Cook Out Southern 500- 9/6/20 Nascar Cup Series Picks, Odds, and Prediction

Kevin Harvick +300- Harvick once again heads into another race on the 2020 schedule as the favorite. Kevin will begin the long journey of the Southern 500 from the 8th position. Kevin has been the best at Darlington of the active drivers over the last 5 races held here, with an average driver rating of 112.8. Since 2017, Harvick has finished in the top 10 in all 5 races, including 4 top 5s and 1 victory. Harvick should be the class of the field, so give him a look on Sunday.

Denny Hamlin +310- Hamlin won the most recent race at Darlington, held back in May. Hamlin has close numbers to Harvick over the last 5 races at Darlington with an average driver rating of 104.3. Denny was caught up in a crash not of his doing in the 2019 race with 90 laps to go, and that brought his average down a few points. Besides the one blemish, Denny has 3 top 5 finishes over the last 5 races at Darlington including 2 victories. I think Denny will be in contention once again Sunday evening, so give him some consideration.

Chase Elliott +1200- No one will forget the last race at Darlington when Kyle Busch put Chase into the wall, and the gesture from Chase that followed. No doubt Chase hasn’t looked as great on paper at Darlington, but he likes Darlington and runs great here when no issues arise. Chase has 4 top 10s over the last 6 races at Darlington, including 2 top 5s. Chase will start the Southern 500 from the pole position, so he will be at an advantage early.

Erik Jones +2400- Erik will have quite a bit of work to do to get to the front on Sunday night, as he will be starting from the 30th position. Erik is my long shot selection for the Southern 500, and with patience should make his way to the top 10 by the final stage. Over the last 5 races at Darlington, Erik has 3rd best average driver rating of 106.6, as well as the 2nd best average finish of 5.4. Jones has not finished outside of the top 10 in his career here at Darlington, and if he can avoid trouble should be in contention on Sunday evening.