What’s Happening?

With the Cup Series heading to Daytona, this may be the best and final chance for a driver outside the playoff picture to win their way into the playoffs. Daytona is notorious for being a track where anyone can win. It is a prime opportunity for bubble drivers, or even drivers well outside the playoff picture, to turn their season around. But which non-playoff drivers have the best chance to capture the checkered flag Saturday Night?

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Stenhouse is a two-time Daytona winner, most recently the 2023 Daytona 500, and also a winner at Talladega. While JTG Daugherty isn’t a top-tier team, they always bring speed to the superspeedways, and you can bet on seeing the #47 fighting toward the front fighting for a win as long as the carnage that always seems to ensue at Daytona can be avoided.

Bubba Wallace

Wallace finds himself just one point out of the playoffs right now, so a win isn’t absolutely necessary for him to find his way. But nothing but a win guarantees a spot, and there may be no better chance for Wallace than Daytona, where he is always a threat. He carries a career average finish at Daytona of 12.4, his best average finish of any track on the schedule. And while he’s never won at Daytona, he has won at Talladega, another superspeedway where he’s always a threat. You can count on Wallace to put in a strong performance and make his best attempt at a win to get into the playoffs.

Chris Buescher

Buescher won last year’s night race at Daytona and carried momentum into the playoffs. There’s no reason to think he can’t do it again. The RFK Fords have been lethal at superspeedways in recent years, not just RFK, but other Fords. Buescher needs a win this time when he didn’t last year. Can he pull one out and win this race two years in a row?

Ross Chastain

While Chastain isn’t known for his prowess at superspeedways, he is a winner on one, coming in the 2022 spring race at Talladega. And the Trackhouse Racing driver does tend to find himself towards the front of the pack at Daytona and Talladega more often than not, most recently in this year’s Daytona 500, where he was fighting for the win in the closing laps before being wrecked. In recent years, heading into Daytona, Chastain has already been locked into the playoffs with a win and has not been in high-pressure situations. This time is different, and a win at Daytona could turn the entire season around for the driver of the #1. Can he do it? If anyone knows Chastain, you can’t put anything past him.

Both Front Row Drivers

We might as well call this one a two-for-one special because both drivers have a great chance. Front Row Motorsports has been bad fast on superspeedways this year, and their drivers, Todd Gilliland and Michael McDowell have a great opportunity to win this week. McDowell is a previous winner, which came in the 2021 Daytona 500, and Gilliland has led a ton of laps and shown impressive prowess for a young driver, battling some of the best in the sport at the front of the pack. Don’t be surprised to see the 38 or 34 in victory lane.

Kyle Busch

Busch may not be who you think of as a superspeedway ringer, but he has won at Daytona before and most recently on a superspeedway at Talladega last spring. He knows how to get to the front in these races, and with his back being against the wall in a must-win situation to get into the playoffs, it would be hard to bet against Rowdy pulling out all the stops to get the win.

Your Thoughts?

Who do you think has the best chance to win their way into the playoffs? Someone we mentioned or didn’t mention? Let us know! You can always chime in on our social channels at The Daily Downforce. Stick with us for the latest in NASCAR news all year long.