In the world of Nascar, no race is considered more prestigious than the Daytona 500. Sure, it is worth the same number of points in the overall standings as other competitions. But it also marks the opening of the Nascar Cup Championship Series and carries the largest winner's purse of any race of the season. So, naturally, we've made sure to bring you our Daytona 500 best bets and odds.
This primer for Nascar's 200-lap, 500-mile melee will include everything you need to know: background on the race, the best Daytona 500 betting odds, our Daytona 500 best bets, an overview of potentially available prop bets for Daytona 500, and much, much more.
Before we get started, let's take a look at the latest Las Vegas Daytona 500 odds to win, courtesy of the folks over at Bovada:
Congratulations to Michael McDowell on winning his first Daytona 500 and claiming the title for the 2021 season!
First NASCAR Cup Series win in the #DAYTONA500?
Yeah, that's pretty special for @Mc_Driver! pic.twitter.com/EKr6mpoykq
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 15, 2021
Make sure to double-check these Nascar Daytona 500 Vegas odds prior to committing yourself to any wager. They will shift between now and the opening gun.
For those new to Daytona 500 betting, you're in for a treat. This race is known as the Super Bowl of Nascar, in large part because of the prize pool. This year, a total of $23.6 million will be divvied up among 40 drivers.
Most people like to focus their wagers on outright winners, which is what you see on the Daytona 500 betting board above. But certain sportsbooks will release different types of Daytona 500 prop bets as it gets closer to race time. We'll cover which ones might be available later.
First, though, let's focus on the outright Vegas odds for Nascar's Daytona 500, and then we'll go from where.
Best Daytona 500 Odds
The beauty of the Daytona 500 is that the field is so wide-open. Even the favorites are typically laying expensive payouts. Just take the top Daytona 500 bet in 2021: Denny Hamlin. He is currently slated to enter race day as +700—and again, that's the favorite.
Of course, because technically everyone is a long shot to come out on top, that makes sussing out the best potential bets a lot harder. Don't worry, though. We've done much of the legwork for you. These are our favorite Daytona 500 odds to invest in this time around.
Denny Hamlin (+700)
Many are going to see this year's favorite as a bargain bet—even by the standard of Nascar Odds.
Most races will see the top option enter at +300 or +400. That Hamlin is a +700 reeks of bettor fatigue. He has won each of the past two Daytona 500s and three of the last five runnings. Meanwhile, in one of the two, he didn't win, he actually secured a third-place finish.
This level of dominance is usually celebrated. In this case, some people feel like Hamlin is due for a loss. That's not a sensible way of betting. Hamlin finished with the second-most wins of any driver last season. He remains great value at this price point.
Ryan Blaney (+1000)
A history of mid-race accidents will keep Ryan Blaney off many Daytona 500 bet slips. We don't recommend ruling him out.
When Blaney finishes races, he really finishes. Over the past four races he's finished at Daytona, all of them have been top-10 pole positions. And two of them were second-place finishes.
Few racers are as aggressive out of the gate. That helps explain Blaney's penchant for accidents. But it's also why he's so apt to jump out to leads. He has held leads for at least one lap in seven of his past eight races. At a 10-to-1 payout, he's absolutely worth a look.
William Byron (+1500)
Investing in unproven youth can be difficult. William Byron makes it a little easier.
The 23-year-old is well ahead of the curve for someone his age. He already has 108 races under his belt. Across that sample, he has compiled nine top-five finishes and 31 top-10 finishes, to go along with his singular victory.
That still won't be enough to convince some people. To them, we say consider this: Byron has led for a total of 434 laps throughout his career. That's roughly 1.5 percent of all the laps he's raced as a pro—an incredible number for someone with just three years of Nascar experience.
If you're looking to get in on the ground floor of a potential Daytona 500 winner, Byron and his 15-to-1 payout should be your guy.
William Darrell Wallace Jr. (+2200)
Scant few bettors will want to pounce on William Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr. at first glance. Through four Nascar seasons, he has zero victories and just three top finishes. He has held leads for exactly zero laps, as well.
Still, two of Bubba Wallace's top-five positions have come at Daytona. That's a huge deal. Track familiarity is a real thing. Certain racers excel at select tracks. It's been proven.
The evidence is in Wallace's odds themselves. Someone with his track record should be a 50-to-1 underdog or worse. That he's better than a 25-to-1 candidate speaks to how effective he's been at Daytona.
Jamie McMurray (+5000)
Anyone looking to capitalize on a super long shot would do well to take a peek at Jamie McMurray.
Time has not been kind to the 44-year-old. He has fallen out of the premier-racer discussion over the past half-decade or so.
Then again, the extent of his downfall continues to be overblown. He has still racked up 11 top-five finishes since 2015—and that's while appearing in just one race since the start of the 2019 season.
The 2021 Daytona 500 marks his return to the field, and while he is by no means worth your entire purse, he has raced well on this track in previous years. He even won the whole thing in 2010.
Latest Nascar Standings
As we've already mentioned, the Daytona 500 represents the opening of the Nascar Cup Championship Series. Since that is a whole other betting option on its own, it's important to remain up to date on the latest standings after each race. We've dropped them below for your convenience.
Nascar Daytona 500 Prop Betting
Outright odds aren't the only bets that are available to you. The Daytona 500 is also home to plenty of prop wagers.
If you're new to the prop-betting game, these lines are essentially smaller outcomes within the larger event. You're trying to predict something else that will happen during the Daytona 500 race.
Not all Nascar prop betting odds are available for the Daytona 500 at this time. The meat and potatoes of the list usually hit the market a day or two beforehand. But we'll take you through all the different types so you know what to expect.
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Podium Finish and Pole Position Bets
In Nascar, podium finishes refer to the first, second, and third-place racers. Pole positions, meanwhile, refer to racers who finish inside the top 10.
When you bet on these, you're not wagering on a particular driver to win outright. You're really trying to predict the range of their overall finish. The Daytona 500 prop odds on this are already available, so you can have a look here:
| Pole Position |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Racer | Top-3 Finish | Top-10 Finish |
| Denny Hamlin | +230 | -182 |
| Chase Elliott | +300 | -150 |
| Ryan Blaney | +350 | -125 |
| Brad Keselowski | +350 | -125 |
| Joey Logano | +350 | -125 |
| Kevin Harvick | +450 | -112 |
| Kyle Busch | +500 | +100 |
| William Byron | +500 | +100 |
| Aric Almirola | +550 | +115 |
| Alex Bowman | +550 | +115 |
| Kurt Busch | +550 | +115 |
| Kyle Larson | +550 | +115 |
| Martin Truex Jr | +550 | +115 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | +600 | +125 |
| Christopher Bell | +650 | +140 |
| Austin Dillon | +650 | +140 |
| Bubba Wallace | +650 | +140 |
| Ross Chastain | +750 | +160 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | +800 | +170 |
| Chase Briscoe | +1000 | +210 |
| Cole Custer | +1000 | +210 |
| Ryan Newman | +1000 | +210 |
| Tyler Reddick | +1000 | +210 |
| Chris Buescher | +1200 | +250 |
| Erik Jones | +1200 | +250 |
| Jamie McMurray | +1200 | +250 |
| Michael McDowell | +1600 | +300 |
| Ryan Preece | +2000 | +350 |
| Corey LaJoie | +2000 | +350 |
| Daniel Suarez | +2500 | +400 |
| Quin Houff | +3300 | +550 |
| B J McLeod | +3300 | +550 |
| Anthony Alfredo | +3300 | +550 |
| Josh Bilicki | +5000 | +700 |
| Derrike Cope | +5000 | +700 |
| Cody Ware | +5000 | +700 |
Let's use Denny Hamlin as our example. If you bet on him to finish in the top three and he does, your wager will cash out at +250. If you instead invest in him to finish 10th or better, your bet will cash at -182 should he fall within that range.
Driver Matchups
This is what Nascar calls a head-to-head prop. Instead of betting on the outright winner of the entire Daytona 500, you're instead trying to choose between two racers and who will have the better finish.
These Nascar odds aren't usually available in heavy supply. And when they are, sportsbooks will typically only throw out a couple of different head-to-head matchups featuring the biggest names or racers who have established rivalries.
As of now, four of them have been set for the Daytona 500. Take a look at the odds below:
| Favorite | | | Underdog |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Elliott | -150 | +130 | Martin Truex Jr. |
| Denny Hamlin | -145 | +125 | Kevin Harvick |
| Joey Logano | -115 | -105 | Brad Keselowski |
| William Byron | -120 | +100 | Alex Bowman |
Let's stick with Hamlin as our case study. If you bet on him to beat Kevin Harvick, he doesn't have to win the entire race. He just has to finish ahead of Harvick in the final standings for you to cash out at -145.
The Fastest Lap
This is a self-explanatory Daytona 500 prop. You're merely trying to identify the driver who will have the fastest single lap throughout the entire race.
Odds on this are almost always released last minute. Too much goes into calculating lines, such as qualifying times, starting positions, and the weather leading into race day. Be on the lookout for them as we inch closer to the start of the Daytona 500.
Top Online Sportsbooks for Daytona 500 Betting
When it comes to betting on Nascar, online sportsbooks have the best offering in terms of convenience, betting options, and variety. Select a few offer Daytona 500 betting bonuses that you can use to pad your bankroll.
Finding an online sportsbook that suits your Daytona 500 betting needs is important. The first thing to look for is whether the sportsbook even offers Daytona 500 betting odds. After that, you'll want to look at whether the sportsbook offers your preferred deposit option. If you want to use a Mastercard, ensure the sportsbook accepts credit cards, and specifically Mastercard.
Choosing an online sportsbook shouldn’t be a chore or extremely time-consuming, so reading our top sportsbook reviews can greatly help in the selection process. And if you're pressed for time, you can just check out this list we've put together of the best online sportsbooks, all of which offer Daytona 500 odds:
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