Written by Gabriel Tsui, Edited by Tarun Suresh
With the regular season entering the final straight, there are still a few more chances for drivers below the cutline to win a race and make the playoffs. Going into one of the most unpredictable race tracks on the schedule, can any of those drivers steal a win and secure a trip to the playoffs?
Track Preview
Heading into the penultimate race weekend for the regular season, we return to Daytona Beach in Florida for the Daytona 400. The track was built in 1959 and has been a regular on the NASCAR calendar ever since, hosting two races every year.
This race is also one of the few races on the calendar that is hosted under the floodlights during primetime. It is also one of the few races hosted on a Saturday to avoid a clash in schedule with Sunday Night Football.
This track has a distance of 2.5 miles (4.0 kilometres), 31 degrees of banking on the turns, and 18 degrees of banking on the front straight. The drivers will drive 160 laps around the track, with 50 laps in stages one and two and 60 laps in the final stage, totalling a distance of 400 miles (644 kilometres) run around the track.
According to the weather report, there will be thunderstorms and rainfall throughout the entire weekend; so a delay could be in place. The race will commence on Saturday, August 24th, at 19:30 ET (16:30 PT, 01:30 CET).
Race Predictions
This race has been a power struggle between Ford and Chevrolet in recent years, with the two manufacturers exchanging wins since 2020. Ford has had great performances around drafting tracks this season, being able to dominate the middle stages of the race.
However, they were involved in a couple of accidents that led to their key contenders being taken out of the race or losing the lead at the last second.
The other two manufacturers were able to capitalise on their mistakes, with William Byron taking the early season Daytona race and Tyler Reddick stealing the win in Talladega. However, with their turn of form after the mid-season all-star break, the odds are very much in their favour to repeat.
With the likes of Chris Buescher still hanging around the cut line, a win would secure their spot for the playoffs, adding another car to the playoff roster.
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