2024 Daytona 500 props, odds, expert picks, start time, prediction: Back Christopher Bell in NASCAR best bets

Denny Hamlin is one of four drivers that have won the Daytona 500 three times, with only Richard Petty (seven) and Cale Yarborough (four) capturing more checkered flags in the race. Hamlin will try to break the tie and pull even with Yarborough when he participates in the 2024 Daytona 500 on Monday as the NASCAR Cup Series season commences at Daytona International Speedway. The 43-year-old, who won the "Great American Race" for the first time in 2016, became the fourth driver to earn back-to-back trips to Victory Lane as he accomplished the feat in 2019 and 2020. Hamlin came up short in his bid for a third consecutive Daytona 500 win after he was fifth in 2021 for his eighth career top-five finish in the race.

The 2024 Daytona 500 is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET on Monday after the race was postponed a day due to weather. Hamlin is +1000, while Brad Keselowski is the +950 favorite (risk $100 to win $950) in the latest 2024 Daytona 500 odds. Other 2024 NASCAR at Daytona contenders include Kyle Busch (+1000), reigning Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney (+1100) and two-time series champ Joey Logano (+1200). Before making any Daytona 500 picks or predictions, you need to see what elite expert auto racing handicappers Phil Bobbitt and Steve Greco have to say.

Bobbitt and Greco built a predictive engine that consistently beats the books. They find huge value and aren't afraid of volume. Over the past three years, their followers are up more than $24,500 on $100 plays.

Last season, they called +4000 longshot Michael McDowell winning the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard and Ryan Blaney to win the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at +3000. The duo began 2024 by calling Hamlin to win the Clash at the Coliseum at +1100 and hit on three of its four top-five wagers. Anyone following Bobbitt and Greco has seen some huge returns.

Now, Bobbitt and Greco have analyzed the field and odds for Monday's NASCAR at the Daytona 2024 race. They're sharing their best bets at SportsLine.

2024 Daytona 500 expert picks

One of Bobbitt and Greco's top NASCAR bets: They are backing Christopher Bell, even though he's a longshot at +2200 in the latest 2024 Daytona 500 odds. After three unimpressive performances in the "Great American Race" that saw him finish 16th or worse, the 29-year-old native of Oklahoma began last season with a third-place result at Daytona International Speedway.

Bell performed well at the track during his time in the Xfinity Series, posting two third-place finishes and a pair of sixth-places in his final four starts after crashing out in his series debut there in 2018. He recorded only two top-fives and seven top-10s as a Cup Series rookie in 2020 but has been one of the strongest drivers over the last three years, posting six victories, 29 top-fives and 55 top-10s. Last season, Bell was tied for second with 19 top-10s and fifth with 10 top-fives. See what other NASCAR picks they like at SportsLine.

How to make 2024 Daytona 500 predictions

Bobbitt and Greco have also identified nine other huge NASCAR longshots they love to win it all. They're all going off at 20-1 or higher, so anyone who backs these drivers could hit it big. You can only see who they are here.

2024 Daytona 500 odds

See full NASCAR at Daytona picks at SportsLine
Brad Keselowski 19-2
Kyle Busch 10-1
Denny Hamlin 10-1
Ryan Blaney 11-1
Joey Logano 12-1
Chase Elliott 14-1
Chris Buescher 15-1
Kyle Larson 15-1
William Byron 16-1
Bubba Wallace 20-1
Christopher Bell 22-1
Ty Gibbs 25-1
Martin Truex Jr. 25-1
Ross Chastain 28-1
Austin Cindric 28-1
Austin Dillon 28-1
Erik Jones 28-1
Alex Bowman 30-1
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 30-1
Tyler Reddick 30-1
Chase Briscoe 35-1
Michael McDowell 40-1
Josh Berry 40-1
Ryan Preece 45-1
Daniel Suarez 50-1
Harrison Burton 60-1
Justin Haley 60-1
Corey Lajoie 60-1
Jimmie Johnson 60-1
Noah Gragson 60-1
John Hunter Nemechek 60-1
Carson Hocevar 65-1
AJ Allmendinger 65-1
Todd Gilliland 70-1
David Ragan 75-1
Zane Smith 75-1
Riley Herbst 85-1
Daniel Hemric 90-1
Anthony Alfredo 150-1
Kaz Grala 150-1
BJ McLeod 250-1