2023 Daytona 500 Race Preview & Best Bets: Logano and Cindric to Impress
NASCAR Cup Series: Daytona 500
Sunday, February 19, 2023 at 2:30 p.m. ET at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida
Last Week's Race
Last week, the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum took place.
Unlike this week's upcoming race, last week's event was an exhibition event that did not count for points.
Even though it didn't count for anything, winning must have felt good to Martin Truex Jr. because he had not won a race in over a season.
He'll look to build off of this early success on Sunday, but I will go ahead and rule him out of the list of candidates to win Sunday's race because it is very difficult and statistically unlikely for drivers to win back-to-back races.
Race Info
For the upcoming Daytona 500, drivers must complete a total of 200 laps.
As is usually the case, there will be three stages for this event.
Stage 1 requires drivers to complete 65 laps.
Stage 2 also requires drivers to complete 65 laps.
Stage 3 consists in the remaining 70 laps.
Starting Lineup
The starting lineup for this race is established via qualifying, the scheduling for which is notably unusual.
Instead of on the weekend, qualifying for this race will take place on Wednesday night.
You can watch the qualifying at 8:15 p.m. ET at FS1 in order to get an early look at the different drivers and their cars.
In terms of format, qualifying is single vehicle, one lap, and two rounds.
Entry List
An entry list has already been published for this race.
The entry list indicates that the race will be unusually filled-up with competitors -- the entry list contains 42 drivers/teams for only 40 spots, although two drivers will have to miss the race to bring the number down to 40.
So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, we already know which drivers will participate in this race.
We may expect all the usual suspects.
Track Info
Daytona's track is known for the higher speeds of its drivers.
Two aspects of this track facilitate faster lap times.
One, it is long. Each lap is 2.5 miles long.
In being longer, drivers have more time to increase their speed on straightaways.
Two, the banking is high.
As drivers navigate turns, they use the higher banking to collect more momentum for their vehicles.
To be exact, the turns are banked at an impressive 31 degrees; the tri-oval is banked at 18 degrees; and the back straightaway is banked at two degrees.
Since each of the 200 laps on this asphalt surface is 2.5 miles long, drivers will have accrued 500 miles by the end of the race.
Drivers to Avoid
One driver worth avoiding is Kyle Larson.
Larson's performances are repeatedly catastrophic at this track.
Despite beginning them in pole position, he failed to finish in the top 30 in both of his last races here.
For all of his overall success, Larson ranks, in terms of average finishing position, behind lower-profile drivers like Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick at this race.
Also avoid Brad Keselowski, another high-profile driver who typically performs poorly at Daytona.
His average finishing position here is worse than Larson's.
My Bets
In terms of his average finishing position, Logano is more consistent than Larson at Dayton and less likely to suffer a catastrophic finish.
Logano is also a proven winner at this track.
So, I recommend betting on him to finish ahead of Larson.
I also like Austin Cindric, who has impressively finished top-three in each of his last three races at Daytona.
This unique degree of high-level consistency makes him attractive in match-up betting.
I recommend betting on Cindric to finish ahead of Austin Dillon.
While Dillon won last year's race, winning consecutive renditions of this race is statistically vastly improbable.
Dillon's average finishing position here is about eight spots worse than Cindric's, and before winning Dillon had failed to finish top-15 in three straight tries.
Historically, Dillon is less reliable here than Cindric.
For your Best Bets, invest in Logano and Cindric to win their respective matchups.
Best Bet: Logano to finish ahead of Larson at -115 with Bovada & Cindric to finish ahead of Dillon at -125 with Bovada
NASCAR Cup Series: Daytona 500
Sunday, February 19, 2023 at 2:30 p.m. ET at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida
Last Week's Race
Last week, the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum took place.
Unlike this week's upcoming race, last week's event was an exhibition event that did not count for points.
Even though it didn't count for anything, winning must have felt good to Martin Truex Jr. because he had not won a race in over a season.
He'll look to build off of this early success on Sunday, but I will go ahead and rule him out of the list of candidates to win Sunday's race because it is very difficult and statistically unlikely for drivers to win back-to-back races.
Race Info
For the upcoming Daytona 500, drivers must complete a total of 200 laps.
As is usually the case, there will be three stages for this event.
Stage 1 requires drivers to complete 65 laps.
Stage 2 also requires drivers to complete 65 laps.
Stage 3 consists in the remaining 70 laps.
Starting Lineup
The starting lineup for this race is established via qualifying, the scheduling for which is notably unusual.
Instead of on the weekend, qualifying for this race will take place on Wednesday night.
You can watch the qualifying at 8:15 p.m. ET at FS1 in order to get an early look at the different drivers and their cars.
In terms of format, qualifying is single vehicle, one lap, and two rounds.
Entry List
An entry list has already been published for this race.
The entry list indicates that the race will be unusually filled-up with competitors -- the entry list contains 42 drivers/teams for only 40 spots, although two drivers will have to miss the race to bring the number down to 40.
So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, we already know which drivers will participate in this race.
We may expect all the usual suspects.
Track Info
Daytona's track is known for the higher speeds of its drivers.
Two aspects of this track facilitate faster lap times.
One, it is long. Each lap is 2.5 miles long.
In being longer, drivers have more time to increase their speed on straightaways.
Two, the banking is high.
As drivers navigate turns, they use the higher banking to collect more momentum for their vehicles.
To be exact, the turns are banked at an impressive 31 degrees; the tri-oval is banked at 18 degrees; and the back straightaway is banked at two degrees.
Since each of the 200 laps on this asphalt surface is 2.5 miles long, drivers will have accrued 500 miles by the end of the race.
Drivers to Avoid
One driver worth avoiding is Kyle Larson.
Larson's performances are repeatedly catastrophic at this track.
Despite beginning them in pole position, he failed to finish in the top 30 in both of his last races here.
For all of his overall success, Larson ranks, in terms of average finishing position, behind lower-profile drivers like Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick at this race.
Also avoid Brad Keselowski, another high-profile driver who typically performs poorly at Daytona.
His average finishing position here is worse than Larson's.
My Bets
In terms of his average finishing position, Logano is more consistent than Larson at Dayton and less likely to suffer a catastrophic finish.
Logano is also a proven winner at this track.
So, I recommend betting on him to finish ahead of Larson.
I also like Austin Cindric, who has impressively finished top-three in each of his last three races at Daytona.
This unique degree of high-level consistency makes him attractive in match-up betting.
I recommend betting on Cindric to finish ahead of Austin Dillon.
While Dillon won last year's race, winning consecutive renditions of this race is statistically vastly improbable.
Dillon's average finishing position here is about eight spots worse than Cindric's, and before winning Dillon had failed to finish top-15 in three straight tries.
Historically, Dillon is less reliable here than Cindric.
For your Best Bets, invest in Logano and Cindric to win their respective matchups.
Best Bet: Logano to finish ahead of Larson at -115 with Bovada & Cindric to finish ahead of Dillon at -125 with Bovada
