Darlington Odds Set Up End of Winless Streak

Getty Kyle Larson (right) has the best odds to win at Darlington Raceway.

The NASCAR Cup Series drivers take on Darlington Raceway on May 14 while celebrating racing history. The initial odds for this race set up the end of a winless streak for one particular driver.

According to BetMGM, Kyle Larson has the best odds to win at The Lady in Black. He enters the weekend at +500 as he tries to win at Darlington for the first time in a national NASCAR series. Larson is just ahead of Denny Hamlin (+600), who has four wins at the South Carolina track.

The Toyota and Chevrolet drivers dominate the top end of BetMGM’s odds with Martin Truex Jr. (+700), Tyler Reddick (+900), William Byron (+1,000), and Kyle Busch (+1,000).

Defending Goodyear 400 winner Joey Logano is the first Ford representative. He sits at +1,100 and is in a tie with Christopher Bell and Ross Chastain. Kevin Harvick is just behind at +1,400 as he sits in a tie with Chase Elliott.

Larson Has Come Close To a Darlington Win

GettyKyle Larson (right) tried a wall ride at Darlington Raceway.

The driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro has been competitive at Darlington Raceway throughout his time in the NASCAR Cup Series. His seven top-10 finishes in 10 starts are fitting examples.

The trips to Darlington in 2022 were not kind to Larson. An engine issue sent him and his Tim Richmond throwback to the garage early in the Goodyear 400 and then he finished 12th in the Southern 500 after spinning in the second stage.

Larson had three straight brushes with Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway. He finished second in three straight events between 2019 and 2021, which includes a Southern 500 when he tried to ride the wall while battling Hamlin on the last lap.

Larson has spoken openly about his goal of winning at Darlington Raceway and finally conquering one of NASCAR’s hardest tracks. It is the next one on his list after he finally won at Martinsville Speedway. Whether he achieves remains to be seen, but the odds set up a big weekend.

Hendrick Motorsports Has Dealt With a Long Winless Streak

GettyJimmie Johnson celebrates a win at Darlington Raceway.

There are several drivers that have achieved success at Darlington Raceway in the Cup Series. Many are active still. This list includes Logano, Brad Keselowski, Harvick, Hamlin, Erik Jones, and Truex.

The current Hendrick Motorsports drivers are not on this list. None have won races at Darlington in the Cup Series. In fact, the organization has gone winless at the track for more than 10 years despite having some of the best cars in the field.

The last time a Hendrick Motorsports driver at Darlington was on May 12, 2012. Jimmie Johnson won the Southern 500 after leading 134 laps. This marked his third win at The Lady in Black, but it was his first since the 2004 season.

Johnson was the last Hendrick Motorsports driver to win at Darlington Raceway, but he was not alone. Multiple others celebrated in Victory Lane, including Tim Richmond, Jeff Gordon, Ricky Rudd, and Terry Labonte.

Gordon, in particular, celebrated seven wins at Darlington Raceway during his Hall of Fame career. This is the third-most all-time behind David Pearson (10 wins) and Dale Earnhardt (nine wins).