NASCAR: Dark Horse Picks for the Daytona 500

Chase Elliott

There is going to come a time, perhaps even in the near future, when this young gentleman might not even be described as a “dark horse,” but for his first start in the Great American Race, he is not among the favorite to win. Chase Elliot continued a surprising trend of high media attention polesitters for the Daytona 500 in recent memory. In 2013, Danica Patrick became the first female to start from the pole in the 500, then came Austin Dillon leading the field in 2014 in the return of the No, 3 Chevrolet to Daytona, and lastly, Jeff Gordon sat on the pole last season in his final start in the 500.

Chase Elliott surely has a fast Napa Chevrolet here at Daytona, topping 196 miles per hour in single-car qualifying. He will lead the field to green and will have one of the strongest cars in the early running, and will have his teammate behind him in Can-Am Duel winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. If Chase can keep his car out of trouble, he will certainly be in contention as the laps wind down.

He kept the car clean in Thursday’s Duel qualifying event, led a few laps, and came home with a top 10 run. This will be his first start on a restrictor-plate track in the Sprint Cup Series. To add onto the pressure, he is taking over one of the most famous rides in NASCAR, the No. 24 Chevrolet.

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Look for Chase to keep his No. 24 Napa Chevrolet clean in the 58th running of the Great American Race on Sunday, and be in serious contention by the race’s end. A great finish, or even a victory would be an incredible start to what should become an All-Star career. The stakes are high for this young man.

These dark horse picks will certainly have the potential to surprise us all. Everyone in the NASCAR world is looking forward to the start of the 2016 season, and these teams have a great chance to get an early spark to their season in the Great American Race.