NASCAR is fully in tune with Daytona International Speedway. They completed Qualifying on Wednesday night, and now, the Duels at Daytona will set the order. Come Thursday night, our first taste of superspeedway racing will take place and it will be great. For those of you who enjoy the extracurriculars of NASCAR, here is your aid to Fantasy NASCAR at the Daytona 500.
Top Picks
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Chevrolet
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The Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing had been flying on Wednesday night. Busch finished P1 in both Round 1 and Round 2 of Qualifying. The Daytona 500 can be a stroke of luck, but Busch has the speed that, if he sticks around, should certainly be a threat to win. Busch has zero Daytona 500 victories, but 13 top-10 finishes and 9 top-5s, which is very solid in the grand scheme.
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota
Hamlin is a three-time Daytona 500 winner. He was also the sole Joe Gibbs Racing car to reach Round 2 of Qualifying. As Kevin Harvick explained on the broadcast, Qualifying was all about drivers finding the right line. Hamlin knew how to do that better than most. Come race day, much of Qualifying may go out the window, but Hamlin has the motor and the resume to thrive in the big race.
Mid-Tier Picks
The Daytona 500 is as wide-open a race as we witness all year long. The drafting nature of a track can make the best drivers wreck, and the worst drivers sneak up into the top 10. These mid-tier shots offer better value.
Ryan Preece, No. 60 Ford
It may not be wild to say that Preece will not be the 3rd RFK Racing Ford in 2026. Despite unique conditions, Preece won the Cook Out Clash and finished 3rd in Duels qualifying. That Ford will be going fast while Preece has a respectable resume on Superspeedways with an average finish of 21.7, which includes much of his years in a subpar Stewart-Hass Racing car.
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Chevrolet
Some fans may label Dillon a long shot, but we must show respect for his name. Dillon has won twice at Daytona and has 9 top-10 finishes in 25 starts. That is extremely good by superspeedway standards. Dillon backed up his resume by finishing 15th in Qualifying, and he will start the Duels in 7th place. Any "ball-knowers" will recognize that, like Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Dillon knows how to race here, and he should be expected to perform above field-average.
Longshots
John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Toyota
Legacy Motor Club has shifted to Toyota as its new car manufacturer. This may be up for debate, but it can only help the team. They have a higher priority for a lower-volume manufacturer.
As noted on the FOX broadcast last night, no driver has a better average finish at the Daytona 500 than Nemechek has in the NextGen era. Like Dillon, Nemechek seems to have this race down pat. Across all tracks at which Nemechek has run at least twice in the Cup Series, he has his best average finish (11.0) at Daytona, which is 5.5 spots better than his second-best track (Gateway).
Justin Allgaier, No. 40 Chevrolet
This may be an open car, but it is as good as any car. Allgaier finished P9 in the 2025 Daytona 500 with this same No. 40 for JR Motorsports. Among all open cars, only three stood out as good as most charters — Corey Heim, Justin Allgaier, and Corey LaJoie.
It takes experience to do well at the Daytona 500. Allgaier has more experience than most in this field. Though never winning in the Cup Series, Allgaier does know what to do at superspeedways, having finished above his Qualifying position on career average at these layouts.