Kyle Larson won both short-track races on pavement this season, but for him to make it three in a row, he’ll likely need to get past Martin Truex Jr. on Sunday at Richmond Raceway (3 p.m. ET, USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). That’s because Truex is carrying momentum to a race track where he and his team have a strong history.
Joe Gibbs Racing leads all organizations with 18 wins at Richmond, and in the last nine races at the 0.75-mile oval, Truex has three wins among his eight top-10 finishes. Plus, Truex has gained 51 points on William Byron in the standings during the last two races and now has a 30-point lead.
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Larson did win here earlier in the season, to go along with his other short-track victory at Martinsville Speedway. Joey Logano is the only other driver besides Larson who has enjoyed a top-10 finish in both short-track races this season. Sunday figures to be another hotly-contested race in the NASCAR Cup Series.
OTHERS TO WATCH
WILLIAM BYRON: Byron has led 239 laps over the course of the past three Richmond races, which is the most among active drivers during that span.
DENNY HAMLIN: Hamlin is coming off his dramatic 50th Cup win last week at Pocono Raceway. Plus, he has four career victories at Richmond.
KEVIN HARVICK: Harvick won here last year for Stewart-Haas Racing, the most recent of his 60 Cup Series victories, and he has four career Richmond wins.
KYLE BUSCH: He leads active drivers with six victories at Richmond and has completed all but one lap in his 35 Cup races at Richmond (14,028 of 14,029 laps in the 35 races).
CHRISTOPHER BELL: The driver of the No. 20 Toyota leads active drivers with an average finish of 5.67 at Richmond (for drivers with three or more starts).
Projections as of Wednesday, July 26.
RACING INSIGHTS’ PROJECTIONS FOR THE COOK OUT 400
Racing Insights’ advanced statistical formula includes current track, current track type, recent performance, team data and pit-crew data to arrive at a projected winner and full race results.
| Finish | Car Number | Driver |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 2 | 24 | William Byron |
| 3 | 5 | Kyle Larson |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick |
| 6 | 9 | Chase Elliott |
| 7 | 20 | Christopher Bell |
| 8 | 22 | Joey Logano |
| 9 | 12 | Ryan Blaney |
| 10 | 1 | Ross Chastain |
| 11 | 6 | Brad Keselowski |
| 12 | 8 | Kyle Busch |
| 13 | 17 | Chris Buescher |
| 14 | 23 | Bubba Wallace |
| 15 | 14 | Chase Briscoe |
| 16 | 45 | Tyler Reddick |
| 17 | 10 | Aric Almirola |
| 18 | 48 | Alex Bowman |
| 19 | 99 | Daniel Suárez |
| 20 | 54 | Ty Gibbs |
| 21 | 41 | Ryan Preece |
| 22 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger |
| 23 | 3 | Austin Dillon |
| 24 | 43 | Erik Jones |
| 25 | 34 | Michael McDowell |
| 26 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 27 | 2 | Austin Cindric |
| 28 | 38 | Todd Gilliland |
| 29 | 21 | Harrison Burton |
| 30 | 31 | Justin Haley |
| 31 | 7 | Corey LaJoie |
| 32 | 77 | Ty Dillon |
| 33 | 42 | Noah Gragson |
| 34 | 51 | Ryan Newman |
| 35 | 15 | J.J. Yeley |
| 36 | 78 | BJ McLeod |