Daytona 500 2012: Long Shots with Best Chance of Winning Super Bowl of NASCAR

After one of the most exciting NASCAR seasons in recent memory, the circuit will try to back it up with another tremendous year of racing. As always it starts with the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race of them all, on Sunday.

Here are three dark horse contenders with the best chance of tasting Daytona glory.

Joey Logano (30:1)

Logano entered NASCAR with a lot of hype because he was taking over the No. 20 car from Tony Stewart. While he's had some memorable moments, including a win at Loudon, his career hasn't matched the sky-high expectations so far.

I have a feeling that's going to change in 2012. It's his fourth season at the Sprint Cup level, which means he should have a pretty good grip on what it takes to be a contender. Now that he has ample experience under his belt, he's ready to take the next step.

He had a good showing in the Budweiser Shootout, spending a good portion of the race inside the top five and even had the lead for a short time. A wreck eventually ended his day. He proved a Daytona victory is certainly within reason, and would be a great start to a breakout season.

Ryan Newman (35:1)

It was surprising to see Newman, a former winner of the Great American Race, with the same odds as drivers like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Paul Menard. That's especially true given the fact is coming off a solid 10th place finish in the standings last season.

Sunday will be Newman's 11th Daytona 500, so he clearly understands exactly what it takes to win the season opener. There's no secrets he doesn't know or tricks he hasn't tried. He's a wily veteran who will do whatever it takes to emerge victorious.

He also has Stewart on his side. The defending champion is one of the race favorites. If the teammates are both in contention near the end, they will be able to work together to get to the front as has become commonplace at Daytona. That makes Newman a strong contender.

Juan Pablo Montoya (35:1)

Love him or hate him, nobody in NASCAR wants to win more than Montoya. He's the ultimate competitor and is willing to do whatever it takes to end up in victory lane, which has rubbed many of his fellow drivers the wrong way.

Montoya has two top-10 finishes in five Daytona 500 starts. That includes finishing sixth in last year's race. So even though he tends to excel at road races, it's clear he is still a threat at a traditional race like the one on Sunday.

He's probably the biggest wild card in the entire race. There's a chance he could win it and there's a chance he could get in a first-lap crash because he was being overaggressive. Based on his 2011 result, he's definitely worth watching.