Daytona Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Ryan Blaney
Daytona Fantasy Outlook – Ryan Blaney is always a force to be reckoned with at big superspeedways and on Saturday night at Daytona, he’ll be a favorite and be looking to pad his Playoff points column. Blaney was a standout performer in February, he was elite in both 2023 races, so he certainly won’t lack when it comes to performance. In the Next Gen at big superspeedways, Blaney has the 2nd best average finish (12.9), the 3rd best Driver Rating and he’s often the driver to beat. Also in the Next Gen on this track type, Blaney won at Talladega last fall and minus the last two Daytona races where he’s crashed while running in the top 6 his average finish is 7.9.
Daytona Track History – Ryan Blaney has been a super-elite performer at Daytona. Blaney won here in summer 2021 and since 2020 minus the three races he’s crashed, Blaney’s average finish is 6th. In February, Blaney had a rocket but finished an asterisk mark 30th. In the race, Blaney won Stage #2, led 12 laps and was running in 6th on lap 190, which was one lap before he was collected in the “Big One.” Last year, Blaney performed at an extremely high-level in both races, but neither were incident free. Last summer, Blaney looked great but was crashed while leading on lap 95, leading to his 36th. In the 2023 Daytona 500, Blaney crashed twice, brought out a debris caution but snuck in an 8th. On lap 116 two laps before getting caught up in a “Big One”, Blaney was running in 2nd. In summer 2022, Blaney crashed early but thanks to the extreme attrition rate he walked away with a 15th, despite finishing 6 laps down. Prior to crashing in that race, Blaney was in 3rd. In the 2022 Daytona 500, Blaney was very competitive and finished 4th. In the race, Blaney led the 2nd most laps (36) and had the 4th best average running position (8.3). In summer 2021, Blaney raced his way to victory lane.

Kyle Busch
Daytona Fantasy Outlook – Look for Kyle Busch to be a factor at Daytona. Busch’s Playoff hopes are on the line, and this is a checkers or wreckers race for him. Busch was a standout performer in this year’s Daytona 500, he nearly won last year’s 500 and over the combined Next Gen Daytona races, Busch has the 3rd best average finish (10.8), the 3rd best average running position and the 5th best Driver Rating. Overall in the Next Gen at big superspeedways between the two tracks (10 races), Busch is tied for the best average running position, has the 2nd best Driver Rating and the 3rd best average finish (13.0).
Daytona Track History – Kyle Busch has performed at an elite level at Daytona and has been one of the best “Performance Wise” in the Next Gen. In this years Daytona 500, Busch had standout speed and was one of the best but finished 12th. In the race, Busch finished 6th in Stage #1, finished 4th in Stage #2, earned the best Driver Rating, led 12 laps and had the 2nd best average running position (10.6). To make Busch’s race look a little more impressive, his afternoon wasn’t incident free. In the race, Busch got a safety violation during the Stage #1 caution, and then following the Stage #2 caution he had a loose wheel and had to come back to pit road. Last summer, Busch finished 7th, had the 7th best average running position and earned the 8th best Driver Rating. In the 2023 “500”, Busch was the leader at the end of regulation, led 6 laps, but was then shuffled out of line in overtime and wrecked which led to his 19th. In 2022, Busch had results of 10th (summer) and 6th (500).

Chris Buescher
Daytona Fantasy Outlook – Chris Buescher is the defending Daytona summer champ, and on Saturday night he’ll be tough to beat. Buescher will have a fast Ford Dark Horse underneath him, he’s an elite drafter and he’ll also likely have Brad Keselowski as a dedicated pusher when the trophy is on the line. Since 2023 at big superspeedways among drivers who competed in every race, Buescher has the 3rd best average finish (11.8), the 4th best Driver Rating and his top five finish rate is 50%. Going back to 2017 at Daytona, Buescher has “Crossed” the finish line in the top ten, 53% of the time which is a series best.
Daytona Track History – Chris Buescher has been elite at Daytona. Buescher’s the defending race winner and over the combined races in the Next Gen, Buescher has the 2nd best Driver Rating, the 2nd best average running position and the 4th best average finish (13.2). In February, Buescher was a letdown and finished 18th. In the race, Buescher’s average running position was 15.6 and at the end, he was just kind of M.IA. Last year, Buescher was a standout performer in both races and went 2 for 2 at earning the best driver rating. Last summer, Buescher only led 2 laps, but they were the last two and he raced his way to victory lane. Additionally, Buescher earned the best Driver Rating and had the 5th best average running position. In last year’s Daytona 500, Buescher earned the best driver rating, led the 2nd most laps (32), had the 3rd best average running position and then crossed the finish line in 4th. In 2022, Buescher had a pair of asterisk mark results but “Performance Wise” he was a top ten performer in both races.

Make sure you read the full spectrum of our Daytona Fantasy NASCAR Rankings

Top Tier Elite Picks > Front Runners Rankings > Mid Pack Predictions & The Low Tier