Five Daytona 500 story lines to watch

By: RJ Kraft

With the calendar turning to February, the Daytona 500 is fast approaching (Sunday, Feb. 21, 1 p.m. ET, FOX). Get set for the 58th running of the 'Great American Race' with these five story lines to watch.

5. Repeating is a rarity

Joey Logano won the 2015 Daytona 500, kicking off a six-win season for the Team Penske driver. However, he may find it difficult to repeat as the winner of the season-opening race. The last time it was done was in 1995 by Sterling Marlin. The feat has only been accomplished two other times -- by Cale Yarborough (1983, '84) and Richard Petty (1973, '74).

4. Wild-card winner

Restrictor-plate racing and pack racing in general can lead to some unexpected names running at the front. Who can forget Trevor Bayne, in just his second career Cup start, piloting the No. 21 Ford for Wood Brothers Racing to Victory Lane in the 2011 Daytona 500? It was the team's first win in 10 years and 98th win in its storied history. Perhaps we will see an upstart reach Victory Lane on Feb. 21.

3. Daytona 500 drought

Joe Gibbs Racing has one Daytona 500 win, which came in 1993 with Dale Jarrett behind the wheel. JGR has just four total wins at the 2.5-mile track over the organization’s 24-year Cup history. Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards are all more than capable of bringing Coach a second Daytona 500 win.

2. Can Dale Jr. be denied

Among active drivers, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the master when it comes to restrictor-plate tracks. He has 10 career wins at Daytona and Talladega (including two Daytona 500 wins). Last season on plate tracks, he recorded two wins and finished in the top three in all four races. Because of all that, Junior will enter the race as the odds-on favorite.

1. Who will drive the No. 14?

Brian Vickers will pilot the car for all of the Daytona Speedweeks events after Tony Stewart sustained a burst fracture of the L1 vertebra in an all-terrain vehicle accident Jan. 31 that required surgery. Stewart is out for the start of his final Sprint Cup season and a timetable for his return has not been determined, according to the team. Health issues limited Vickers to just two races in 2015, but he has a solid history on restrictor-plate tracks and is certainly a sleeper candidate to take the Daytona 500.