Cook Out Southern 500 Odds, Predictions And Picks

• The NASCAR Playoff Chase begins with Darlington on the NASCAR schedule as the Cook Out Southern 500 is set to run on Sunday, September 4th, 2022
• Several contenders include Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, and maybe Martin Truex Jr. too.
• Below are the Cook Out Southern 500 betting trends and odds ahead of Sunday evening’s race

NASCAR heads down to Darlington for race number 27 of the 2022 season. The Darlington Raceway is quite the 1.366-mile track. The course lists Kyle Larson as a favorite in the Cook Out Southern 500 odds. Can a Ford or even a Toyota toss steal the win?

This is a week after the Coke Zero Sugar 400, where Auston Dillon punched his way into the playoffs with a victory. That saved one driver and knocked out Martin Truex Jr.

Here are the Cook Out Southern 500 odds.

Cook Out Southern 500 Odds

Odds as of August 31st, get the best ESPN BET promo code for new users today.

NASCAR drivers will run on the 1.366-mile, 115-115-137 stage lap setup when the flag drops for the Sunday evening race beginning around 6:00 pm ET on USA Network.

Kyle Larson Has Been Very Fast at Darlington

So, Kyle Larson has been very fast at Darlington and has led among the most laps (17.4%). Only Martin Truex Jr. has a higher percentage of laps led at 22.3% over the past three seasons. The difference this year at Darlington is that the Hendrick Motorsports Racing driver may have his best shot at winning yet. In his last four races on the “track too tough to tame”, Larson has three top five results.

Kyle Larson's low downforce non-DNF finishes at Darlington

3
14
3
2
2

— Nick Giffen (@RotoDoc) August 30, 2022

Now, Larson also stands as the favorite at Caesars (+550). Chase Elliott (+650) is listed at Caesars the same along with Denny Hamlin. The Caesars Sportsbook odds feature some nice numbers with Austin Dillon (+5000) and Erik Jones (+7000).

Who wins the Labor Day weekend race at Darlington? Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson rank up there but Hamlin won last year. Larson can easily lead a lot of laps but can he hold off the field at the end?

Cook Out Southern 500 Recent Winners

This race is 367 laps (500 miles) in total but has not seen overtime since 2014.

The Playoff Chase Begins

Sports bettors not quite as hot on Chase Elliott in some places (+800) compared to Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin this week. The Chevy driver is the favorite with the NASCAR Cup Series odds. Elliott does not have the results the Toyotas have here. Does the Next-Gen car change that at all? The last time the No. 9 car took home a Fall top-10 was 2018 (5th).

Chase Elliott (blue) vs Ryan Blaney (orange) this spring at Darlington

Elliott started in the back and drove up thru the field.

Blaney was damaged in the lap 260 "Big One" pic.twitter.com/BeUf3kKHTk

— Ryan (@ifantasyrace) August 30, 2022

History was unkind to Elliott but in the Spring, his car was maybe the best it has been (5th – started 34th). The Hendrick Motorsports driver has 40 playoff points as well. That is a 15 point lead over Joey Logano, 20 over Chastain, 21 over Larson, and 27 over Hamlin.

Cook Out Southern 500 Predictions & Picks

The weather could be interesting Sunday evening. Hopefully it is not a rain delayed mess like at Daytona.

Next-Gen racing has taught some lessons with “low downforce racing”. Expect double-digit cautions and more intensity late.

Finally, for top-three picks, watch for guys like Austin Dillon who could sneak up late. He did last week at Daytona then nudged his way to the postseason. Do not sleep on drivers like Erik Jones or Martin Truex Jr.

Here are our best bets:

• Top Pick: Denny Hamlin to Win (+700 – Barstool)
• Other Contenders: Chase Elliott (+800), Kevin Harvick (+1600), Austin Dillon (+5000), Erik Jones (+7000 – Caesars)