The 2022 Daytona 500 will go green in a just a few hours (3:06 p.m. ET, FOX), meaning it's time for NASCAR bettors to go ahead and lock in their favorite futures, driver matchups and prop bets for Sunday's "Great American Race."
Now, throw in the excitement and unpredictability of NASCAR's biggest race, the Daytona 500, and the sweat is taken to a whole new level.
So if you're someone curious about NASCAR betting or have a little extra in your betting accounts after a profitable Super Bowl weekend and are looking for action, I've polled The Action Network's team of verified NASCAR experts for their favorite Daytona 500 bets.
Please note that I'm not saying you should run the board and tail every bet below.
But if you're interested in the opinions of experienced NASCAR bettors before making a bet (or bets) on the Daytona 500, you can do worse than the eight experts below.
Be sure to download the FREE Action Network App to track all of our verified experts and their full betting cards for Sunday's Daytona 500, including the eight bets below.
2022 Daytona 500 Betting Picks
*Odds as of Saturday night
Daytona 500 Futures
- Christopher Bell +3300 to Win (PJ Walsh — The Action Network)
I'm going right back to Christopher Bell as my best bet on race day because this number simply doesn't make sense.
Bell, who was 25-1 at DraftKings prior to the start of Thursday's Duel races, finished fifth in his race while keeping the No. 20 Toyota completely clean and will now start 12th in the Daytona 500.
All good, right?
Well, while sportsbooks moved longer shots like Michael McDowell and Harrison Burton further up the odds board, they had no choice but to also tweak some of those in the mid-tier, like Bell.
Bell, who posted the fifth-best driver rating at superspeedways, like Daytona, last season, was 25-1 just three days ago and after a solid Speedweeks to this point is now 33-1 at BetMGM?
Buy, buy, buy.
- Kyle Busch +1700 to Win (Jim Sannes — numberFire)
Busch's odds have shortened after he opened at +1900, so hopefully you grabbed him then. But I still see value at this mark.
Busch has consistently been running at the front late in these superspeedway races; he just hasn't been able to seal the deal. You can say that's because he doesn't have the same skill as his teammate, Denny Hamlin, but there's also so much variance involved in finishes that it's hard for me to come to that conclusion.
Busch will be the highest-starting Toyota in a race where he will have help at the front by the end of it. It's hard to bet against the Fords given what they did Thursday, but I still think the value on Busch to get his first 500 win is too good to pass up.
- Tyler Reddick +3300 to Win (Greg Matherne)
I’m high on Tyler Reddick and so are his fellow drivers. Kyle Larson said he expects a breakout year for Reddick, while Austin Cindric says he is waiting on a Reddick win.
Reddick is a a very good superspeedway driver with XFINITY Series wins at Daytona and Talladega, plus a Truck Series win at Daytona. He also had a decent Duel performance and I’m not paying attention to his average practice speed.
I got him at 36-1 a few days ago and most books now have him down to 25-1, but you can still find 33-1 at BetMGM or PointsBet.
- Ryan Blaney +1000 to Win (Dale Tanhardt — Garage Guys)
Blaney is my top pick to win the 64th "Great American Race." He’s extremely due for a Daytona 500 victory as he boasts three superspeedway victories dating back to 2019, including his win at Daytona last fall.
I love guys who are “knocking on the door," and that’s what Blaney’s doing with two Daytona 500 runner-up finishes to his name.
Watch the Daytona 500 let him in its house of winners on Sunday.
Daytona 500 Props
- Todd Gilliland +650 for a Top-10 Finish (Jordan McAbee — Fantasy Racing Online)
There's not much value left on outright winners for Sunday's Daytona 500 ever since the sportsbooks adjusted after the Duels on Thursday, so I'm looking at some other avenues for value this weekend.
Sportsbooks are acting like Todd Gilliland is in a backmarker car — he has the third-longest odds in the top-10 market — when in reality his car is from the same fleet that won the Daytona 500 last season and finished second in Duel No. 2 just a few days ago (both accomplished by Michael McDowell).
It's always fun rooting for the underdogs on Daytona 500 weekend and Gilliland definitely fits that bill.
His +650 odds for a top-10 finish are worth a bet, even if he's a rookie.
It's a superspeedway race and anything can happen as long as he survives!
- Joe Gibbs Racing +180 for More Cars to Finish in Top 10 (Stephen Young — RotoGrinders)
Team Penske is a three-car team, which already puts Joe Gibbs Racing ahead of it before the race starts.
Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports start first and second, respectively.
Only one time in the last 20 races does a pole-sitter have a win at Daytona, and that was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in July of 2015.
In the last 10 Daytona races, first place has an average finish of 23.8 and second place has an average finish of 18.8.
The Toyotas are starting together and we should see them work together as much as possible. I think it's good value to bet Joe Gibbs Racing for most cars in the top 10 at +180 via DraftKings Sportsbook.
- All Hendrick Cars +650 to Finish Inside Top 10 (Chase Holden — Garage Guys)
OK, this is risky, but like I always say, “You gotta risk it to get the biscuit!”
And in this case the biscuit is a good chunk of bread.
The Hendrick horses are in full effect this weekend with Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman starting on the front row, followed by Chase Elliott in 11th. William Byron is the only driver who’s starting toward the back of the pack in 23rd.
Obviously at a superspeedway it's tough for things like this to shake out, but the reason I’m confident in this bet is not only due to the speed these cars showed in qualifying.
I look for these four drivers to work together like never before this season due to the new car. Pit stops will be crucial in this race, and while I don’t see them always being bumper-to-bumper throughout the race, I do see them making the effort to time things just right when it matters most, and put the Hendrick horses to work.
I'm on this at +650 at DraftKings Sportsbook.
- All Team Penske Cars +380 to Finish Inside Top 10 (Nick Giffen — The Action Network)
This Daytona Speedweeks has been all about teamwork. In both Duel qualifying races, it came down to a group of four Fords battling it out for the win.
Denny Hamlin thinks the Daytona 500 will be "strung out" and says the optimal number of cars for a draft is four. That means we could see teammates, or at least manufacturers work together to pull away, and nobody has done it better than the Fords.
This makes team and manufacturer correlation betting way more valuable.
We've seen this before. In 2016 the Joe Gibbs Racing drivers controlled the race and were the top four coming to the white flag.
In 2018, the Stewart-Haas Racing quartet dominated the whole 2018 Talladega race and were 1-2-3 on the final green-white-checkered restart.
Despite not winning either Duel, Team Penske had all three cars in the winning pack of both Duel races.
I like betting the strongest team all weekend, Team Penske, to place all three of their cars in the Top 10 at +380 on DraftKings.
