Daniel Dye, who recently served a NASCAR-mandated suspension following homophobic remarks on a Whatnot stream aimed at NTT IndyCar Series driver David Malukas, is set to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut this weekend in the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Dye, 22, will pilot the No. 78 Chevrolet for Live Fast Motorsports in what will be the first race of a four-race stint behind the wheel for the “Open” team. Dye will carry primary sponsorship from Champion Container.
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In addition to this weekend’s event at Talladega, Dye will compete in the events on June 14 at Pocono Raceway, August 29 at Daytona International Speedway, and October 25 at Talladega Superspeedway.
This past weekend, Dye returned to the race track for the first time since obtaining reinstatement from NASCAR, as he competed in the ARCA Menards Series Tide 150 at Kansas Speedway. Dye would finish runner-up in that event, and after climbing from his car, he called the Whatnot incident and subsequent suspension possibly the best thing that’s happened to him, as it refocused his mind on his goals as a racecar driver.
“Me being an idiot was probably the best thing for me to get my head back on my shoulders, and focus on what is truly important to me, and that’s being behind the wheel of a race car,” Dye said.
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While Dye has never competed in a NASCAR Cup Series event, the native of DeLand, Florida, has amassed 97 combined starts in NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competition. In those 97 starts, Dye has collected 20 top-10 finishes.
Dye began the 2026 season as the full-time driver of the No. 10 Kaulig Racing Ram 1500 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, but after his reinstatement from NASCAR and team-mandated suspension, Dye resigned from his driving duties with the team.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/onsi/racing-america as Embattled Dye To Make NASCAR Cup Debut At Talladega.
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