Richard Childress Racing's Kyle Busch is the winningest active full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver. He is also the active driver who has the most Daytona 500 starts without a win.
Busch is set to enter his 20th "Great American Race" this Sunday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway, and for several weeks leading up to this past week's single-car qualifying session and two Duel at Daytona qualifying races, he was listed by FanDuel Sportsbook as the favorite to get the job done.
But with one day to go before the race, Busch, who qualified 21st, has been displaced as the favorite. His odds have dipped slightly from +1100 to +1300, and the favorite is now Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson at +1200.
Busch is locked in a three-way tie with Team Penske teammates Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney.
Larson, who qualified 22nd, is not only aiming for his own first Daytona 500 win in his 12th start; he is seeking his first ever top five finish in his 22nd start at the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked Daytona Beach, Florida oval.
I'm sure we've all heard more than once than Larson is capable of getting in any kind of race car and winning at any kind of track. Whether or not he can do that in the No. 5 Chevrolet at Daytona, however, remains to be seen, as his superspeedway numbers have historically been rather lackluster.
Still, he is now the favorite, though at +1200, his status as the favorite is far from cemented heading into race day. Cup Series race favorites are typically in the +400 to +600 range, so this number goes to show just how wide open the 2025 season opener figures to be.
And that's not unusual for a superspeedway/drafting race. It's rare that anybody would be listed with shorter than +1000 odds heading into one of these races, given the fact that they tend to serve as somewhat of an equalizer and the "Big One" is always liable to strike when you least expect it to.
Full odds for the 2025 Daytona 500 can be found here, and a full starting lineup can be found here.
Fox is set to provide live coverage of the 67th annual Daytona 500 from Daytona International Speedway. Make note of the schedule change: that live coverage is now set to begin at 1:30 p.m. ET tomorrow afternoon instead of 2:30 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss it!