August 23, 2025
Although Justin Haley has had a pretty terrible season, he did win his one NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona in 2019, but that was entirely based on pit strategy and crash avoidance and that had almost nothing to do with him. He did also show strength on drafting tracks in the Xfinity Series for Kaulig Racing, where he won twice each at Daytona and Talladega, but he hasn't had a lot of speed on those tracks in the Cup Series. Nonetheless, at Daytona, that might not matter since you expect a high percentage of the field to crash out. Haley starts 37th (worst of any competitive car in the race), which means he has a lot of potential for Place Differential points if he can avoid the wrecks. Typically, Haley's crash avoidance is one of his few strengths, so he is a good choice for DFS play, but probably not the best choice.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
August 23, 2025
Although Cole Custer has had an invisible season with only a single top-10 finish, Daytona is one of the few tracks where you should strongly consider starting him. In this year's Daytona 500, Custer was attempting an outside pass on Denny Hamlin for the lead when he and the rest of the leaders crashed despite starting 30th. Although he ended up finishing 21st, this does indicate Custer might have speed on Saturday. When coupling that with his poor 29th-place starting position, he has a lot of potential for upside for place-differential points. Since he is a driver who has been so mediocre that a lot of fantasy manager won't think to start him, this makes him a better option than you might expect.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
August 23, 2025
For all of Austin Hill's dominance in the NASCAR Xfinity Series drafting-track races, he has never shown anything similar at the Cup Series level. However, that doesn't really matter when assessing his potential for DFS lineups this weekend, since the finishing order is so unpredictable that it's better to focus on drivers who have better potential to finish better than they started. Hill might be one such driver, as he starts 36th for a Richard Childress Racing team that has shown speed on drafting tracks with both Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon. Since it's almost impossible to predict which drivers will crash out in a race at Daytona, Hill's poor starting position and strong car may make him an excellent DFS option.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
August 23, 2025
If Kyle Busch is going to make the Playoffs this season, he needs to get the win in Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona. The bad news is, that's a lot more difficult than just going out there and having the best car. The good news is, however, that Busch has had one of the strongest cars on superspeedways in the Next Gen era. In seven races at Daytona with this Next Gen car, Busch has finished 12th or better five times, with the only exceptions being a 19th-place result in the 2023 Daytona 500 and a 34th-place finish in this year's Great American Race. As far as this weekend goes, Busch is a relatively risky DFS option on Saturday night due to his 14th-place starting spot. Yes, there is some Place Differential upside there, but it's pretty limited. Consider Rowdy a tournament-style play in daily fantasy contests on Saturday night.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Frontstretch
August 23, 2025
The NASCAR Cup Series is at a superspeedway this weekend, which means we have to keep an eye on Ricky Stenhouse Jr. The 2023 Daytona 500 champion also went to victory lane at Talladega last fall, as this is the track type where Stenhouse tends to perform his best. This weekend, he will start from back in 25th-place for Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400, which means Ricky should be one of the higher-owned drivers on the DFS slate. While this opens up a strategy opportunity to go underweight on the driver that is susceptible to wrecks, you also have to acknowledge the upside here for Place Differential and have a decent amount of Stenhouse exposure. It is worth noting, though, that Stenhouse's aforementioned win here at Daytona is his only finish better than 18th in his last 12 starts at this track.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
August 23, 2025
There are still two spots up for grabs in this year's Cup Series Playoffs field, and while it is very likely that Tyler Reddick will point his way into the postseason, nothing is guaranteed. If Reddick ends up crashing out early in Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona and a new winner on the season happens, he very well could miss out on the Playoffs this year. The No. 45 Toyota will roll off the starting grid from 27th-place for Saturday night's race at Daytona, which should make Reddick one of the more popular DFS picks on the slate due to his Place Differential upside. Additionally, Reddick is by no means a bad superspeedway racer, as he has a win at Talladega and a second-place finish here at Daytona in this year's running of the Daytona 500. As far as DFS goes, Reddick is sure to be a highly-owned pick on DraftKings due to his deep starting spot. There is a strategy play in going underweight on the field there to be contrarian, but you should still have a good amount of exposure to the 23XI Racing driver.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Associated Press
August 23, 2025
Don't be surprised if Bubba Wallace is in contention for the win at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. The 23XI Racing driver is a strong superspeedway talent, and just last season he posted finishes of fifth and sixth in the two races at this track. Overall, Bubba has the second-best average finish (13.0) among active drivers at this track, behind John Hunter Nemechek (who only has five starts, while Bubba has 16). This weekend, the No. 23 Toyota will roll off the starting grid from 22nd-place when the Coke Zero Sugar 400 goes green on Saturday night. This gives Bubba solid Place Differential upside in addition to his win-contending upside. In DFS, Bubba is likely to be a popular pick due to his history of success on superspeedways, so he may go over-owned in tournaments. However, you should still have some exposure.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasyrace
August 23, 2025
Alex Bowman has a very strong track record at superspeedways, but that doesn't mean he's a good pick in DFS this weekend at Daytona. Over the last 13 races at Daytona and Talladega, Bowman has a series-leading average finish of 11.6 with seven top-10 finishes, including a sixth-place finish in this year's Daytona 500. However, he's starting on the outside pole for Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400, which means he has virtually no Place Differential upside when it comes to DraftKings (where Bowman is priced at $7,800). Because of this, it is highly recommended to stay away from him when building your daily fantasy lineups, simply because it would likely take a dominating performance (and victory) out of Bowman for him to make it into the optimal DFS lineup on Saturday night.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Jayski
August 23, 2025
It's probably a good thing that Josh Berry is already locked into this year's Playoffs, because the Wood Brothers Racing driver has struggled mightily at Daytona and Talladega during his Cup Series career. In seven races combined on these two tracks, Berry has finished 22nd or worse six times, and has a best result of 16th (at Talladega in 2024). One bright spot is that he did lead 12 laps at Talladega earlier this season, but he ultimately finished 26th when the checkered flag waved. As far as this weekend goes, Josh Berry will start from 11th-place for Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona, and even at just $7,000 on DraftKings, he's a risky DFS play because of the limited Place Differential upside and his rocky track history. It's probably best to look elsewhere when building your daily fantasy lineups this weekend, so keep your overall Josh Berry exposure minimal.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
August 23, 2025
If Ty Gibbs is going to make the NASCAR Cup Series postseason for the second year in a row, he's going to have to pull off a win in Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is currently 17th in the points standings but is too far back to make it in on points, so he will need to get to victory lane to punch his Playoffs ticket. The good news for Gibbs is that he has been consistent at the superspeedways as of late, with five finishes of 17th or better over the last six races at Daytona and Talladega combined. That includes a fifth-place finish in the 2024 summer race here at Daytona. As far as this weekend goes, the No. 54 Toyota will start from 18th-place on Saturday night, which make Gibbs an interesting tournament option for DFS players. He's likely to be low-owned in that starting spot, but there's still some Place Differential upside. Just don't go too crazy with Gibbs this weekend.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: The Sports Rush
August 23, 2025
Erik Jones will roll off the starting grid from 26th place in his No. 43 Toyota for Legacy Motor Club on Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway, and DFS managers should definitely be targeting him in their lineups. Jones has been solid at Daytona over the last four races with finishes of 12th, 17th, eighth, and 18th. Although his superspeedway talent has been on display more at Talladega than Daytona over the course of his Cup Series career, Jones is more than capable of getting a good finish at either large drafting track, and his place-differential upside this weekend makes him a great DFS target as the Cup Series closes out the regular season on Saturday night. In his team's advance to the press this week, Jones stated, "Daytona's a wild card. No one can really predict what's going to happen there, but I've also had some good luck there."
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Speedway Digest
August 23, 2025
If you were to guess which active NASCAR Cup Series driver has the best average finish at Daytona International Speedway, it would probably take you a while to get to John Hunter Nemechek. However, that's exactly who it is. Over five career starts at this race track, JHN has a series-best average result of 9.8 with two top-10 finishes and no result worse than 15th. That's pretty solid for a low-tier driver like Nemechek. Now, obviously this kind of pace isn't realistically going to continue forever, but it's clear that Nemechek has a knack for getting around Daytona. Therefore, considering he starts way back in 34th place for this weekend's Coke Zero Sugar 400, JHN makes for an excellent DFS option on Saturday night due to his huge place-differential upside and great track history.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Jayski
August 23, 2025
Getting good finishes at superspeedway race tracks involves quite a bit of luck, and Shane van Gisbergen hasn't had much at Daytona and Talladega since joining the Cup Series. In five races at these two tracks, SVG has ended up 28th or worse four times, with his only decent finish being a 15th-place result in the 2024 fall Talladega race. Now, obviously the races at these tracks are quite unpredictable, so bad track records like this can often be ignored and instead focus on the upside of the driver. However, there is limited upside with SVG this weekend at Daytona, as he starts 17th for the Coke Zero Sugar 400. While he could definitely put up a big DFS score if he walks away with a top-10 finish, the relative limited Place Differential upside still keeps van Gisbergen as a low-owned option in DraftKings this weekend.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Orlando Sentinel
August 23, 2025
Races at Daytona International Speedway are as unpredictable as they come, but one driver that has been strong and steady in the Next Gen era is Ty Dillon. Despite running for three different organizations over the last four years, Dillon has been able to post solid results in almost every race at this big, drafting track. In five races in this car, Ty has been able to finish 18th or better four times, with the only exception being his 40th-place result in the 2023 Daytona 500 after an engine failure. This weekend, Dillon will start from 23rd-place in the Coke Zero Sugar 400. In DFS, this gives him some Place Differential upside, but most players will likely stay away and opt for drivers starting further back. This is a good chance to be overweight on Ty Dillon in tournament-style lineups on DraftKings and gain some leverage on other players in the contest.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
August 23, 2025
When it comes to underdogs or sleepers in this weekend's race at Daytona International Speedway, don't overlook 23XI Racing driver Riley Herbst. Remember, Herbst was running in fifth on the final lap of this year's Daytona 500 but spun out and ended up finishing 17th. He had the 13th-best average running position in that race. Additionally, Herbst has a top-10 finish at Talladega on his record (in the fall of 2023) as well as a top-10 final result in the 2023 Daytona 500. This weekend, the No. 35 Toyota will roll off the starting grid from 33rd place for Saturday night's Coke Zero Sugar 400, which instantly makes Herbst a viable option in DFS contests due to his place-differential upside. However, due to his limited Cup Series history and lackluster results, many DraftKings managerse are likely going to avoid the Toyota driver. There's a chance for DFS managers to gain some leverage on the field here with a cheap driver ($5,000 on DraftKings) that has sky-high potential.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasyrace
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