On Saturday night under the lights, NASCAR will be racing at Daytona for the Coke Zero Sugar 400! The Daytona summer race is always one of the wildest of the year and aggression will get dialed up two notches. Desperate drivers do desperate things, and many teams will be operating in “Hail Mary Mode” to punch a ticket to the Playoffs.

Daytona is a different beast so don’t be afraid to pick drivers well down in the rankings. Harrison Burton won last summer, Cody Ware has the 6th best Next Gen Average Finish, BJ McLeod has finished in the top ten in 2 of the last 4 Daytona summer races, so wild things can happen and most likely will. This is a race where you can roll the dice.

This weekend, no practice sessions were held. Here’s a look at the Daytona Starting Lineup/ Qualifying Results.

Daytona Full Field Fantasy Rankings

1) Ryan Blaney
Start 1st / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Daytona Outlook – Ryan Blaney is an elite big superspeedway performer who’ll be tough to beat at Daytona in the Coke Zero Sugar 400. At Daytona, Blaney won in summer 2021, he’s flirted with victory lane on numerous occasions and “Performance Wise” he often ranks among the best. In the Next Gen, Blaney has the 6th best Driver Rating, the 8th best Average Running Position and the 10th best average finish (18.4), which very much so underrates him. Since 2020 minus the four races he’s DNF level crashed, Blaney’s average finish is 6.1. In this year’s Daytona 500, Blaney was a standout performer. In the race, Blaney finished 3rd in Stage #1, won Stage #2, earned the best Driver Rating, had the 2nd best average running position, led 22 laps, was running in 4th on lap 185 but then that very lap, he was collected in the Logano/ Stenhouse “Big One.” Somehow, Blaney still finished 7th thanks to a ton of attrition at the end. Last summer, Blaney ranked among the best, but finished 29th after crashing late. In the race, Blaney finished 5th in Stage #1, finished 2nd in Stage #2, was running in 11th on lap 150 but then on lap 151 he was collected in the “Big One.” In the 2024 Daytona 500, Blaney was one of the best but finished an asterisk mark 30th. In the race, Blaney won Stage #2, led 12 laps and was running in 6th on lap 190, but then the next lap he was collected in the “Big One.” In 2023, Blaney crashed while leading in the summer (36th) and then crashed twice in the “500” but snuck in an 8th.
DraftKings $10,200/ FanDuel $13,500

Further Recommended Reading – Daytona Projected Finish Ranges, DraftKings Daytona Scoring Projections, FanDuel Daytona Scoring Projections, Daytona Quick Rankings, Daytona Next Gen Average Finishes 

2) Brad Keselowski 
Start 10th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Daytona Outlook – 7-time big superspeedway winner, Brad Keselowski will take on a “Checkers or wreckers” approach, so you know he’ll be dangerous on Saturday night. There’s no doubt he’ll be fielding a car capable of reaching victory lane and his mastery of the draft is second to none. At Daytona, Keselowski is a former winner (summer 2016) who’s been one of the best “Performance Wise” in the Next Gen, with him having the 6th best average running position and the 7th best Driver Rating despite crashing in 4 of the 7 races (19.3 Next Gen Average Finish). In this year’s Daytona 500, Keselowski finished 2nd in Stage #1, finished mid-pack in Stage #2, looked to be bidding his time for a lot of the final Stage, was running in 17th on lap 195 but then later that lap he was caught up in a “Big One” which led to his 26th. Last summer, Keselowski was a factor but finished an asterisk mark 8th. In the race, Keselowski finished 7th in Stage #1, finished 3rd in Stage #2, led 8 laps, had the 6th best average running position (9.1) but then late in the race on lap 144 while battling for the lead during a restart, NASCAR black flagged him for jumping the restart. In the 2024 Daytona 500, Keselowski consistently ran up front when the trophy was on the line but then on lap 191 while running in 2nd, Byron turned him and then a “Big One” ensued, which led to his 33rd. In summer 2023, Keselowski won Stage #2, finished 2nd overall, led 6 laps and then pushed Buescher to victory lane in overtime. In the 2023 Daytona 500, Keselowski led a race high 42 laps, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had the 2nd best average running position (8.6), was the leader as late as lap 196 but then late in the race he got shuffled out of the lead and then crashed in overtime which led to his 22nd. In 2022, Keselowski led 31 laps in the summer but crashed (35th) and then in the Daytona 500 he led a race high 67 laps, had the best average running position, earned the 2nd best driver rating and then finished 9th.
DraftKings $9,600/ FanDuel $12,500

3) Austin Cindric
Start 5th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Daytona Outlook – Austin Cindric is a super-elite performer at Daytona who’ll be tough to beat. Cindric won the 2022 Daytona 500, he nearly won it again in February and then this spring at Talladega, Cindric raced his way to victory lane. This year at big superspeedways, Cindric could easily be 2 for 2 in the win column and over the combined races he has a 4.5 average finish, the best Driver Rating and the best Average Running Position. In the Next Gen at Daytona over the last seven races, Cindric has the 2nd best Driver Rating, the 2nd best average running position, he’s averaged leading the 3rd most laps per race (17.3) and has the 7th best average finish (16.0), which underrates him courtesy of quite a few misleading results. Over the last three Daytona races, Cindric’s actually been caught up in a late accident while running in the top 2. In this year’s Daytona 500, Cindric finished 2nd in Stage #2, had the best average running position (5.7), earned the best Driver Rating, led the most laps (59) and then finished 8th. Cindric was the leader on the last lap, but he was then involved in some last lap mayhem and faded back to his 8th. Last summer, Cindric had the best average running position, earned the 5th best Driver Rating, led 15 laps, was leading on lap 158 but then Josh Berry crashed into him, leading to Cindric’s 18th. In the 2024 Daytona 500 on the last lap, Chastain crashed him while he was running in 2nd which led to his 22nd. Additionally, Cindric finished 2nd in Stage #2, led 13 laps and had the 4th best average running position (12.3).
DraftKings $9,200/ FanDuel $12,000