Daytona 500 Best Bets
Let’s take a look at how the betting markets see this one. DraftKings Sportsbook is offering a ton of odds for the Daytona 500, including bets on the top-three, top-five, top-six, and top-10 finishers, along with some prop bets that put drivers against one another. I’ll focus on their odds to win, to finish in the top three. Feb 14, 2021 Martin Truex Jr. Is the odds favorite among the Toyota drivers, but make no mistake — the best bet in that camp remains Hamlin, who over the past 10 races at Daytona has collected more points than anyone else. That track record, plus that relative value, equal a no-brainer. 20% Deposit Bonus up to $1000. The best prop bets for the Daytona 500 which will take place on Sunday, February 14th, live from the Daytona International Speedway.
The NASCAR Cup Series kicks off the 2021 season at Daytona International Speedway Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET for the Daytona 500. Below we analyze the Daytona 500 NASCAR odds and lines, with NASCAR picks and tips with odds from BetMGM sportsbook.
Feb 12, 2021 The Daytona 500 will kick off NASCAR's Cup Series season Sunday (2:30 p.m. Coming off two straight victories at 'The Great American Race,' three-time winner Denny Hamlin is unsurprisingly the. The beauty of the Daytona 500 is that the field is so wide-open. Even the favorites are typically laying expensive payouts. Just take the top Daytona 500 bet in 2021: Denny Hamlin. He is currently slated to enter race day as +700—and again, that's the favorite.
Daytona 500: What you need to know
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Saturday at 4:18 p.m. ET.
The Cup Series is scheduled to kick off its 2021 season Sunday for the Great American Race, the Daytona 500. However, we’ll have to keep a close eye on the sky. There is greater than a 60 percent chance of showers from mid-afternoon through the early evening in Daytona Beach, Fla., so a delay and/or postponement seems likely given the ominous forecast.
Monday’s forecast calls for mostly clear in the morning with a 40 percent chance of scattered thunderstorms moving in around 1 p.m. ET. But there is an open window in the event the race is postponed Sunday.
Kyle Busch won the Busch Clash at Daytona on Tuesday night on the road course. While that certainly doesn’t mean sure success on the tri-oval, it gives Busch a springboard into the new season after a disastrous 2020.Busch’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin has won each of the past two Daytona 500 races. In last year’s win, he was originally slotted in the 21st starting position but was moved to the back of the pack due to multiple failed inspections. In 30 career starts at the track he has three wins, 10 top-5 finishes and a 16.33 Average-Finish Position (AFP).Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon picked up the checkered flag at the 500 in 2018. Good finishes on the restrictor-plate track are nothing new for Dillon. In 15 career starts at DIS, he has the 2018 win, two top-5 finishes, seven top-10 runs and a pole in 2014. He also has a stellar 15.53 AFP on the Florida superspeedway.Bubba Wallace will make his debut for owner Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing, running in the No. 23 car. He was the runner-up to Dillon in 2018, posting the highest finish by an African-American driver in the 500. Bubba was fastest in Wednesday’s practice.Special Daytona 500 Betting Promotion!
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Who is going to win the Daytona 500?
HAMLIN (+500) is the chalk, but you have to figure it’s time for someone else. The No. 11 has been to Victory Lane in each of the past two seasons in the Super Bowl of Stock Car Racing. Hamlin’s two wins, and three victories in the past five seasons, gives manufacturer Toyota checkered flags in three of the past five Daytona 500 races.
Hamlin joined Sterling Marlin (1994-95), Cale Yarborough (1983-84) and Richard Petty (1973-74) as the only drivers to win the Daytona 500 in consecutive seasons. No one has ever won the Daytona 500 in three straight years.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s KEVIN HARVICK (+1200) has some rather long odds given his previous success at the track. He has made 39 career starts on the Daytona tri-oval, posting two wins, 10 top-5 finishes, 262 laps led and a sharp 17.6 AFP. He also has eight DNFs at the track, second-most among active drivers behind KYLE BUSCH (+1400), so there is some risk.
Penske Racing’s JOEY LOGANO (+900) is looking to get back to Victory Lane at the 500 for the first time since 2015. He owns an impressive 18.17 AFP in 24 career DIS starts, including nine finishes of 10th or better with 156 laps led.
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Daytona 500 long-shot bet
RICKY STENHOUSE JR. (+2500) of JTG Daugherty Racing was on the pole last season and was fifth fastest in qualifying at 189.565 mph. He is always a driver to watch on the superspeedways, especially Daytona. He has a win in 17 career starts, 121 laps led and 10 finishes of 20th or better while going for a solid 19.59 AFP.
ARIC ALMIROLA (+1800) doesn’t have quite as long of odds, but he is worth a look. He appeared to be on his way to a win at the 500 in 2018, but he was bumped by Dillon and sent careening into the wall. He does have a career win in Daytona in the summer race, and he has 10 finishes of 20th or better in 18 career starts with a 20.56 AFP.
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How do you read the 2021 Daytona 500 odds and turn a profit? But better yet – what is Daytona 500? Put simply, it’s the most important and widely-recognized race by far on the NASCAR circuit. It has the best history, it has all the top drivers, and it has the biggest purse.
Today, we have put together for your reading pleasure the ultimate Daytona 500 betting guide. Our team has gone the full distance, from providing you with an up-to-date list of odds to carefully examining the competition’s recent history. We offer you a chance to get the latest insight and turn them into actionable wagers.
2021 Daytona 500 Betting Odds
Daytona 500 is a challenging race to all motorsports fans, drivers, and especially bettors. Yet, the oddsmakers always make sure to give us a fair estimate. The following table displays an updated list of odd to win Daytona 500:
The race is strategically placed early on the NASCAR Cup Series when drivers still haven’t had enough time to cut their teeth nor fans quite tell which driver is more likely to outrace another.
When and Where Is 2021 Daytona 500 Taking Place?
- Date: Sunday, February 14, 2021
- Time: 2:30pm ET
- Location: Daytona International Speedway, Florida
- Event:The Great American Race
2021 Daytona 500 will take place on February 14, 2021 at 2:30pm ET at the Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. The event features 32 drivers who come from all backgrounds to lay claim on one of the largest events in the NASCAR circuit. Daytona 500 is the first official race in the circuit which features 36 events in total for 2021.
Where to Watch 2021 Daytona 500?
- TV: FOX
- Radio: MRN
For those who prefer to watch from home, you will be thrilled to know that FOX is streaming the event at 1 PM. Radio coverage will be provided by the Motor Racing Network.
Who Are the Favorites?
Without a single race out yet, analyzing the 2021 NASCAR series is a bit of a mystery, and yet – we do have last year’s results to keep us fairly optimistic about our predictions. The Great American Race is back and with it so are a number of ambitious young and established drivers.
Today we will take a look at some of our personal favorites and see if we can make a bet on Daytona. The odds to win the event are likely to keep changing, but not the track record of the hand-picked favorites who the sportsbooks agree with us are poised to add yet another title to their name.
Joey Logano No. 22 Ford Mustang
Without any doubt, Joey Logano is one of the hottest picks this season and why wouldn’t he be? Team Penske’s driver is in a good shape and he has been at it for over a decade now. Besides, the 2019 season definitely paned out quite alright with two wins in Las Vegas Speedway and Michigan International Speedway. He also managed to finish top-five on five different occasions throughout the season, making him one of the best drivers still in the race.
Brad Keselowski No. 2 Ford
Team Penske will definitely have a strong lineup of drivers in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series, and not least of all in Daytona 500. Brad Keselowski may not have won a title in a while, but his performance has always rivaled those of the best. In 2019, he managed to conclude 13 top-five finishes and 19 top-tens. You might call him a bit of a wild card as is, but Keselowski is definitely one of the drivers to watch out for in February. He may yet surprise us all and push to the top.
Denny Hamlin Toyota No. 11
Team Penske won’t be taking the credit for Hamlin. Instead, we have Joe Gibbs Racing to thank for the talent of Hamlin. In fact, Denny is returning with one sole purpose – to defend his Daytona 500 title after winning in 2019. His feat was even more impressive given the fact that it had been his second win at Daytona in a three-year window. More importantly, he is the only driver after 2010 who has won the title twice, all the more reason to look forward a wacky return.
Chase Elliott No. 9
Chase Elliott is just as decent a driver as any of the contenders we have listed so far. His overall Cup Series standing last season was 10, but he did pull quite a few amazing drives. He finished top-five on 11 occasions and fell within the first ten finishers 15 times. True, Elliott has been susceptible to bad bouts here and there, but overall, he has done very well in keeping his career progressing. In fact, 2019 marked his best year to date. The big question is whether Elliott is going to build on that success or fall behind?
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick is one of the biggest names that fans are looking forward to when it comes to Daytona. Harvick is a definitely a legend, bringing four wins in 2019. Even more impressively, he managed to pull off 362 top 10 finishes in 26 years on the race track and by this criterion alone, he’s almost at the top, second only to Jimmie Johnson. He won top-ten finishes in 20 races in 2019. He sealed New Hampshire Motor Speedway win, a speedway that is historically one of his personal favorites.
Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch is another fan and oddsmakers’ favorite. To not consider Busch as a decent bet for Daytona is to not consider all your options at all. 2019 was particularly kind to him with Busch winning his second Cup Series title and he came very close to sealing Daytona 2019, coming second. Busch further won at Phoenix and Auto Club and managed to pull off 11 consecutive top 11 finishes, pointing to a driver who knows what he is doing. He blasted his way in the playoffs and kept steady at the top of the leaderboard throughout Round of 16, eventually pulling 15 points ahead of Denny Hamlin to seal the championship.
Ryan Blaney
For Ryan Blaney, an off-season just doesn’t seem an option. In 2019, the talented driver pulled off quite a few personal records and posted one of his strongest years in the Cup Series by far. Blaney quickly claimed 11 top fives and 18 top 10 finishers, with an average performance spread across the season at 13.7. He also managed to make it in the top 10 of each individual driver category, a recognition that truly highlights his talent.
He also started strongly early in the year, winning the Busch Pole Award, among other distinctions. During Round of 12 at Talladega, Blaney managed to outpace Ryan Newman by a hair-thin .007 seconds to the dismay of the audience. Just one of the many good performances of the year for sure. Blaney is without a doubt someone you will want to keep your eyes peeled for.
Alex Bowman
Alex Bowman is another name up high in the overall NASCAR standing, and there is a good reason for that. He finished 12th and added a career-best year. He managed 12 top tens and proved that he can be consistent year in and year out, continuing to improve his standing and performance. Furthermore, he sealed seven top fives placing him on our list of strong picks for the upcoming Daytona 500 and Cup Series in general.
How Difficult Is It to Win the Great American Race?
The format of the race is very grueling to experienced and new drivers together. A lot of factors come into play in determining who wins the 500-mile race and who even manages to cross the finishing line.
Drivers are expected to clock 200 laps and moderate their gas expenditure, keep car in a working condition all while trying to keep pace with other drivers equally decided to claim the $1.5 million prize purse for the first-place finisher. To put the challenges of the event in perspective, here are a few facts. Through 2015:
- Only 11 drivers have won 2 or more Daytona 500s
- Only 5 drivers have won 3 or more Daytona 500s
- Only 2 drivers have won 4 Daytona races
- Only 3 drivers have won 3 consecutive Daytona 500s
To put another way – Daytona 500 is pretty difficult to win because no matter how good the driver, there are technical hiccups to prepare for, and no matter how good the car, a driver could only go that far.
Daytona 500 Winners in the Last 10 Years
The most notable name in the past ten years is that of Denny Hamlin who has won twice and is by virtue of this feat and therefore perhaps capable of repeating his success for a third time. If he does, he will certainly make history. Here is a quick list of the last ten years’ winners:
About the Event
We have brushed a few strokes at the beginning explaining the magnitude of the event and further providing you with the data you would need to make an informed bet. Now, though, we are here to explain a little more, a little better.
Daytona 500 isn’t just another race on the circuit – it isn’t even treated as an inaugural race to get things started. It’s a ‘rude awakening’ to drivers and a challenge to anyone racing to shift into gear right away.
Compared to the Super Bowl, and rightly so, Daytona hold fascination upon fans. Some 170,000 fans flock to watch the event live over at Daytona Beach with tickets prices starting at $95. That is nothing, though, because viewership numbers see-saw between 9 and 12 million people.
For all intents and purposes, Daytona 500 has gravity, it has pull, it has a legacy. It’s also the perfect testing ground for newcomers. Will the sons of their fathers make old-timers proud? Chase Elliott has certainly done his father, Bill Elliot, justice and has carried the family name with dignity and an evident talent for racing.
The race is important, as mentioned before, for its curious approach towards the overall racing format. While most other sports give participants time to adapt, the NASCAR Cup Series puts an immediate importance on Daytona.
For all drivers out there still trying to make a name for themselves, the importance of shining in that third week of February is crucial.
Daytona’s Looking Good
Daytona 500 is indeed looking good this year. It’s true that viewership has slumped a little in recent years, but this is no reason for concern whatsoever. With Denny Hamlin looking at a third title since 2010, a lot of eyeballs will be fixed on him. NASCAR has undertaken some changes to the scheduling and tracks to make sure that fans feel more engaged. This year’s Daytona 500 is the beginning of what organization sees as a long-term transition.