Since its inception in 1959, the Daytona 500 has been the most prestigious race on the NASCAR calendar. Here are five drivers whose legacies could benefit the most from winning the 2025 running of the ‘Great American Race.’
Kyle Busch
Like another legendary driver that once drove for Richard Childress Racing, a Daytona 500 crown remains the only major accomplishment missing for Busch. As a 63-time Cup Series winner and a two-time champion, many consider Busch to be a top-10 driver of all time. However, the Daytona 500 has always eluded him. He was leading at the 500-mile mark in 2023 before losing in NASCAR overtime, and he’ll look to add the Harley J. Earl Trophy to his ever-expanding trophy case in his 21st Daytona 500 start.
Brad Keselowski
Since becoming a full-time Cup Series competitor in 2010, Keselowski has been revered as one of the best superspeedway racers in the field. Keselowski is a six-time winner at Talladega and won the 2016 Firecracker 400 at Daytona. The closest he’s come to a Daytona 500 win was in 2021, when he and teammate Joey Logano crashed going into the final set of corners. Keselowski will have an excellent RFK Racing Ford underneath him, and it wouldn’t be shocking to see him finally earn a Daytona 500 victory.
Kyle Larson
The only track type the immeasurably talented Larson has yet to conquer in his career? The superspeedways of Daytona and Talladega. Crashes and engine failures aplenty have given Larson a reputation as a non-factor at superspeedways, but he’s noticeably improved at them over the past few seasons. If he can survive the Daytona carnage that will inevitably occur, he could find himself in contention.
Chase Elliott
Like his father before him, Elliott is a NASCAR Cup Series champion and considered one of the elite drivers in the series. He’s yet to suffer a Daytona heartbreak in nine Daytona 500 starts, and it’s not necessarily true that his legacy is suffering without a Daytona 500 trophy to boast about. However, adding a Harley J. Earl trophy to his resume would carry on a family legacy – Bill Elliott won the 500 twice, in 1985 and 1987 – and bolster his case for the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Like Larson, Elliott will have a strong Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet beneath him, and if he finds himself up front late, his calm demeanor behind the wheel could be the deciding factor.
Ryan Blaney
Like Keselowski, Blaney has gained a reputation as an elite superspeedway racer. In only 10 Daytona 500 starts, he has two heartbreaking runner-up finishes (2017, 2020) and came up a half-straightaway shy of a win in the 2022 running after Austin Cindric made contact with Blaney and relegated him to a fourth-place finish. Blaney has six top-10 finishes in the ‘Great American Race’, and Team Penske always brings fast cars to Daytona and Talladega. In a similar vein to Elliott, Blaney, the 2023 Cup Series champion, doesn’t need a Daytona 500 victory to secure his legacy, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt. It seems as if a Daytona 500 win is coming sooner rather than later for Blaney, and there’d be no better way for him to avenge the heartbreak of the 2024 championship race than winning the first race of 2025.
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