Denny Hamlin raised the ire of fans and Kyle Larson for his driving standards en route to claiming the Pocono 400 under a caution flag. Hamlin and Larson are among the betting favorites with past and recent success at Richmond heading into the Cook Out 400 this weekend – NASCAR’s second trip to America’s Premier Short Track.
BangtheBook goes inside the stats and recent performances at Richmond – both this season and in recent history – to find the best bets for the Cook Out 400 this weekend.
Check out the full Cook Out 400 odds over on Bookmaker
Previous and Recent Success at Richmond
Six previous winners from Richmond’s summer race history – which dates back to 1958 – are confirmed to race this weekend and are all strong candidates for top-five and top-ten finish prop betting lines.
Hendrick Motorsports Kyle Larson (+500) won the Spring race at Richmond, one of three wins and ten top-ten finishes this season, and won the 2017 Summer race. Since February 2020, Larson has had three top-ten finishes in five races at Richmond.
Denny Hamlin (2009, 2010, 2016) and Kevin Harvick (2006, 2011, 2022) each have three career wins at the Richmond Summer race.
Hamlin (+650) has one race win and four top-five finishes at Richmond in the last six races, while Harvick (+750) has one race win, three top-five, and five top-ten finishes, including finishing fifth at Richmond in the Spring.
While a long shot in 2023, RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski (+2500) has two career wins in the Richmond Summer race (2014, 2020). Keselowski has two top-ten finishes in the last six races at Richmond and eight top-ten finishes this season.
Kyle Busch (priced at +850 over at BetOnline) won the Summer Richmond stop in 2018 and finished second at 2023’s Spring stop in Richmond. Busch has five top-ten finishes in the last six races at Richmond and is poised to break into the top five.
Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr.
Current NASCAR Cup Series Drivers Championship leader Martin Truex Jr. (+400) is driving with the best form of his long career and is the betting favorite for the Cook Out 400. Truex Jr. has provided consistent results and betting wins regularly, earning him this spotlight.
Truex Jr. finished third at Pocono, his fifth top-three and sixth top-five finish in the last eight races. On the season, Truex Jr. has three race wins, eight top-five, and 11 top-ten finishes. While not an official race, Truex Jr. also won the preseason short track shootout Clash at the Coliseum.
Truex Jr. has two Summer race wins at Richmond (2019, 2021) and has four top-five and five top-ten finishes in the last six races at Richmond. The only finish at Richmond outside the top ten was at the 2023 Spring Race, where he finished 11th.
BangtheBooks Favored Cook Out 400 Contenders and Pick
Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, and Denny Hamlin are among BangtheBook’s favored contenders to win or finish in the top five and top ten at the Cook Out 400.
Team Penske’s Joey Logano (+1200) has one race win, six top-five, and ten top-ten finishes this season, including seventh in the Spring at Richmond. However, Logano’s recent form on Richmond’s short track has him among our favorites: Logano has three top-five and five top-ten finishes in the last six races at Richmond.
However, BangtheBook’s NASCAR Betting Pick is to take Christopher Bell (+750) to win the Summer Race at Richmond. Bell has four top-five and five top-ten finishes in the last six races at Richmond, including finishing fourth in the Spring, one of eleven top-ten finishes this season.
