The regular season of the NASCAR Cup Series comes to a close under the lights at Daytona International Speedway in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday night (7 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
With 15 of the 16 playoff spots spoken for, let’s set the stage for one final chance for drivers on the outside to win their way into the postseason conversation.
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READY TO GRID
For the second week in a row, Kyle Larson will lead the field to green courtesy of the qualifying matrix formula utilized to set the starting lineup. He will be joined in Row 1 by William Byron. Behind the pair of Hendrick Motorsports teammates sit two Joe Gibbs Racing teammates as Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch roll off from Row 2. Check out the full starting lineup here.
RELATED: Full weekend schedule for Daytona
RULES PACKAGE
Drivers will wheel cars utilizing the lower-horsepower, high-downforce package this weekend at Daytona International Speedway, featuring tall spoilers and longer splitters to promote drafting.
Following Joey Logano’s airborne tumble at Talladega Superspeedway in April, NASCAR has altered its superspeedway package to decrease horsepower from 510 HP to 450 HP in addition to removing the wicker that created drag from the top of the spoiler.
RELATED: NASCAR issues rules changes to slow Cup cars at superspeedways
NASCAR shelved restrictor plates, a metal plate placed on the intake manifold meant to reduce horsepower and used since 1988, after the 2019 Daytona 500 in favor of the tapered spacer, which accomplishes the same goal while still suiting the pack-style racing fans have become accustomed to seeing at Daytona and Talladega.
STORYLINES ENTERING DAYTONA
– Kyle Larson holds a 28-point lead over Denny Hamlin for the regular-season championship entering Daytona. The winner of the title collects 15 playoff points while the runner-up is awarded 10.
– Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon are the only drivers who can claim the final playoff spot on points. Reddick enters the race with a 25-point advantage on his Richard Childress Racing teammate.
– Drivers who can clinch the final playoff spot with a victory are Reddick, Dillon, Matt DiBenedetto, Chris Buescher, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace, Chase Briscoe, Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Newman, Ryan Preece, Cole Custer, Corey LaJoie and Anthony Alfredo.
– Four of the last six Daytona winners were first-time Cup Series winners (Erik Jones, Justin Haley, William Byron, Michael McDowell). The other two went to Denny Hamlin.
– Hamlin is the only repeat winner in the last 14 Daytona races and has won three times, each in the Daytona 500.
– In the last 11 Daytona events, Joe Gibbs Racing is the only organization to win multiple times. Other teams who went to Victory Lane in that span include Hendrick Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing and Spire Motorsports.
– Only once has a stage winner gone to Victory Lane at Daytona.
– There were four cautions during stage two of the Daytona 500 this season, the most cautions during stage one or two in any Daytona race.
– The final green-flag stretch was two laps or less in the last eight Daytona contests.
– The average green-flag stretch was 23 laps or less in the last 10 Daytona events.
– 10 of the last 16 Daytona races had an overtime finish including last August.
– Each of the last five superspeedway races were won by different drivers (Ryan Blaney, Byron, Hamlin, McDowell, Brad Keselowski)
Source: Racing Insights
RELATED:Last playoff berth, regular-season title on the line at Daytona
GAMBLING ON A CRAPSHOOT?
Superspeedway racing opens the door for myriad drivers to punch their last-minute ticket into the playoffs with a victory. However, one driver is still favored over everyone else: Denny Hamlin.
BetMGM lists the three-time Daytona 500 champion at 7-1 odds over a slew of drivers at 12-1 odds, including Brad Keselowski, Chase Elliott, 2015 Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney and defending race winner William Byron.
Michael McDowell, victor of this year’s Daytona 500, is listed at 33-1 odds and perhaps worth laying some money on considering his breakthrough win in February.
Another sleeper to keep an eye on is Corey LaJoie at 80-1. LaJoie’s four career top 10s have all come on superspeedways, three of which came at Daytona.
RELATED: Odds for Daytona regular-season finale
HISTORY ON THE HIGH BANKS OF DAYTONA
– In the early 1950s, Bill France Sr. realized the days of racing on the sands of Daytona Beach were soon disappearing. After creating Bill France Racing, Inc. in 1953, France went to work to raise funds for his 2.5-mile superspeedway dream facility. The project began Nov. 25, 1957 and Daytona International Speedway held its first Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 1959.
– Daytona held its first night race on Oct. 17, 1998, an event postponed from the Fourth of July by Florida wildfires that summer.
– Following Kyle Busch’s crash in the 2015 Xfinity Series race that left Busch with lower-body injuries, Daytona added over 200,000 square feet of asphalt in turns one and four. In Turn 1, where Busch crashed, the track paved more than 177,000 square feet of grass and realigned the wall where he hit head on.
– All outside and inside walls on the track’s 2.5-mile tri-oval, with the exception of pit lane, have energy-absorbing barriers.
– Saturday’s race marks the 148th points race on the Daytona oval.
Source: Racing Insights
GOODYEAR TIRES
Goodyear will bring the same tire compound to Daytona as it has the previous four races at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. As teams navigate Daytona’s 31 degrees of banking in the corners at 200 mph, reliability and stability play the ultimate role in this weekend’s tire setup.
“Gaining mechanical grip through the tire setup is an important factor for teams at Daytona,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “With the style of racing we see on this superspeedway, with cars side-by-side and nose-to-tail throughout the pack, stability is of the utmost importance. We design our tires for Daytona with tread compounds that give the cars the grip they need and the stability to race in such tight quarters.”
FANTASY LIVE
Want to manage a team and race your way to the top of the leaderboards? Check out NASCAR Fantasy Live. The free-to-play game lets you choose your drivers each week and show off your crew-chief instincts. It’s not too late to join in on the competition.
The 2021 Fantasy Live points leaders are Kyle Larson (990), Denny Hamlin (972) and Chase Elliott (842).
ALSO ON NASCAR.COM
Get additional camera views by logging on to NASCAR Drive, where each week a select number of in-car cameras will be available – as well as a battle cam and an overhead look.
New for this season, NASCAR has partnered with LiveLike to add fan engagement in the NASCAR Mobile App. Log in to the mobile app during the race for polls, quizzes, the cheer meter and more – and see instant results from NASCAR fans like you.