The third and final practice for the 68th running of the Daytona 500 was very calm, and there were no issues.
Of the 41 starters, only 18 actually chose to go out on track. There was some drafting, and the biggest pack formed early with RFK Racing and Team Penske Fords, but also a handful of Chevrolets that joined them.
Jimmie Johnson was the only Toyota driver to even go out on track, and he stayed out of the draft. Casey Mears, who dramatically full-throttled his way into the Daytona 500, finally got out on track after two days of repairs.
BJ McLeod, who made the race only after Anthony Alfredo's shock inspection failure, found a sponsor for his No. 78 car, and gave RepairableVehicles.com some TV time on Saturday.
Most cars that didn't take part in practice were going through inspection for voluntary checks, just making sure there weren't going to be any surprises on Sunday. However, then there was Denny Hamlin, who could be seen fishing during final practice out on Lake Lloyd in the field.
Preece expects tricky conditions on Sunday
But it was Ryan Preece who set the fastest laptime at 192.819mph, leading an RFK Racing 1-2-3. He had a new nose on the car after contact at the end of the Duel qualifying race, and while he was quickest, he wasn't entirely happy with the handling.
"I know they're going to do everything they possibly can, that's for sure," said Preece about making the car race-ready. "It was really fast on Thursday. So, they had to replace the nose. At least they have some notes and maybe we can adjust on it. But, yeah, it was pretty tough. It's important when you're that fifth, fourth car to keep those guys racked to make speed. And, you know, we were definitely able to do that on Thursday and just struggled a little bit there. But, you know, it's not for the lack of trying, and I know these guys are going to do everything they have to make sure that we're really fast tomorrow."
He continued: "I'm curious because I think handling is probably going to be a little bit more of an issue than we all think. And, yeah, I don't know. You know, there's a lot of things that are running through my mind right now. But, yeah, you know, I feel like one thing I do know is the Fords are fast, and we'll try to be one of those guys that are up front."
Behind the RFK trio, Ryan Blaney was fourth, and Joey Logano was fifth. Ross Chastain was the top Chevrolet in sixth, followed by Chase Elliott, AJ Allmendinger, BJ McLeod, and Cody Ware.
The next time we will see the Cup cars on track is in the 68th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday.
Photos from Daytona 500 - Saturday
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 - Saturday, in photos
Daytona 500 Practice #3 Results
| cla | # | driver | manufacturer | laps | time | gap | mph |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60 |
 Ryan Preece |
Ford | 27 | 46.676 | 192.819 | |
| 2 | 17 |
Chris Buescher |
Ford | 31 | 46.684 | 0.008 | 192.786 |
| 3 | 6 |
Brad Keselowski |
Ford | 31 | 46.733 | 0.057 | 192.583 |
| 4 | 12 |
Ryan Blaney |
Ford | 31 | 46.758 | 0.082 | 192.480 |
| 5 | 22 |
Joey Logano |
Ford | 32 | 46.760 | 0.084 | 192.472 |
| 6 | 1 |
Ross Chastain |
Chevrolet | 9 | 46.791 | 0.115 | 192.345 |
| 7 | 9 |
Chase Elliott |
Chevrolet | 26 | 46.830 | 0.154 | 192.184 |
| 8 | 16 |
AJ Allmendinger |
Chevrolet | 18 | 47.141 | 0.465 | 190.917 |
| 9 | 78 |
BJ McLeod |
Chevrolet | 11 | 47.150 | 0.474 | 190.880 |
| 10 | 51 |
Cody Ware |
Ford | 17 | 47.185 | 0.509 | 190.739 |
| 11 | 41 |
Cole Custer |
Ford | 6 | 47.287 | 0.611 | 190.327 |
| 12 | 10 |
Ty Dillon |
Chevrolet | 10 | 47.297 | 0.621 | 190.287 |
| 13 | 24 |
William Byron |
Chevrolet | 2 | 47.976 | 1.300 | 187.594 |
| 14 | 21 |
Josh Berry |
Ford | 15 | 49.120 | 2.444 | 183.225 |
| 15 | 2 |
Austin Cindric |
Ford | 14 | 49.263 | 2.587 | 182.693 |
| 16 | 48 |
Alex Bowman |
Chevrolet | 4 | 49.326 | 2.650 | 182.460 |
| 17 | 66 |
Casey Mears |
Ford | 4 | 49.403 | 2.727 | 182.175 |
| 18 | 84 |
Jimmie Johnson |
Toyota | 19 | 49.524 | 2.848 | 181.730 |
