2026 Daytona 500 odds, picks: NASCAR projected leaderboard from proven model

The 2026 Daytona 500 unfolds on Sunday, Feb. 15 at 2:30 p.m. ET as the NASCAR season officially gets underway. William Byron is the two-time defending Daytona 500 champion, while Kyle Larson won the NASCAR championship last season. In all, there are eight past winners among the 41-driver entry list for the Daytona 500.

The 2026 Daytona 500 odds from FanDuel Sportsbook list Joey Logano and pole sitter Kyle Busch as the +1000 co-favorites, with Ryan Blaney close behind at +1100. Byron is +1300, while Larson is +1700. The start time for the Great American Race is now 1:30 p.m. ET as it was moved up an hour due to impending weather.

Before making any 2026 Daytona 500 picks or NASCAR predictions, you need to see what auto racing insider Mike McClure has to say.

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, taking factors such as matchups and statistical trends into account. 

All told, the model has nailed a whopping 29 winners since 2021 and hit 11 winners in 2025! Anyone who followed its lead on those NASCAR picks could have seen HUGE returns.

For the NASCAR at Daytona, the model is fading Logano, the co-favorite at +1000, saying he finishes outside the top 5. Another surprise: Kyle Larson (+1700) is projected to finish near the top of the leaderboard despite his longer odds. 

The model has identified a longshot of +2000 as a top-10 contender, potentially netting any backer a huge payday!

So who wins the 2026 Daytona 500, and which massive longshot could stun NASCAR? Visit SportsLine now to see the picks and best bets from a NASCAR model that nailed 11 winners last year, and find out!