Daytona 500: 10 Unexpected Drivers Who Could Surprise at Daytona

Daytona is the one track on NASCAR’s schedule where fans can expect a driver who is not affiliated with one of the top teams to do well. There are many reasons why unexpected drivers compete in the Daytona 500.

First of all, there are more cars entered into the Daytona 500 than any other race. There are 43 cars entered for the Daytona 500 on Sunday. The top 35 in owner’s points from last season are locked into the race. There are two drivers with Past Champions Provisionals who are not in the top 35 but are locked into the race (Terry Labonte and Bill Elliott). Since 43 cars will race in the Daytona 500, six drivers will make the race from a fairly unknown organization.

Second, each team that shows up for the Daytona 500 puts more work into their car for this one race than for any other race on the schedule. For the smaller teams, the Daytona 500 is their make-or-break race. If their car qualifies for the Daytona 500, the team will receive the funds needed to compete in many more races. While the large organizations in NASCAR test and prepare for the entire season, smaller teams put all of their eggs in the Daytona basket. This gives the smaller team a chance to compete in the race.

The last reason is because of the racing style at Daytona. Restrictor plate racing keeps the cars together for the entire race. The most important thing in the Daytona 500 is to have a drafting partner. Last year Trevor Bayne proved that even the smaller teams can find a partner at the end of the race. Drivers must be in the right place at the right time. Any of the 43 cars starting the Daytona 500 will have a chance to win the race.

So, who will be the 2012 dark horse to surprise people at Daytona? Here is my list of 10 drivers who could surprise fans in the Great American Race.

Aric Almirola

Aric Almirola is on this list not because of his prior success at Daytona, but because of the team he will be driving for. Almirola will drive the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford in the Daytona 500.

What car number has won the most Daytona 500s? That would be the No. 43 car. The problem is that Richard Petty will not be driving the No. 43 car this Sunday, Almirola will be. Petty won seven times in the Daytona 500, and I would have to believe he will share some of his knowledge with Almirola before Sunday’s race.

What makes Almirola different from many of the other drivers on this list is that he has a teammate, which is very important at Daytona. Almirola and teammate Marcos Ambrose will most likely work together in the Daytona 500. If luck is on their side, they could end up near the front at the end of the race.

Ricky Stenhouse

Ricky Stenhouse is one of my sleeper picks for the Daytona 500. He has a lot going for him on Sunday.

The most important thing going for Stenhouse is that he has a guaranteed spot in the race. A driver cannot win the Daytona 500 if he or she is not in the Daytona 500.

The last car to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup event at Daytona was the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford. David Ragan drove the No. 6 car to victory at Daytona last July in the Coke Zero 400. Guess what car Stenhouse will be driving on Sunday? You guessed it…the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

Driving a car from one of the top teams is not the only reason Stenhouse may have success in the Daytona 500. Stenhouse is a very talented young driver. He proved that last season when he won the NASCAR Nationwide Championship.

If there were ever a mirror image of the situation that Trevor Bayne was in last season, Stenhouse is the driver who fits the bill. Stenhouse may not be a household name before the Daytona 500, but he may be after the race.

Elliott Sadler

Elliott Sadler makes this list because of the position in which he finds himself.

One of the questions people were asking during the offseason was whether or not Richard Childress Racing would find a driver for the No. 33 car after Clint Bowyer left the organization for Michael Waltrip Racing. The answer: Yes.

Sadler will drive the No. 33 car in the Daytona 500. Sadler is a good driver at Daytona. In his 24 career starts at Daytona in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Sadler has an average finish of 17.5. That includes four top-5 finishes and nine top-10 finishes.

Sadler will have the best teammates of any driver on this list to work with at the Daytona 500. Teammates Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Paul Menard should be up front most of the race. I can see Sadler right there with them at the end.

Regan Smith

Regan Smith is one of the most underrated drivers in NASCAR, largely because he is from a small, one-car team based outside of NASCAR’s Mecca of Charlotte, North Carolina. Smith races for Furniture Row Racing based in Denver, Colorado. Furniture Row Racing is the only team based west of the Mississippi River.

So why is Smith on this list?

I consider Smith to still be an unknown driver. NASCAR’s dedicated fans know who Smith is, but the casual fan who watches the Daytona 500 on Sunday will have no idea who is in the No. 78 car.

Just because Smith is unknown does not mean he should be overlooked in the Daytona 500. Smith performs at his best in NASCAR’s top races. Last year Smith finished seventh in the Daytona 500, eighth in the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte, third at the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis, and he won the Southern 500 at Darlington.

Smith will be one of the drivers who will surprise fans at this year’s Daytona 500.

Casey Mears

Casey Mears has been a forgotten driver in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series. It was not too long ago that Mears was driving for Hendrick Motorsports with teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Now Mears drives for Germain Racing, a small team with limited funds.

Mears makes this list because the 2012 season will be different for Germain Racing. The organization split their funds between Mears’ NASCAR Sprint Cup team and their four NASCAR Camping World Truck teams in the past. In 2012 Germain Racing will dedicate all of its focus to their NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team. This will benefit Mears.

Germain Racing also made the switch from Toyota engines to Ford engines in 2012. The Ford engines will be supplied to Germain Racing from Roush Fenway Racing. With a new Ford engine and more focus on the NASCAR Sprint Cup team, Mears will have a chance to compete in 2012. It may start for him at the Daytona 500.

David Ragan

So ,who was the last driver to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona? David Ragan.

Ragan is on this list is because he is still an unknown driver. NASCAR diehards all know who Ragan is, but the casual fans do not know him. Also, Ragan is no longer driving for one of the top teams in NASCAR. Ragan was let go from Roush Fenway Racing following the 2011 season. Ragan will drive the No. 34 car for Front Row Motorsports in the Daytona 500.

Daytona is one of Ragan’s best tracks. Ragan has started 10 races at Daytona in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series. He has an average finish of 15.2, with three top-5 finishes, four top-10 finishes and one win.

Ragan may no longer be driving for a top team in NASCAR, but he is still a driver to watch at Daytona.

Mike Wallace

Mike Wallace is probably the most unknown Wallace in the family. Most people know Rusty Wallace because of his career in NASCAR and Kenny Wallace because of his career as a reporter on Speed Channel.

Mike Wallace is unknown because he has never had a lot of success in NASCAR and he is not on television much. What Mike Wallace does have going for him is his ability to drive a car at Daytona.

Mike Wallace usually finds himself with inferior equipment at Daytona and in a position where he must qualify to make it into the race. He usually is able to drive his way into the race and if a driver is in it, he or she can win it. I look for Mike Wallace to qualify for the Daytona 500, and he could surprise people once the race begins.

David Gilliland

David Gilliland has been driving in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series for five seasons, yet he is still an unknown driver in the series. This is because Gilliland has never driven for a top team. Gilliland has always been part of “The Field” category.

Daytona is one of Gilliland’s best tracks. Gilliland has started seven races at Daytona in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series, with an average finish of 20.9 with one top-5 finish and two top-10 finishes. Gilliland was also the pole winner for the Daytona 500 in 2007.

Gilliland has a guaranteed starting position for the Daytona 500. That is all a driver needs to have a chance to surprise people at the end of the race.

Landon Cassill

Cassill finds himself in a much different position in 2012 than he had in 2011.

Kurt Busch took over Cassill’s position at Phoenix Racing. Cassill will drive the No. 83 car for BK Racing in 2012. Cassill has a guaranteed starting position in the Daytona 500 and could surprise people if he is able to team up with the right driver at the end of the race. 

Cassill will start No. 22 in the Gatorade Duel race.

Michael Waltrip

OK, I know Michael Waltrip is not an unknown driver in NASCAR, but if he were to win the Daytona 500, it would be unexpected.

Waltrip continues to compete in the Daytona 500 is because it is his best track. Waltrip has won two Daytona 500s. While Waltrip must qualify in order to make the race this Sunday, with his talent and the backing of Michael Waltrip Racing, I do not think that will be a problem for him.

Waltrip could find his way to the front of the pack at the end of the Daytona 500. If he does, fans would never hear the end of it.

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