Driver Averages | Laps Led Leaders | Driver Ratings | Past Winners | First Practice Speeds | Final Practice Speeds
Detailed driver notes and statistics to help set your fantasy racing lineup for Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
Who’s HOT at Daytona
- Denny Hamlin has finished sixth or better in the seven of the last 11 races, including wins in the Daytona 500 in 2016 and 2019.
- Joey Logano has finished sixth or better in six of the last nine races, including a win in the 2015 Daytona 500.
- Defending race winner Erik Jones has a 2.0 average finish in his last two starts.
- Austin Dillon has finished in the top 10 in seven of the last 11 races, including a win in the 2018 Daytona 500.
- Clint Bowyer has finished in the top 10 in five of the last six Coke Zero Sugar 400s.
- Brad Keselowski won this race in 2016 and has combined to lead 159 laps in the last three July races.
- Ryan Blaney leads all drivers in stage points and laps led in the last five races.
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won this event in 2017 and has combined to lead 95 laps in the last four races.
Keep an Eye On at Daytona
- Chris Buescher, Michael McDowell and Ryan Newman each have finished in the top 10 in three of the last four races at Daytona.
- Chase Elliott led the most laps and won at Talladega in April in the first race with the new 550 horsepower superspeedway rules package.
- Kurt Busch, winner of the 2017 Daytona 500, finished sixth at Talladega in his second superspeedway start with Chip Ganassi Racing.
- Ryan Preece’s two career Cup Series top 10s have come at Daytona and Talladega this season.
- Ty Dillon has finished sixth in the last two races at Daytona.
- Matt DiBenedetto, who led a race-high 49 laps in this year’s Daytona 500, has finished in the top 10 in two of his last five starts at Daytona.
- Kyle Busch (6.0), Alex Bowman (6.5), Ty Dillon (11.5) and Corey LaJoie (14.5) each rank in the top 10 in average finish in the two superspeedway races this season with two different rules packages. Logano (4.0) leads all drivers.
- Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola, Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard each rank in the top 10 in driver ratings in the past five races at Daytona.
Notes: After the restrictor-plate package was used for the final time in this year’s Daytona 500, teams will race with the new superspeedway rules package that was used at Talladega for the first time in April…Daniel Hemric, Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman participated in a Goodyear tire test at Daytona back in February to help determine this weekend’s tire combination, which will see two new tire codes…The pole position has produced the most winners (26) at Daytona – 18 in races and eight in qualifying races when counted as points-paying events in 1959-71)…Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the last to win from the No. 1 spot in 2015…Twelve of the last 13 races have been won from a top 15 starting position…Erik Jones won this event from the 29th spot last season.
Best Average Finish at Daytona
| Last # of Races | Driver | Average Finish |
| Two Races | Erik Jones | 2.0 |
| *Four Races | Ryan Newman | 8.8 |
| *Six Races | Michael McDowell | 11.5 |
| *Eight Races | Ryan Newman | 11.6 |
| *Ten Races | Denny Hamlin | 11.4 |
*Must have competed in every race in that span
Laps Led Leaders at Daytona
| Last # of Races | Driver | Laps Led |
| Two Races | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 67 |
| Four Races | Ryan Blaney | 140 |
| Six Races | Brad Keselowski | 161 |
| Eight Races | Denny Hamlin | 180 |
| Ten Races | Denny Hamlin | 184 |
Click Here to view all laps led leaders at Daytona over the past 10 races.
Daytona Loop Data Stat Leaders (Last Five Races)
| Average Running Pos. | Laps in Top 15 |
| 1. Alex Bowman – 8.9 | 1. Ryan Blaney – 676 |
| 2. Ryan Blaney – 13.5 | 2. Joey Logano – 574 |
| 3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 14.5 | 3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 530 |
| 4. Kevin Harvick – 14.5 | 4. Kevin Harvick – 530 |
| 5. Michael McDowell – 14.9 | 5. Chase Elliott – 528 |
| Fastest Laps Run | Driver Rating |
| 1. Jimmie Johnson – 30 | 1. Ryan Blaney – 96.2 |
| 2. Erik Jones – 28 | 2. Alex Bowman – 96.0 |
| 3. Ryan Newman – 28 | 3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 93.3 |
| 4. Michael McDowell – 27 | 4. Kevin Harvick – 91.5 |
| 5. Paul Menard – 26 | 5. Joey Logano – 82.4 |
Top 10 Stage Points Earned at Daytona
Five Races
| Driver | Points Earned |
| Ryan Blaney | 52 |
| Kevin Harvick | 34 |
| Brad Keselowski | 34 |
| Kurt Busch | 33 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 33 |
| Joey Logano | 32 |
| Kyle Busch | 29 |
| Alex Bowman | 27 |
| Michael McDowell | 25 |
| Kyle Larson | 23 |
2018 July Daytona Stage Finishes
| Stage 1 | Stage 2 |
| 1. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 1. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 2. Kyle Busch | 2. Michael McDowell |
| 3. Kyle Larson | 3. Alex Bowman |
| 4. William Byron | 4. Kasey Kahne |
| 5. Chase Elliott | 5. Ty Dillon |
| 6. Kurt Busch | 6. Jimmie Johnson |
| 7. Ryan Newman | 7. Kyle Larson |
| 8. Brad Keselowski | 8. Austin Dillon |
| 9. Austin Dillon | 9. Trevor Bayne |
| 10. Alex Bowman | 10. Ryan Newman |
Top Five in Stage Points Earned in 2019 (16 Races)
| Driver | Stage Points | Stage Wins |
| Joey Logano | 173 | 6 |
| Kevin Harvick | 161 | 4 |
| Brad Keselowski | 144 | 4 |
| Kyle Busch | 132 | 5 |
| Chase Elliott | 130 | 2 |
MRN.com Staff Picks
Jeff Wackerlin: Joey Logano
Pete Pistone: William Byron
Tyler Burnett: Ryan Blaney
Kenneth Lee: Erik Jones
Driver Notes – Ordered by Average Finish (Top 15) in the Last Five Races at Daytona
Ryan Preece finished eighth in this year’s Daytona 500, his first Cup Series start at the “World Center of Racing.” He then finished third at Talladega in the first race with the new superspeedway rules package.
Ryan Newman has finished in the top 10 in three of his last four starts at Daytona, including the last two July races. Newman finished seventh at Talladega in the first race with the new superspeedway rules package.
Michael McDowell has finished in the top 10 in three of the last four races at Daytona. He was swept-up in an early race accident at Talladega in April and finished 40th.
Alex Bowman has started on the front-row in the last three races at Daytona. He finished 10th in this event last year for his first top 10 at the “World Center of Racing.” Bowman finished second at Talladega in April after leading seven laps in the first race with the new superspeedway rules package.
Paul Menard has finished in the top 10 in three of the last five races at Daytona. He started seventh in this year’s Daytona 500, but was part of a big multi-car crash with 10 laps to go when his No. 21 Ford made contact with the rear of Matt DiBenedetto’s Toyota.
Parker Kligerman finished 15th in his second start at Daytona in this year’s 500. Kligerman, who has yet to race in the July race, finished 27th at Talladega in April.
Ross Chastain finished 10th in this year’s Daytona 500 to lower his average finish to 15.5 in two starts at the track. He finished 26th at Talladega in April.
Austin Dillon has finished in the top 10 seven times in his 12 starts at Daytona, including a win in the 2018 Daytona 500. Dillon, who finished ninth last year in the July race, finished 14th at Talladega in April after winning the pole.
Brendan Gaughan has finished seventh and 12th, respectively, in the last two July races at Daytona. He finished eighth at Talladega in April for his second top 10 in 10 starts at superspeedway races with Beard Motorsports.
Denny Hamlin is coming off his second win in the Daytona 500. Hamlin’s last top 10 in the July race came in 2015 during a streak of five consecutive top 10s at the track. He finished 36th at Talladega in April after early damage and blown tire on Lap 80.
Matt DiBenedetto has finished in the top 10 in two of his last five starts at Daytona. He led a race-high 49 laps in this year’s Daytona 500 before getting swept-up in a multi-car crash on Lap 190. DiBenedetto finished 10th in Stage 1 at Talladega in April, but also was collected in a multi-car crash on Lap 181.
Bubba Wallace has finished in the top 10 in three of his four starts at Daytona, including a second-place finish in the 2018 Daytona 500. He was part of an early multi-car crash at Talladega in April that forced him to an early exit on Lap 10.
Joey Logano has finished in the top 10 six times in the last nine races at Daytona, including a win in the 2015 Daytona 500. He’s finished fourth in the last two Daytona 500s and his last top 10 in the July race was fourth in 2016. Logano led 37 laps and finished fourth at Talladega in April, the first race with the new superspeedway rules package.
Erik Jones has finished in the top 10 in three of the last four races at Daytona, including a win in this event last year. He finished 19th at Talladega in April.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won this event in 2017 for his third top 10 in 14 starts at Daytona. He started sixth and led 16 laps at Talladega in April, but finished 25th after blowing a tire coming to the final lap.
