NASCAR Insider picks Denny Hamlin as one of the favorites to win at Richmond Cup race

Recently, Alex Timms, NASCAR's betting analyst chose Denny Hamlin as one of the top contenders to win at the Cook Out 400 event at Richmond Raceway. #11 Hamlin is currently on his worst seven-race streak since 2013 with an average 23-place finish.

As NASCAR returns after the two-week Paris Olympic hiatus, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Hamlin will be looking to redeem himself for his overwhelming results during the summer. Although Hamlin confirmed his berth in the playoffs with three wins earlier this season, he has only made one top-5 finish in his last seven races.

In a recent episode of Dirty Mo Dough with Steve Letarte, Letarte asked Timms to pick his favorite bet for the Richmond race. Timms said:

"Denny... Denny has the best average finish here in Richmond. Best average finish on short tracks. He won in the spring. Now, the negative is... he's been awful."

"But two weeks off. Yeah, he's on my card for sure. I mean, I don't care he's the favorite. He's on my card for sure."

Moreover, as per NASCAR, #11 Hamlin has 6-1 opening odds to win at the 0.75-mile track on August 11. The odds are the same as his arch-rival Kyle Larson.

---

Denny Hamlin's desire to pull more victories and carve his name in NASCAR's history

In a career span of almost two decades in the Cup Series, Denny Hamlin has garnered 54 wins. The Florida native is 12th place in the all-time Cup Series winner list. His next win would tie him with Rusty Wallace.

Hamlin is considered one of the most dominant drivers in the modern era of NASCAR. As NASCAR inches toward the playoff rounds, veteran Hamlin feels the "sunset clock is ticking" and is fixated on getting more triumphs. Hamlin said (via NASCAR):

"Where I’ve shifted my goals in the final years of my career is to try to get to a big win number, get inside the top 10 of all-time winners. And so that’s the goal that I can achieve, week in, week out, right? Certainly, you always have goals of trying to win a championship and that goes over a long period of time."

"But week to week, right, that’s what fuels me to continue to go to the race track and do this grind every week is to try to keep nailing down victories." Hamlin added.

Moreover, the #11 Toyota driver enters the upcoming Richmond race with five previous victories. His most recent win was the Toyota Owners 400 race earlier this season on March 31.

Currently, Hamlin sits fourth in the overall Cup Series points table. After 22 starts, he has amassed 3 wins, 8 top-5s, and has led 772 laps, the most by any driver in the 2024 season.