn one at Daytona. While not extremely close to the track, the fire was close enough to be clearly visible from the speedway.
Appears to be a #wildfire beginning just off turn 1/2 of @DAYTONA. Very dry here on the east coast of FL and very windy today as well. #Daytona500 #flwx #nascarwx pic.twitter.com/8MREatwgLj
— Bryan Sharpe (@TBLwx803) February 15, 2026
Making matters worse, high winds were blowing the smoke and haze toward the track.
A small fire has broken out near the speedway and the smoke has quickly blown over the track due to high winds. pic.twitter.com/XcUAu7t8LZ
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) February 15, 2026
There were no indications that the start of the race would be impacted, though the fire’s proximity to the track certainly makes it worth keeping an eye on. Drought conditions have impacted Florida for some time, though rain is in the forecast later Sunday.
It has been a rather bizarre weekend for fires at sporting events. Ideally, this one will not have much of an impact for the race itself.
