The Low Tier – Daytona 500
David Ragan – Remember David Ragan, he’s back! Already! Retirement didn’t last long for him and without even missing a race he’s back. In the “Great American Race” he’ll be driving the #36 Ford for Rick Ware Racing. His car will be prepared by Front Row Motorsports which is the team he drove for last year so I’m going to view his fantasy value as roughly the same, except he’ll probably have a little worse pit crew. When it comes to superspeedway racing, David Ragan isn’t bad. That said, his results haven’t been great and he’s crashed in 3 of his last 4 races here. Last year, Ragan crashed in both races and had results of 30th and 38th. In 2018 he had finishes of 15th and 30th. If Ragan can avoid trouble, which will be plentiful, I think he’s a low-tier driver who’s capable of sneaking in a good result but keep in mind he’s risky. (DraftKings $5,200/ FanDuel $4,000)
John Hunter Nemechek – If you want to roll the dice, John Hunter Nemechek is a driver who should be on your radar. Front Row Motorsports fields competitive superspeedway cars and Nemechek will have a ton of Ford teammates to work with. In the Xfinity Series, Nemechek has been pretty successful on this track type. He’s finished in the top eight in 3 of his 4 races and his average finish is 10.75. If you’re willing to take on the risk, I think Nemechek might prove to be worth the gamble. (DraftKings $5,100/ FanDuel $4,500)
Daniel Suarez – Daniel Suarez will be driving the #96 in 2020. This ride is a far cry from his previous #41 and #19 entries. His new ride is likely going to put him in the position where superspeedways will be the lone track type where he’s capable of sneaking in a good result. That’s horrible news for Suarez because Daytona has been disastrous for him and statistically ranks as his worst track. His average finish is 31.8 and in 5 of the last 6 races he’s finished 29th or worse. Currently, Suarez has a four race DNF streak at Daytona because of accidents. Last year, Suarez had results of 40th and 33rd. In 2018 he had finishes of 35th and 37th. (DraftKings $6,100/ FanDuel $6,000)
Justin Haley – Justin Haley raced his way to victory lane last summer at Daytona, and is a perfect 1 for 1 at this historic track. Haley’s win can be described as a “Perfect storm.” Around 3/4ths of the field crashed, and then during the caution for the “Big One”, he didn’t pit, and then the sky opened up which marked the end of the race. “Performance Wise”, there’s no reason to think Haley was even top 30 good. His average running position was 30.5 and he never ran better than the high-twenties. At Talladega last fall in his one other superspeedway start, Haley wrecked and finished 32nd. In 2019 in the Xfinity series at Daytona, Haley finished 2nd in the summer and 17th in February. In summer 2018 in the lower series he crossed the finish line first, but was black flagged for going below the yellow line at the end. (DraftKings $5,000/ FanDuel $4,500)
Brennan Poole – Rookie, Brennan Poole will be piloting the #15 in the season opening Daytona 500. It’s not a good car, and its best to keep expectations low. He’s essentially in the position where he’ll need the help of attrition to get a good result. That can certainly happen though. In the 2019 Daytona 500, that helped Ross Chastain finish 10th in this very car. Last year at Daytona in the lower series, Poole had results of 7th (July) and 24th (February). In 2018 at Daytona he had results of 26th and 27th. (DraftKings $4,600/ FanDuel $2,000)
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