NASCAR heads to the only track that’s been on the schedule continuously since 1948, Martinsville Speedway. The .526-mile “Paperclip” or “Half Mile of Mayhem” has a long, storied history in the series. Let’s take a look at this week’s NASCAR picks, odds, and best bets for the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway.
Martinsville is an important track on the schedule; not only do they race there this weekend. They’ll return Sunday, October 26th, to finish deciding the four drivers who’ll race for the 2025 championship at Phoenix Raceway. What the teams and drivers learn this weekend could be the difference in becoming a champion, or not.
Kyle Larson finally broke through and picked up his first win of the 2025 season last week at Homestead, winning two of the three races on the weekend. Ryan Blaney had the best car on the day, and for the second time in three weeks, his engine gave way before the day was over. Nonetheless, he’s the favorite this week at Martinsville.
NASCAR Picks: Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway Odds and Best Bets
Ryan Blaney +450
Kyle Larson +500
Denny Hamlin +750
William Byron +800
Joey Logano +900
Chase Elliott +900
Christopher Bell +1200
Chase Briscoe +1400
Alex Bowman +2200
Bubba Wallace +2500
Brad Keselowski +2800
Ross Chastain +2800
Ryan Preece +3000
Tyler Reddick +3000
Josh Berry +3000
Austin Cindric +3500
Kyle Busch +3500
Chris Buescher +4000
Ty Gibbs +5500
Noah Gragson +6000
Carson Hocevar +8000
Daniel Suarez +8000
Austin Dillion +14000
Erik Jones +25000
AJ Allmendinger +25000
Michael McDowell 28000
Shane Van Gisbergen +28000
Cole Custer +28000
Justin Haley +34000
Zane Smith +34000
Ricky Stenhouse Jr +39000
John Hunter Nemechek +39000
Todd Gilliland +39000
Riley Herbst +39000
Burt Myers +39000
Ty Dillion +50000
Cody Ware +50000
Casey Mears +50000
NASCAR Picks: Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway Odds and Best Bets
Alex Bowman Top 10 (+120)
This is the gift that just keeps on giving. Once again, we get Alex Bowman as at plus money for a top 10 finish. He’s finished in the top 10 in five of the six races this season, Atlanta being the only exception. He’s coming off winning the pole and leading in the closing laps last week at Homestead and feeling good. Bowman has finished inside the top 13 in four of the last six at Martinsville and seven of the last nine, including a win.
Ross Chastain Over Kyle Busch (-125)
This matchup is really only a contest in name only. Not only does Ross Chastain dominate Kyle Busch at Martinsville it’s not even close. Ross is six for six beating Kyle in the NextGen era at the track. He’s beat him by an average of 11.5 positions across those six races.
Busch’s best finish here (16) is worse than Chastain’s worst finish (14) in this version of the car. Twice in those six races, Ross won the battle by 20 positions, including in the fall race last time they were here. Very simply, the RCR short track package has not been good, and Chastain is solid at this track. It’s an easy Watermelon man in this matchup for me.
Austin Cindric Top 5 (+600)
I’m feeling the Austin Cindric love this week. I’ve been very impressed with how the fourth-year driver is seemingly beginning to reach the edge of his potential in 2025. The 2022 Daytona 500 champion has two top tens on the season but has looked the part. Per NASCAR Insights, he’s second in laps led this season only to teammate Joey Logano with 159 laps led on the season.
Laps led in 2025 (through 6 races) pic.twitter.com/NBl0z08Z4M
— NASCAR Insights (@NASCARInsights) March 25, 2025
Here at Martinsville, in the six NextGen races, Cindric has finished top 11 in half of them. Including when he started shotgun on the field in the fall and drove to a fourth-place finish. According to IFantasyRace.com, Cindric was the fifth fastest car on the track for the last quarter of the race. I’m on Cindric big with my car lift bet on the NASCAR Gambling Podcast and betting his outright at 35/1.
Chase Elliott to Win (+900)
This is a great number on Elliott, and I’d snag it earlier in the week as it likely won’t stay here. This is a track Elliott loves, he’s led more laps here (515) in the NextGen car than anyone else. In 2024, he scored finishes of third in the spring race and followed it up with a second place run in the fall race.
Elliott dominated the Clash at Bowman Gray to open the season. While that’s not a full race and can’t be 100% looked at as a comparison. There are certainly things you can take from it. That’s the closest shape and style we’ve been on this season, and add in there this is one of his best tracks. It’s a winning combination for Elliott this week.
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