Daytona 500 Highlights Opening Month of NASCAR Cup Series

The 67th annual Daytona 500 is set to cap off the opening month of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series. The season kicked off with the Clash at Bowman Gray on Feb. 2 where Chase Elliot took home the win.

Last Time Out

William Byron stole the show in 2024, taking home the Harley J. Earl Trophy in his red-flared No. 24 Chevy. Byron finished the 2024 Cup Series with three wins and 13 top-five finishes. Alex Bowman and Christopher Bell rounded out the top three on last year’s leaderboard.

Opening Week

The duel races that precede the main event are scheduled for Thursday. The 150-mile races help set most positions from the Daytona 500, from third to 40th. A single-car qualifying race scheduled for Wednesday decides the front row of the race. Last year, Byron started at No. 18 and Bowman and Bell began at No. 7 and No. 4, respectively.

He’s searching for his fourth Harley J. Earl Trophy. @dennyhamlin was fastest in opening #DAYTONA500 practice. pic.twitter.com/71bvGv5Ulr

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 12, 2025

NASCAR Drivers to Watch

Two-time Cup Series Champion Kyle Busch opens the race as FanDuel’s betting favorite with +1,100 odds. Busch finished the 2024 Cup Series with zero wins and finished 12th in the Daytona 500 last year. Denny Hamlin was the last to repeat in 2019 and 2020. He came in first in Wednesday’s opening practice session. The defending champion, Byron, opens up with the eight-best odds at +2,000. Only four drivers have won back-to-back Daytona 500 titles.

The “Great American Race” is set for 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.