The 2024 NASCAR season was set to be given the green flag this weekend until the Weather Gods decided to intervene. The Daytona 500 will now take place on Monday evening, giving fans an extra day to prepare their betting slips. The race is always a thrilling spectacle and will kick off the new NASCAR season.
Daytona 500 Odds
| Denny Hamlin | +800 |
| Joey Logano | +900 |
| Kyle Busch | +1000 |
| Brad Keselowski | +1000 |
| Ryan Blaney | +1200 |
| Chase Elliott | +1200 |
| Kyle Larson | +1400 |
| William Byron | +1800 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | +1800 |
| Christopher Bell | +1800 |
Denny Hamlin comes into the 2024 Daytona 500 as the favorite and for good reason. Not only is he a 3-time winner of the Great American Race, but he’s starting inside the top-10 and looked great during Thursday night’s chaotic Duel races. He led the field through the final lap only to surrender the lead to teammate, Chris Bell. He’s got pace, the car looks quick, and he knows what it takes to win here.
Joey Logano starts this race on pole and has an average finishing position of 13th at Daytona. If he can keep out of trouble, he should absolutely be a factor by the end of the night.
Last year’s winner, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., is priced at +3500. It’s tough to imagine Senhouse Jr. winning again, but stranger things have happened. The man who came second in that race? None other than Joey Logano.
Chase Elliott is always a name that demands attention at Daytona. He somehow went winless in 2023, but the 2020 Cup Series Champion has proven his salt many times over. There would be no better way for Elliott to ignite a resurgence than with a win at Daytona, a track he is yet to conquer despite two pole-starts and a runner-up finish.
Where to find value in the Daytona 500
Michael McDowell
To win: +2000
Top-5: +550
Top-10: +250
Starting on the front row, McDowell finds himself driving a Car that looks menacing in Daytona. He’ll be keen to make up for last year’s 28th-place finish. We know he’s quick around here and he proved it with a win back in 2021. I do like his top-10 prop, but a +2000 line for a win feels juicy when looking at a Driver who has a great team around him and precious winning experience.
Cory Lajoie
To win: +3500
Top-5: +1000
Top-10: +400
This feels like a really steady pick. Lajoie went DNF-free in 2023 and has steadily improved over the last few years. In what looks to be a new era at Spire Motorsports, Lajoie will be looking to keep the positive trend, improving on a 10th-place finish last year. He’s finished inside the top 10 in 10 of 14 starts here at Daytona, giving us some real upside on any of his driver props if you’re looking for a quiet driver to avoid wrecks and sneak through when it matters most.
Noah Gragson
To win: +6500
Top-5: +1800
Top-10: +800
If you want some real deep value, look no further than Noah Gragson. 2023 was a bumpy year for the 25-year-old on and off the track, but he enters the new year with a new team and a new car. Stewart Haas Racing is one of the most respected teams in NASCAR and its driver lineup exudes that confidence. If Gragson can learn from his well-accomplished teammates and avoid silly mistakes, there’s no reason he cant turn a few heads in his 2024 debut.
Betting prediction for The Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is ultimately anyone’s race, which is what makes it so fun to bet on. You could pick a +4000 longshot and have every chance once the wrecks have settled and those final laps draw near. I do like Corey Lajoie as an outsider, but I can’t look past Chase Elliott as the outright winner.
AP Photo/John Raoux
