The NASCAR Cup Series heads back to its most iconic track this weekend for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
Chris Buescher won this race in August of last year, while William Byron took the Daytona 500 in February.
The racing at the 2.5-mile superspeedway rarely disappoints. And with this being the penultimate regular-season race – with postseason positioning still up for grab – this one will be a must-watch.
After winning at Michigan last week, Tyler Reddick jumped into the points lead, while previous leader Kyle Larson dropped all the way to fourth. Reddick is looking for the regular-season championship, as he’s just 10 points ahead of Chase Elliott.
And it’s not just the regular-season title up for grabs this week – and next week at Darlington – there are four of the 16 playoff spots still open.
There are 21 drivers who could lock up the postseason chase with their first win of the season Saturday, including Buescher, Martin Truex Jr., Ty Gibbs, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain and Kyle Busch.
Denny Hamlin leads all active drivers with three Daytona wins, however, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has never won the summer race there.
FrontPageBets takes a look at the drivers to watch in Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 under the lights at Daytona International Speedway (7:30 p.m.; NBC).
Elliott, the driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy, is still looking for his first win at Daytona International Speedway.
He’s been close numerous times, finishing second in back-to-back races in 2020-2021 and fourth in last year’s August race. In 17 career starts, Elliott has five top-10s, including three top-5 finishes; and he has led 172 laps.
But as it is at Daytona – along with Talladega – there are a lot of things a driver can’t control, including the inevitable “Big One” crash that changes the dynamic of the field and race.
If Elliott, who is second in driver points this year, can avoid the carnage, he should have a great chance at his first Daytona victory.
Wallace, the driver of the No. 23 23/XI Toyota, finished fifth at the Daytona 500 back in February and 12th in last summer’s race at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
He has five top-five finishes there, including three runner-ups. His average finish in 14 career starts is 12.4.
Wallace is one of the drivers on the bubble for the playoffs, as it looks like he’ll need a win in the final two races to get in. But with the success of the 23/XI team this season, most notably Reddick’s wins at Talladega and Michigan, it’s very possible Wallace could take the checkered flag Saturday night.
While he might not be the most popular driver in the Cup Series, especially after the way he won at Richmond two weeks ago, there’s no denying Dillon’s success at Daytona.
The driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevy has two career victories there, including the 500 in 2018.
Along with those victories, Dillon has nine top-10 finishes, including four top 5s.
And we know he’s not above doing whatever it takes to win if he’s in position.
Daytona Coke Zero Sugar 400 odds
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Mike Szvetitz is the General Manager and Content Director for FrontPageBets.com. Szvetitz is a 24-year veteran reporter and editor, including serving 17 years as a sports editor in Florida, Alabama and Virginia, covering everything from preps to pros. His "View From The Lazy Boy" column won multiple state and national awards. He can be reached at mszvetitz@timesdispatch.com.
