The marquee event in NASCAR is its season-opener, as the 2026 Daytona 500 kicks off the 2026 NASCAR season from Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, Feb. 15. While favorites in the newest 2026 Daytona 500 odds, such as Ryan Blaney (+850), Joey Logano (+1000) and William Byron (+1300), will garner a chunk of the betting action, there are multiple longshots the SportsLine computer model sees value in when making 2026 Daytona 500 picks.
One of the model’s top 2026 Daytona 500 picks is the experienced Kyle Busch, who has a win and five runner-up finishes in Cup Series events at Daytona International Speedway. Although the 40-year-old has never won the Daytona 500, he does have one runner-up result at NASCAR’s biggest race. At 20-1 odds, the model projects value in Busch in its Daytona 500 predictions. The model also projects value in longshots such as Christopher Bell (22-1) and Chase Briscoe (22-1) for 2026 Daytona 500 bets. Before making any 2026 Daytona 500 picks or NASCAR predictions, you need to see the projected leaderboard from Mike McClure’s proven model.
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McClure is a legendary professional DFS player with more than $2 million in career winnings. He uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every lap of NASCAR action 10,000 times. All told, the model has nailed a whopping 29 winners since 2021 and hit 11 winners in 2025. Anyone following his NASCAR betting picks at their favorite sportsbooks could have seen huge returns.
Now, McClure has turned his attention to the NASCAR season-opening Daytona 500. He’s only sharing his best bets at SportsLine.
Top 2026 Daytona 500 longshot picks
- Kyle Busch (+2000)
- Christopher Bell (+2200)
- Chase Briscoe (+2200)
Kyle Busch (+2000)
Busch will make his 42nd start at Daytona International Speedway, the most of any active driver and one of only two drivers entering with more than 35 starts at the speedway. Although he’s never captured a Daytona 500 victory, he has five career runner-up results at Daytona International Speedway, including the 2019 Daytona 500. His 63 career NASCAR Cup Series victories, including one at Daytona, lead all active drivers as well. Given his experience at the track and nine top-five finishes in 41 starts, the model sees value in playing him at 20-1 odds to win Sunday. Caesars Sportsbook offers the best odds for Busch at 20-1, whereas other sportsbooks have him priced at 18-1 or lower.
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Christopher Bell (+2200)
Bell had a strong run at last year’s Daytona 500, including placing fifth in the first stage before a crash near the front of the pack on the 196th lap ended his run. This came after back-to-back years of finishing third at the Daytona 500, as Bell has been one of the top drivers at the Daytona 500 over the last few years, leading 42 laps over the last three Daytona 500 runs. He’s a proven winner as well, finishing tied for third in NASCAR with four Cup Series victories last year. Given how he’s raced the last three years in the season opener, the model sees value in him at 22-1 odds to capture his first Daytona victory. DraftKings has Bell at 22-1, as opposed to other sportsbooks having him at 20-1 or lower.
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Chase Briscoe (+2200)
He has two top-five finishes over five career Daytona 500 runs, and he has finished in the top 20 in his four Daytona 500 starts that didn’t end in an accident. Briscoe finished fourth at last year’s Daytona 500 to begin the best season of his NASCAR career. The 31-year-old finished third in the final NASCAR Cup Series standings last year, winning a career-best three races after winning just two races over his prior four NASCAR seasons. His 15 top-five finishes last year were tied for the most in NASCAR, as he was a consistent threat for a victory. He’s improved his final spot in the Cup Series standings in each of the last three seasons, and given his year-over-year improvements and top-five history at the Daytona 500, the model sees value in him at his price for 2026 Daytona 500 bets.
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Want more picks for the 2026 Daytona 500?
You’ve seen the SportsLine model’s 2026 Daytona 500 longshot picks for this weekend. Now, see the model’s full leaderboard for NASCAR at Daytona. You can only see the model’s picks here.
