NASCAR Xfinity Series at Daytona 2015: Schedule, Drivers to Watch, Race Preview

Less than 24 hours before the 2015 Sprint Cup season kicks off, the Xfinity Series will officially get underway. In the first year under the new sponsorship, it year promises to be memorable.

Why, exactly? Not only is a great crop of veterans, including Regan Smith and Elliott Sadler, still in the field, but the championship contenders also have bright futures ahead. Names such as Chase Elliott and Ty Dillon have been hot this offseason due to their Sprint Cup aspirations.

Elliott is locked in to the No. 24 machine with Hendrick after this season. Oh, and he was the youngest Xfinity Series champion at 18 years old last year. Dillon, on the other hand, is working toward competing in his first Daytona 500 on Sunday after the lower-level race.

Before the season kicks off, here's a look at the full racing schedule and a preview of the drivers to watch.

Race Information

Where: Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida

When: Saturday, Feb. 21

Start Time: 3:30 p.m. ET

TV: Fox Sports 1

Live Stream: Fox Sports Go

Radio: Motor Racing Network

Race Preview

Coming off one of the most dominant seasons for a rookie in the middle tier of NASCAR, Elliott is the focal point heading into 2015. Not only is he at the top of the Xfinity Series, but he's also guaranteed a spot with the best Sprint Cup team after the year.

Though he could be looking ahead to taking over for a legend, Elliott has goals at the Xfinity level.

"I have goals I want to try to achieve on the Xfinity side—try to step up, compete for hopefully more wins and compete for another championship—that would be great," Elliott said, via Jim Utter of the Charlotte Observer. "There’s a lot of things between now and next season that I’d like to try and accomplish."

He won't be able to clinch another title with a win, but driving to Victory Lane at Daytona is a massive accomplishment. After all, his dad, Bill Elliott, won at the track twice in the highest series.

No pressure, Chase.

Outside of Elliott, the other young gun last season was Dillon, the younger brother of Austin Dillon. After winning at the Brickyard last year, the 22-year-old driver knows how to show up at the biggest tracks.

Mike Hoag of Ty Dillon Motorsports shared the driver's comments on besting his brother in the Daytona 500 qualifying:

Dillon finished seventh last year, which was a much better start than Elliott's 15th-place result. However, he won't be the only young star on the track. Darrell Wallace Jr. will also be hoping to make his mark with Roush Fenway Racing.

They'll be joined by Sadler and Smith, who finished in the top five last year. Smith, who won his only race of the 2014 season in Daytona, will be looking to emerge from the shadow of his 19-year-old teammate.

Will another surprise star emerge? Can Dillon build off his strong finish? Can anyone overtake JR Motorsports for the title?

All of those questions will be answered this season, which starts when the green flag waves Saturday.

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