2022 Daytona 500 Race Preview and Best Bet
Daytona 500
Sunday, February 20, 2022 at 2:30 p.m. ET (FOX) at Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, Florida
Race Info
NASCAR's Cup Series will open this Sunday with arguably the biggest NASCAR event, the famous and prestigious Daytona 500.
For this racing competition, drivers must complete a total of 200 laps.
As is normally the case, there will be three stages.
Stage 1 consists in 65 laps. Stage 2 also requires 65 laps. Then, the final stage requires 70 laps.
40 Drivers
An entry list has been posted for this event.
There are 42 participants listed on the entry list. However, there are only 40 spots.
36 of the 42 drivers posted on the entry list have their spots secured in the race because they have a charter. The usual suspects, the well-known drivers find themselves in this list of 36.
Four more spots need to be filled. In order to determine which four other drivers without a charter will participate in this race, there will be an event on Wednesday and another on Thursday.
The four drivers will need to run a fast enough qualifying time on Wednesday or they'll have to race well enough on Thursday.
Practice Results
Two fifty-minute practice sessions have already taken place.
It's helpful to have already seen how drivers have performed in their cars on this track.
The one driver who finished top-five in both practice sessions was Chris Buescher.
Consistency is so important when we make NASCAR bets because it is tantamount to reliability. It is my favorite trait to identify when I look at each driver's history at a given venue.
Buescher's consistent high-quality, in my view, makes him an intriguing and reliable candidate to invest in.
Starting Lineup
The two fastest drivers in the second single-car qualifying race will start in the front row.
The rest of the starting order will get established on Thursday when two qualifying races take place.
There is so much time for the best drivers to assert themselves in this race.
I don't think that starting lineup is a really decisive factor to account for when placing bets.
Joey Logano, for example, has been blessed with great starting position in recent renditions of this race, but he has struggled to crack the top 10.
The converse is true for Denny Hamlin who has started in poor position but consistently finished strongly here.
Do watch the qualifiers -- on Wednesday at 8 p.m. on FS1 and on Thursday at 7 p.m. on FS1 and about 100 minutes later on FS1 -- in order to see the drivers perform in their cars on the track. But don't place undue emphasis on starting position.
Track Info
Daytona International Speedway is a long track. Each lap is 2.5-miles long.
It is known for its speed, which is accomplished by the length and the extremely high amount of banking.
The latter features allows drivers to corral more momentum for their cars as they navigate the banked surfaces.
To be exact, there are four turns and they are each banked at a ridiculous 31 degrees.
The tri-oval is banked at 18 degrees and the back straightaway is banked at two degrees.
My Favorite Bets
Taking Buescher at EVEN to finish top-10 seems like excellent value.
The big names -- guys like Hamlin and Logano -- are chalked so heavily to finish top-10, although not even they have looked as good as Buescher.
I also like Ryan Blaney to finish ahead of Logano.
While Logano has finished outside the top 20 in four of his last five races at Daytona, Blaney has finished top-six in three of his last four tries in Daytona.
Best Bet: Buescher Top 10 at EVEN with Bovada & Blaney to finish ahead of Logano at -115 with Bovada
Daytona 500
Sunday, February 20, 2022 at 2:30 p.m. ET (FOX) at Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, Florida
Race Info
NASCAR's Cup Series will open this Sunday with arguably the biggest NASCAR event, the famous and prestigious Daytona 500.
For this racing competition, drivers must complete a total of 200 laps.
As is normally the case, there will be three stages.
Stage 1 consists in 65 laps. Stage 2 also requires 65 laps. Then, the final stage requires 70 laps.
40 Drivers
An entry list has been posted for this event.
There are 42 participants listed on the entry list. However, there are only 40 spots.
36 of the 42 drivers posted on the entry list have their spots secured in the race because they have a charter. The usual suspects, the well-known drivers find themselves in this list of 36.
Four more spots need to be filled. In order to determine which four other drivers without a charter will participate in this race, there will be an event on Wednesday and another on Thursday.
The four drivers will need to run a fast enough qualifying time on Wednesday or they'll have to race well enough on Thursday.
Practice Results
Two fifty-minute practice sessions have already taken place.
It's helpful to have already seen how drivers have performed in their cars on this track.
The one driver who finished top-five in both practice sessions was Chris Buescher.
Consistency is so important when we make NASCAR bets because it is tantamount to reliability. It is my favorite trait to identify when I look at each driver's history at a given venue.
Buescher's consistent high-quality, in my view, makes him an intriguing and reliable candidate to invest in.
Starting Lineup
The two fastest drivers in the second single-car qualifying race will start in the front row.
The rest of the starting order will get established on Thursday when two qualifying races take place.
There is so much time for the best drivers to assert themselves in this race.
I don't think that starting lineup is a really decisive factor to account for when placing bets.
Joey Logano, for example, has been blessed with great starting position in recent renditions of this race, but he has struggled to crack the top 10.
The converse is true for Denny Hamlin who has started in poor position but consistently finished strongly here.
Do watch the qualifiers -- on Wednesday at 8 p.m. on FS1 and on Thursday at 7 p.m. on FS1 and about 100 minutes later on FS1 -- in order to see the drivers perform in their cars on the track. But don't place undue emphasis on starting position.
Track Info
Daytona International Speedway is a long track. Each lap is 2.5-miles long.
It is known for its speed, which is accomplished by the length and the extremely high amount of banking.
The latter features allows drivers to corral more momentum for their cars as they navigate the banked surfaces.
To be exact, there are four turns and they are each banked at a ridiculous 31 degrees.
The tri-oval is banked at 18 degrees and the back straightaway is banked at two degrees.
My Favorite Bets
Taking Buescher at EVEN to finish top-10 seems like excellent value.
The big names -- guys like Hamlin and Logano -- are chalked so heavily to finish top-10, although not even they have looked as good as Buescher.
I also like Ryan Blaney to finish ahead of Logano.
While Logano has finished outside the top 20 in four of his last five races at Daytona, Blaney has finished top-six in three of his last four tries in Daytona.
Best Bet: Buescher Top 10 at EVEN with Bovada & Blaney to finish ahead of Logano at -115 with Bovada
