NASCAR 2022: Preview, prediction, and betting odds for Cook Out Southern 400 at Darlington Raceway

The Cook Out Southern 400 marks the 27th race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season and the first race of the NASCAR playoffs.

The green flag is set to drop on Sunday, September 4, at 6:00 pm ET at the Darlington Raceway. The 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval features 25 degrees of banking in turns 1 and 2 and 23 degrees of banking in turns 3 and 4. With 3 degrees on the front stretch and 2 degrees on the back stretch, this track is expected to create an exciting start to the Round of 16.

A total of 36 drivers will be contesting over 367 laps at the 1.366-mile-long track in this week’s Cup race. It marks the 73rd race hosted by the Darlington Raceway in the history of the NASCAR Cup Series.

Drivers like Austin Cindric, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, Chase Briscoe, William Byron, Ross Chastain, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, Daniel Suarez, Tyler Reddick, Christopher Bell, Kevin Harvick, and Austin Dillon have managed to qualify for the 16 drivers' field.

Heading to Darlington, Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson has the top betting odds, at +600, to win Sunday’s race, according to DraftKings Sportsbook.

The defending champion of the event, Denny Hamlin, has the second highest betting odds of +600 to win this weekend’s race. He is followed by current points table leader Chase Elliott at +700 odds, Tyler Reddick at +700, and Ross Chastain at +900 in the top-five highest betting odds to win the Cook Out Southern 400.

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Opening betting odds for the 2022 NASCAR Cook Out Southern 400

Here are the odds for all 36 drivers competing at Darlington Raceway:

1. Kyle Larson, +600
2. Denny Hamlin, +600
3. Chase Elliott, +700
4. Tyler Reddick, +700
5. Ross Chastain, +900
6. Kyle Busch, +900
7. Joey Logano, +1000
8. Martin Truex Jr., +1100
9. Kevin Harvick, +1700
10. William Byron, +1800
11. Christopher Bell, +2000
12. Ryan Blaney, +2000
13. Alex Bowman, +3000
14. Daniel Suarez, +4000
15. Austin Dillon, +4500
16. Chase Briscoe, +5000
17. Michael McDowell, +5000
18. Erik Jones, +6000
19. Bubba Wallace, +7000
20. Austin Cindric, +7000
21. Ty Gibbs, +7000
22. Chris Buescher, +8000
23. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., +8000
24. Brad Keselowski, +10000
25. Aric Almirola, +10000
26. Landon Cassill, +15000
27. Justin Haley, +15000
28. Cole Custer, +50000
29. Ty Dillon, +50000
30. Harrison Burton, +50000
31. Daniel Hemric, +50000
32. Cody Ware, +100000
33. B.J. McLeod, +100000
34. Todd Gilliland, +100000
35. J.J. Yeley, +100000
36. Corey Lajoie, +100000

The live telecast of Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 400 can be viewed on USA Network and MRN.