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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The top minds in stock car racing convened at the Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach 75 years ago in order to rectify the pressing issues facing the still-fledgling and very much vulnerable sport. It was from that meeting, spearheaded by the Bill France Sr., that the races in common cars would become organized affairs under the banner of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing.

From the formation of NASCAR in Daytona Beach would come its signature racetrack, the Daytona International Speedway. And three-quarters of a century later, Daytona remains its premier racetrack -- and the Daytona 500 its premier race.

The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, and the 75th Anniversary season of NASCAR, begins this Sunday with the 65th annual Daytona 500. As it was in the beginning and is now, these 200 laps and 500 miles around Daytona comprise the greatest event in NASCAR, and they have the power to forever alter a driver's career. A champion racer can come to be judged if their resume does not include winning this race, while winning this race just once can make even the most humble of drivers a legend forever.

In this year's Speedweeks, those very narratives are playing out: Multiple Cup Series champions and generational talents are still seeking their first Daytona 500 win, while last season's Rookie of the Year returns to this race as its defending champion.

How to Watch the 65th annual Daytona 500

  • Date: Sun., Feb. 19
  • Location: Daytona International Speedway -- Daytona Beach, Fla.
  • Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
  • TV: Fox
  • Stream: fuboTV (try for free)

What to watch

Three's company

The past two Daytona 500s have both seen a surprise winner, with both claiming their first ever NASCAR Cup Series victories. After Michael McDowell went from career journeyman to Daytona 500 champion in 2021, Austin Cindric held off a horde of veterans on the final lap to score the upset in just his eighth Cup start in 2022.

This year, it would seem a stretch to suggest that the Daytona 500 will see a third-straight first-time winner. Not only has that never happened at any point in the race's history, but the Cup Series has started to run out of potential first-time winners after five drivers took their maiden trip to Victory Lane in 2022. However, the level playing field of superspeedway racing means anything is possible, particularly with drivers like Ryan Preece and Corey LaJoie having put themselves in the mix at the end of this race before and a pair of Cup Rookies in Ty Gibbs and Noah Gragson aligned with top teams.

In Cindric's case, he stands to add another chapter to the history books if he can successfully defend his 500 crown: He would become the second driver to ever go back-to-back in the Daytona 500 for his first two Cup wins, joining Sterling Marlin who pulled off the feat in 1994 and 1995.

Veteran's valor

Where the past two Daytona 500s have ended in upset wins for some, for others they have served as the latest episode of frustration in a quest to finally win this race. Drivers like Buddy Baker, Darrell Waltrip, and Dale Earnhardt tried for many years to finally win the Daytona 500, and theirs' is now the struggle of Cup champions like Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr. -- all of whom have never won the Daytona 500 despite being among the best of their generation.

Recent Cup champs like Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson have also come up short here before, such as in 2017 when both ran out of fuel while leading in the closing laps. Ryan Blaney has mastered the art of coming off Turn 4 with a chance to win this race, but has yet to figure out how to cross the finish line first. Bubba Wallace has also come incredibly close, finishing runner-up in both 2018 and 2021.

The champ is here

Jimmie Johnson was able to use this race as a tool on his way to greatness, winning the Daytona 500 in 2006 and 2013 as part of a legendary career that includes a record-tying seven Cup championships. But his postscript after becoming a racing legend has brought him back to not only the NASCAR Cup Series, but also back to Daytona.

After spending the past two seasons racing in IndyCar, Johnson has returned to the NASCAR Cup Series with Legacy Motor Club, where he will make select starts behind the wheel of the No. 84 Chevrolet during the 2023 season while also serving as team co-owner. The very presence of Johnson in the field adds an extra layer of competitiveness to this year's 500, after qualifying for the race during the time trials.

Where one Daytona 500 champion is saying hello again to this race, another is saying farewell. This will be the 22nd and final Daytona 500 for 2007 winner Kevin Harvick, who has announced that he will retire from NASCAR at the end of the 2023 season.

Pick to win

(Odds via Caesars Sportsbook)

Ryan Blaney (+1200) -- Here's what you need to know about Ryan Blaney: Every year that he's finished the race since 2017, he has been in the mix to win the Daytona 500 in the closing laps. Three times, he's come off Turn 4 on the final lap in second and with a chance to overtake the leader, including last year when he was seemingly poised to make the winning move.

Each time, Blaney has been foiled by the finish line. But the logic follows that if Blaney gets enough at-bats in that scenario, he'll eventually get a hit. And the chances are very good that one of NASCAR's strongest superspeedway racers will be able to put himself in that position again, and perhaps this time finally hoist the Harley J. Earl Trophy for the first time.