Throughout Daytona Beach, signs promoting the race hang on bar windows. Placards sit on tables in hotel lobbies. Restaurants feverishly make preparations for their busiest time of the year. If you didn’t know better,

NASCAR season kicks off this Sunday with the 67th running of the Daytona 500, and this year, change is the prevailing theme in the garage area.

Although Castroneves is driving for an open team, the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner is locked into the field through a new rule that allows NASCAR to invite a “world-class driver” to each event. His Trackhouse Racing team was the only one to apply before the deadline, so he was the only driver NASCAR considered for the provisional spot.