Who Could Take the 68th Running of the Daytona 500?

Photo Credit to James Gilbert/Getty Images

NASCAR

Stratta’s Six: Who Could Cement Themselves in History at 68th Daytona 500?

In mere hours, one name will be forever enshrined on an iconic piece of NASCAR hardware. The Harley J. Earl Trophy features nameplates for each of its previous 67 winners. The 68th running of the Daytona 500 is now almost here. The first points-paying race of a new season, this victory can define a driver’s entire career. Here are my picks to join the legendary list of Daytona 500 champions.

Ryan Blaney

It almost feels as if Ryan Blaney is due for a change of fortune. He is Team Penske’s lone man without a Daytona 500 win under his belt. One of this era’s most decorated superspeedway drivers, Blaney took the most recent Daytona race in August thanks to an electric finish. The No. 12 Ford went from 12th to leading in only two laps, showing his dexterity in the draft. Blaney has been a painful Daytona 500 runner-up twice before in 2017 and 2020. The 12 can never be counted out if he’s in the running late.

“I always think of it as like can we just put ourselves in the spot to try to win the race and then we’ll go from there,” Blaney said. “That’s the start of it. We’ve been close a couple times and it’s easy to look back on those things and I do. Should I have made some different decisions here and there, and when you’re in those spots and they don’t work out for you it’s easy to go back and be like, ‘I should have done this different.’ Sometimes you feel you did everything right and it just didn’t work out, but I think that experience helps. I’d much rather have the experience and maybe the heartbreak of being in a spot to win two or three and not doing it and trying to learn from it than never being in a spot to win it because then you don’t have any experience when it comes down to the end of these things. I wouldn’t say that I’m more driven to win this race than I have in the past because we’ve been close. I’m always driven to win any race, but you just hope you find yourself in a spot and you hope you make the right decisions.”

“No matter what lane it is, I don’t think I have a preference on lane, but one of the top two cars in a lane. I think then you have a realistic shot of winning. It’s hard to do anything from being the third car in the lane. If you’re the front two, whether you’re leading, obviously that’s great. If you’re second, maybe you can get pushed out and then you can make a move, so, yeah, any one of the top two in any lane I’d rather be.”

“I just try to go my best every year, whether we come up just short or you don’t even get to compete in it at all. I’ve come in second in this race a couple times and down to the wire, and I’ve made 20 laps a couple times and got wrecked and go home early. It’s just a bummer, but it’s not a lingering thing over my head that I haven’t won this one. You just try your best every year and if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. All you can do is continue to try and it might not ever happen, but I don’t really think about that. I just go try to do the best job I can every single year and try to put yourself in a spot to do it.”

Out of all drivers still winless in the Daytona 500, Blaney may just have the best odds for Sunday. Penske superspeedway prowess and Ford power are both factors to not be overlooked. One of ‘The Captain’ Roger Penske’s three horses are very capable of this win. Blaney’s Daytona 500 results are almost the tale of two cities with how far apart the 12’s finishes are. If Blaney can survive the inevitable chaos, he may be facing down his biggest win yet.

William Byron

To be the best on Daytona’s high banks, 40 drivers will have to find a way to beat William Byron for the first time in three years. The two-time defending 500 champion is only the fifth to ever hit this feat. Hendrick driver No. 24 aims to join a club of one as the lone three-peat winner of The Great American Race. Byron’s been in the right spot each of the last two years, and hopes the chips fall in his favor again.

“Obviously that’s the goal,” Byron said. “I get reminders of the previous races, whether I see just the videos or whatnot. Yeah, it’s great career-defining moments that we’ve had. It’s awesome. It’s special. But I don’t really think ahead too much. I just think about kind of what it’s going to take in these next couple days leading up to it.”

“My goal is to be good at all the styles of racing. I don’t put an emphasis more on this than others. If anything, kind of less in some ways because I feel like some of it is out of your control. But I do feel like I have a good instinct for making good decisions on the track. I have a great spotter in Branden [Lines] that guides me well and a really good team with a well-prepared car that handles well and does all the things I want it to do. It’s just a combination of all those things and kind of just having a good overall feel for it.”

“I think the middle groove could be a good place to be. Just have to see how the draft kind of works this week and understand it better. But yeah, I think being in that top-four is probably where I would like to be. I would like to be a pusher or being pushed. Having control of the race is great if it’s a restart. I think sometimes having control too soon can be kind of a death wish as well. Because guys are just going to have opportunities to make passes on you. I don’t know if that answers it, but kind of in that mix, I guess.”

What’s unique about both of Byron’s Daytona 500 wins is their very different circumstances. 2024 saw the No. 24 ahead when a last-lap caution flew. Last year, meanwhile, saw Byron navigate a field-clearing wreck to see the other side first. It is obvious Byron has a knack for surviving superspeedway carnage. Will the 24 find a third different way to pull into Daytona 500 victory lane and rewrite history?

Denny Hamlin

From one possibly historic feat to another, Denny Hamlin has the chance to join very rarified air. Hamlin hopes to become only the third man with four Daytona 500 wins. This would tie Cale Yarborough for second most all-time. Hamlin was ahead on the last lap before carnage unfolded last year. Now entering his 21st Daytona 500 attempt, Hamlin is one of the most experienced drivers in the draft.

“Every win that gets you here puts you in a certain list,” Hamlin said. “The list is so small at that four number, it certainly was on my mind on the last lap last year when we were leading, that we are going to get another one. I’ve just been really lucky to have the opportunities I’ve had to win these races, but also been very unfortunate in the Next Gen era to not have won more. I feel as though the opportunity will be there. Hopefully we can put ourselves in position to move ourselves up that Daytona 500 winners board.”

“For me as a general rule of thumb, I want to be in the top eight inside 20 laps to go. I think that’s where you have to be. There’s not enough passing after that last stage until the very, very end and you are not going to do it from 15^th. When you get inside that last fuel window and at that point it’s all circumstantial. Last year I thought for sure we were going to win it, just where we were and who we were racing and I was positioning ourselves and then you just crash. That’s just the Daytona 500 nowadays. Getting crashed is a large possibility. I don’t think I’ve finished well in the Next Gen era here, but I’ve ran well. I’ve been very unfortunate. I’m still trying to figure out how to finish these races without getting crashed in any way, shape, or form.”

“It’s all circumstantial. I never don’t want to be in the lead. But I feel really good about being second or third. It all depends on who I’m racing against and what are their tendencies and who can I use their tendencies to help myself. There’s no bad time to be up front. While the wrecks start up front, it’s typically because the leader throws a block that then causes a chain reaction. I typically don’t throw crazy blocks that cause the wrecks because I feel comfortable up front. I don’t mind someone getting beside me and we race it out. It’s really the crazy blocks that end up causing the wrecks. I feel good about controlling the race and feel like we have a good chance if we do.”

Next Gen superspeedway racing has been more famine than feast for Hamlin across four years. 24 drafting starts have only seen two top-fives for the No. 11 Toyota, a streak that could come to an end on Sunday. Following an emotionally-charged offseason, it would be a very fitting moment to see Hamlin recapture Daytona 500 glory.

Austin Cindric

Considered by some competitors as the best in Next Gen drafting, Austin Cindric chases a second Daytona 500 win. Penske’s No. 2 Mustang won The Great American Race in Cindric’s rookie season, and has been a threat every year since. Eighth-place last year, however, was Cindric’s only top-20 result over the last three years. Last year alone saw Cindric pace the 500 field for a race-high 59 laps. The Deuce should be up in the mix again at some point on Sunday. Circumstances will determine whether or not Cindric will be able to stay in this position.

“Our Speedweeks last year was about as good as you could ever ask for without getting the race finish that we were in position for,” Cindric said. “But past that, it’s a new year and new opportunities. But our cars are strong and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what we can do. [We’ll] try to start things off and give ourselves as many options as we can like we did last year.”

“I think this is one of the few races that you could easily look at, because I can’t sit here and tell you what the intensity level is going to be or not going to be in regards to racing with the new points system. But if there’s one race that the intensity is still gonna match and nobody is gonna care about full season points it’s the Daytona 500.”

No matter the drafting track, Cindric’s craft excels and is perfectly honed in amid this modern era. A Duel winner and Talladega victor last year, the 2 should be near the top of many short lists for a potential dominant Sunday drive.

Kyle Busch

The sentimental favorite for Sunday has already achieved one career first this week–the Daytona 500 pole. Kyle Busch will take his 21st try at The Great American Race from the best position. The 40-year-old veteran hopes to be right there when the checkers wave. No driver has ever won a maiden Daytona 500 after more than 20 tries. Rowdy hopes to buck this trend and give Richard Childress Racing a fourth triumph on the biggest stage. Busch has clearly not forgotten how this race ended in 2023, when he was in contention as laps wound down.

“Two years ago when we were here, Austin Dillon and myself got the lead,” Busch said. “We were in the control of the race. We were running first and second when we came off of turn four. I saw the white flag in the flag man’s hand, and unfortunately, a caution came out as we got to the front side of pit road entry. And after that, we weren’t able to hold the lead on the restarts, but I led mile marker 500. That’s just the way it goes… You just never know how it’s exactly gonna end. So, to be out front, you feel like that’s the safest spot to be. But sometimes you see guys spun out of the lead and they’re not the ones to win. There are guys that win coming out of turn two and they’re in seventh place or they’re in 11th place, It just depends, you never know.”

“I would like to think that in my 21st year now of trying for the Daytona 500, we can bring it home and make it happen so we can stop talking about it. It’s a tough race to win, not like what it used to be. It’s less about fast cars and having all of that stuff that you need to have like we saw in the ‘80s and the ‘90s and the early 2000s. Now its everybody on top everybody, fuel milage race, chess match where can you be, where can you put yourself and make the right moves at the right times. And so being able to do all that and then miss the wreck. There seems to always be a wreck on the final lap or the final two laps or whatever it might be and restarts that happen towards the end of the race. I think William Byron won it the last two years and both years there was a wreck on the backstretch and he was running seventh and 11th coming off of turn 2 and he ends up winning. So, do you want to be leading or do you want to be second, hell do you want to be 11th? I don’t know.”

“I remember winning at Las Vegas, my home track in 2009, and it just being such a big moment for me being my home track. Wanting to win there so hard, it felt really, really cool to do that. So I can’t imagine what a Daytona 500 win would feel like. Maybe being old nowadays and having a family, you might see a tear. Who knows.”

A two-time champion, one of NASCAR’s winningest of all-time, and an unmatched talent, Kyle Busch is already a future Hall of Famer. The Harley J. Earl Trophy is the one glaring piece not yet in his possession. Can one of the longest-ever Daytona 500 dry spells come to an end in 2026? The No. 8 being a tenth faster than the field in qualifying showed they mean business for this win. They cannot be counted out of this fight.

Joey Logano

It’s been over a decade since Joey Logano’s Daytona 500 triumph, and the three-time Cup winner wants another one. Penske’s veteran presence has been within eyesight of a second Harley J. Earl Trophy in recent years, finishing 2023 as runner-up. Logano also lays claim to the highest percentage of laps in the top-three (25.8%) and lowest average running position (12.9) on Next Gen superspeedways. In short, Logano’s been a regular threat on Daytona’s high banks and could easily master NASCAR’s biggest race again.

“It doesn’t get old, but the memories start to fade, so you’ve got to do it again,” Logano said. “It’s been long enough to be ready for another one. We’ve obviously been close many other times since then, so hopefully we can pull it off. Just starting off with a solid run is great, but the Daytona 500, to me, I look at it as more than just a race – like starting the race season off with a win. It’s the Great American Race. It’s a little bit more than just a normal race. So I think everybody knows that here of what it’s about.”

Already the only active past champion to win the Daytona 500, Logano wants another ring for his collection. The No. 22 Ford led over 70 laps between both Daytona races last year. Do not be surprised to see the Duel winner from Thursday be a heavyweight threat for Sunday’s crown jewel win.

NASCAR history will write its opening stanza in the 2026 chapter on Sunday when engines fire in Florida. The 68th running of the Daytona 500 has been moved up an hour due to threats of weather Sunday evening. The new start time is 1:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Written by Peter Stratta

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Photo Credits to James Gilbert/Getty Images