Pearce Dietrich gives his picks and ranks his top drivers for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Richmond.

The NASCAR season is revving up and DraftKings is shifting into high gear with an assortment of fantasy NASCAR contests. Dive into the best fantasy racing picks for the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Richmond.

For NASCAR insight and quick DFS help, follow Pearce Dietrich (@Race4thePrize) on Twitter.

Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $222K Richmond Drive [$50K to 1st] (Cup)

Fantasy NASCAR Driver Rankings: Cook Out 400 at Richmond

1. Denny Hamlin ($11,000) — The JGR Toyotas have been strong at Richmond in the Gen-7 package, and Hamlin has been the strongest of the bunch. This is his home track. Hamlin has two wins in six races here and, in other Virginia events, has two runner-up finishes and a fourth-place result.

2. Chase Briscoe ($9,500) — The No. 19 JGR Toyota has always been dominant at Richmond and looked strong at Iowa, where Briscoe finished runner-up.

3. Christopher Bell ($10,800) — JGR dominates Richmond across all series. Bell was a force in Xfinity and is great in Cup, but his teammates have been better. Saturday night could be his breakout, or it could be another Hamlin win or Briscoe breakthrough in the always-strong No. 19 Toyota.

4. Brad Keselowski ($9,200) — Iowa is comparable to Richmond, and Keselowski was fast there. Before the Stage 3 wreck-fest, Iowa featured long green-flag runs — 138 consecutive laps other than the Stage 1 break. Keselowski had the best car during that stretch.

5. Kyle Larson ($10,500) — Buy low. Larson’s stock has not bottomed out — and it won’t. He can only fall so far, and his “low” is still better than the best from half the field. Yung Money could start dominating any day now. He scored 57 combined fast-lap and lap-led points at Richmond in spring 2024 and 38 points in spring 2023.

6. William Byron ($10,400) — Which matters more: Richmond history or the 2025 Iowa result? Richmond hasn’t been kind to Byron (two top-10s in six Gen-7 races), but he stretched fuel and won at Iowa.

7. Carson Hocevar ($7,200) — This isn’t a comfortable pick, but it’s the ultimate GPP play. Hocevar is fast and aggressive — capable of blowing up a lineup or taking down a tournament. As a rookie, he scored a top-10 at Richmond last fall and another at Iowa several weeks ago.

8. Ryan Blaney ($10,200) — His Richmond finishes haven’t been great, but Blaney has shown speed. He’s been better at Iowa, so Richmond success should come. The problem is that half the field has unloaded top-five cars at Richmond in the Gen-7 era. It’s easy to fall out of the top 10.

9. Chase Elliott ($10,000) — Elliott is hard to roster in NASCAR DFS. He’s having a Matt Kenseth-type season — consistent top-10s are great in real life, but his salary demands fast laps and laps led. He finishes up front but is rarely in front.

10. Alex Bowman ($7,800) — The often-overlooked odd man out. Bowman is Hendrick’s dark horse. He’s never high on the fantasy radar. He’s not elite and doesn’t scream value — but that doesn’t matter. Picks don’t need to be flashy; they need to be optimal. Bowman has appeared in eight optimal DraftKings Fantasy NASCAR lineups in 2025.

11. Bubba Wallace ($7,500) — Low salary for a driver who finished fourth at Richmond last fall and sixth at Iowa. At under $8K, a top-10 finish could make him an optimal DraftKings play.

12. Tyler Reddick ($8,700) — This has been a disappointing season for Reddick. At times, teammate Bubba Wallace has been the lead driver. Richmond is a tough place for Reddick to get back on track.

13. John Hunter Nemechek ($6,200) — The Legacy Motor Club No. 42 Toyota is coming around. The team made offseason changes and has steadily improved in 2025. Nemechek finished 15th at Iowa and recorded a 13.3 wARP (weighted average running position).

14. Austin Dillon ($7,300) — Don’t let the finish of last fall’s Richmond race fool you. Dillon got an iRacing-style win, turning two cars on the final lap to take the checkered flag. RCR hasn’t exactly been the cleanest lately. Before that controversial ending, Dillon had speed — and he also earned a top-10 at Iowa.

15. Jesse Love ($5,200) — This is the young RCR driver’s big shot. Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon may not be in RCR Cup cars much longer. Austin Hill was once the future star of the organization, but his shine has faded due to recent on-track transgressions. A top-20 from Love would start the promotion conversation.