Betting on Who Wins the NASCAR Darlington 400 in 2020 – Odds for Bush, Hamlin, and More

That scent of burning rubber on a warm summer’s day. The glint of the cars that whizz around the track as you take a cold sip of beer. The excitement, the glory, the… anticipation. 

It might be a little while before fans can watch the action from the stands, sure, but let’s be positive and focus on the good news — NASCAR is back. And that means that betting on NASCAR is back on, too, which kicks off with the Darlington 400 on Sunday, May 17. 

Our recommended NASCAR betting sites have rolled out their odds for the Darlington 400 this weekend, and I’ll be sharing some of these with you today. I’ll also be giving you my pick for the big race — one that has not been on the calendar since 2004 when it was known as the Carolina Dodge Dealer 400.

This will be the first of three events scheduled for Darlington in 2020, with a second Cup Series race slated for Tuesday, May 19, under the lights. Then, we have the Coca-Cola 600 Memorial Day weekend on May 24 to look forward to.

Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, and Martin Truex Jr. are the four favorites to take the win. Busch and Hamlin will likely see a lot of money change hands with punters on account of their solid history on this track.

As well as the odds to win the Darlington 400, I have some top-three finish odds for you to check out below that could help with betting on who wins the NASCAR Darlington 400 in 2020. Let’s start with the big ones first!

The odds above come courtesy of BetOnline and are accurate at the time of writing.

So how about these odds? Personally, I expected Hamlin (+700) to be the favorite ahead of the showdown at “The Lady in Black” and wouldn’t be surprised to see him leapfrog Busch (+600) ahead of Sunday. Especially since both guys are tied at 111 points in the current NASCAR Cup Series standings.

Hamlin’s record at this track gives him a little edge over Busch, having won here in 2010 and 2017. Busch took the checkered flag just once, back in 2008. Hamlin also has seven top-five finishes to Busch’s four.

That said, Busch has been pretty consistent in Darlington in his last eight starts, finishing outside the top ten just once (back in 2016). Hamlin finished 29^th in 2019 and 10^th in 2018 at the “Track Too Tough to Tame.”

There is no doubt that these two deserve the lion’s share of the attention ahead of this race, but given the current state of play, is consistency something to bank on right now?

To briefly move away from the Darlington 400 winner’s odds, I think the market below could be interesting. There is one driver, in particular, that could be a solid bet in this market.

So, let’s talk about Brad Keselowski for a minute.

Keselowski’s odds to win the 2020 Darlington 400 are a solid +1000. Certainly worth a shot, in my opinion. But Keselowski’s odds to finish in the top three are particularly eye-catching at +275.

The No. 2 Ford Mustang will be raring to go this weekend, and while I see the Team Penske star having a great chance of winning the race, I think he falls just short of the mark. A top-three finish is very attainable, however. 

Keselowski won at Darlington in 2018 and finished fifth a year later. In terms of consistency, he is up there with the best on the grid over his last six starts. In 2015, for example, he led for 196 laps before finishing 2^nd. Overall, he has top-five finishes in four races at the legendary Carolina track.

Denny Hamlin’s career average finishing position is 7.79 at Darlington. This puts him above any other active driver with at least ten races. He has two wins on this track (2010 and 2018) and will be out to make it three in eleven starts on Sunday.

Hamlin’s odds to win the Darlington 400 are +700, which are pretty good, all things considered. If the Joe Gibbs Racing standout is to make a big impression this season, there is no better track to get his point across.

Like other NASCAR fans that are restricted to watching the action at Darlington from home this weekend, I’m happy just to have the opportunity to watch some racing.

On Sunday, the boys will be back to business in what will be the first Darlington 400 since Jimmie Johnson crossed the finish line first in 2004. How crazy would it be to see Johnson do it again, in his final season? The odds are there if you fancy a wild bet.

Personally, I see Denny Hamlin taking his third victory at the “Track Too Tough to Tame” this Sunday. But Brad Keselowski could be a good shout to finish in the top three.

Don’t forget that we have three events coming up soon, which includes Sunday’s race. We have another Cup Series race here on Tuesday, May 19, as well as a monstrous Coca-Cola 600 Memorial Day weekend that concludes on May 24. You can get all the latest NASCAR odds, bets, picks, and news by following the NASCAR section of our blog.

You might also like to read my colleague’s 2020 guide to betting on NASCAR.

Enjoy the races!