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NASCAR Live Race Updates: Cook Out 400 at Martinsville

Toby Christie|
Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Welcome to the Racing America On SI Live Race Updates page for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway.

Be sure to refresh this post throughout Sunday's race, as the Live Race Updates story will be updated with the biggest moments from the 400-lap race including lead changes, crash replays, the winner of the race, finishing results, and more.

  1. Stage 3 Updates
  2. Stage 2 Updates
  3. Stage 1 Updates
  4. Pre-Race Updates

Stage 3 Updates

Denny Hamlin wins the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway, his 55th victory in the NASCAR Cup Series. Christopher Bell finished second, with Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson finishing inside the top-five.

Pos

Car

Driver

Diff

1

11

Denny Hamlin

--

2

20

Christopher Bell

4.617

3

23

Bubba Wallace

5.211

4

9

Chase Elliott

6.343

5

5

Kyle Larson

6.949

6

1

Ross Chastain

8.401

7

60

Ryan Preece

8.862

8

22

Joey Logano

10.293

9

19

Chase Briscoe

10.505

10

34

Todd Gilliland

11.014

Lap 380: Hamlin Extends His Lead

With just 20 laps remaining in the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville, Denny Hamlin has extended his lead over teammate Christopher Bell to 1.50 seconds. With only a couple of laps remaining, there is really only one thing that could stop the No. 11 (a caution).

Lap 350: Hamlin Holds Half-Second Lead

As we are down to just 50 laps left in the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway, Denny Hamlin continues to pace the field in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Hamlin leads Christopher Bell by half a second, and Bell is followed by Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece, Chase Briscoe, Todd Gilliland, and Ryan Blaney.

Lap 328: Hamlin Clears Bell for Lead

After a hard fought few laps following the Lap 325 restart, Denny Hamlin has officially cemented his status as the race leader as he has cleared Christopher Bell.

Bell actually led Lap 326 as the two drivers were side-by-side for several laps.

Lap 325: Back to Green, Hamlin Crosses 200 Laps Led

Denny Hamlin brings the field back to the green flag on Lap 325, and as he crossed the finish line, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota surpassed 200 laps led in the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville.

Christopher Bell, who restarted alongside Hamlin, has taken the fight to Hamlin though.

Lap 317: We've Reached Double-Digit Cautions As Briscoe Spins Logano

Joey Logano has yet to score a top-10 finish this season heading into the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway, and there's a chance it doesn't happen again with a spin under 100 laps left in Sunday's race.

Logano received contact from Chase Briscoe, which sent Logano spinning from the seventh position.

We've reached 10 cautions on the day, and with this latest one John Hunter Nemechek will get the free pass.

Lap 309: Kyle Larson Stacks Up Field; Buescher, Gragson Crash

We are back under caution again because as the old saying goes, cautions breed cautions. On Lap 309, Kyle Larson got into the wall on the exit of Turn 2, which stacked up the field behind him. The accordion went back to where Chris Buescher and Noah Gragson were running, and both drivers were swept up in an incident.

After the incident, Buescher side-swiped Gragson under caution out of frustration.

Lap 298: Ty Gibbs Gets Spun by Tyler Reddick, Zane Smith Collects Damage

One of the best runs of what has been a frustrating 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season for Ty Gibbs hit a bit of a snag on Lap 298 as he was spun after contact from Tyler Reddick in Turn 2.

As Gibbs spun, Zane Smith had nowhere to go, and collided to cause damage to his No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang Dark Horse.

Gibbs was very upset on his radio and let out expletives in regard to Reddick.

Lap 297: Back to Green

Denny Hamlin launches well from the inside line, and he is out front by himself in the lead. Christopher Bell, who chose to start behind Hamlin, instead of beside him, was able to get past Bubba Wallace for the runner-up spot as Wallace struggled to get traction in the top lane.

Lap 279: Denny Hamlin Wins Race Off Pit Road; Bell Moves Up to Second

Denny Hamlin will continue to lead the Cook Out 400 when the race goes back to green as he again won the race off of pit road. However, he'll have a new challenger as Christopher Bell jumped from fourth to second during this round of pit stops.

Bubba Wallace will restart from the third position, while Chase Elliott dropped from second to fourth on pit road with a sluggish 11.7-second pit stop.

Lap 274: Shane van Gisbergen Spins After Losing Right Rear Wheel

Trouble for NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year contender Shane van Gisbergen, who went for a spin in Turn 4 on Lap 274. The cause of the spin was a detached right rear wheel for SVG, who had just pitted right before the detached wheel.

The detached wheel will result in a two-lap penalty for the Trackhouse Racing driver, and two of his pit crew members are expected to be suspended for two races when the post-Martinsville penalty report is dropped on Tuesday.

Erik Jones will receive the free pass under this caution, which is the seventh of the race.

Lap 247: Alex Bowman Goes a Lap Down

A decent day has gone awry for Alex Bowman, who dropped a lap down to leader Denny Hamlin on Lap 247. Bowman restarted from the 24th position on Lap 208, but radioed to his crew that the car lacks speed in the top and bottom lane.

The car being off led to Bowman losing a lap around 40 laps later.

Lap 232: Denny Hamlin Continues to Lead

Denny Hamlin has eclipsed 100 laps led on the day, and he's up to 108 laps led on Lap 232. Hamlin holds a near-one-second lead over Chase Elliott at this juncture in the race.

Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, and Joey Logano are the rest of the top-10 runners on Lap 232.

Lap 201: Riley Herbst Spins For Caution No. 6

Three-wide at Martinsville Speedway is a recipe for disaster, and NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year contender Riley Herbst found that out the hard way on Lap 201 of the Cook Out 400. Austin Cindric, who was in the middle of Herbst and AJ Allmendinger, got side-swiped by Herbst, who contacted the wall on the exit of Turn 4. After that, Cindric made contact with Herbst, which sent him spinning out in Turn 1.

Shane van Gisbergen will receive the free pass under this caution.

Lap 197: Ryan Blaney Moves Into the Top-Five

Don't look now, but Ryan Blaney, who has won two of the last three NASCAR Cup Series races at Martinsville Speedway moved into the fifth position with a pass on Chase Briscoe at Lap 197. Blaney started the day from the 32nd position, but has slowly and methodically worked his way forward all race long.

Lap 193: Back to Green

Denny Hamlin has led the field back to the green flag, and he has pulled out to a lead by himself. Chase Elliott and Bubba Wallace are currently side-by-side battling it out for second-place.

Lap 187: Denny Hamlin Wins Race Off Pit Road

Denny Hamlin will remain the leader of the Cook Out 400 as the race goes green for the final Stage. Hamlin won the race off of pit road under the Stage Break caution ahead of Chase Elliott.

The top-10 off of pit road were: Hamlin, Elliott, Bubba Wallace, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Ross Chastain, and Ty Gibbs.

Stage 2 Updates

Denny Hamlin Holds Off Chase Elliott for Stage 2 Win

By a margin of 0.795 seconds, Denny Hamlin was able to pick up his eighth career Stage Win at Martinsville Speedway. Chase Elliott, who was on the move at the end of the Stage, finished second.

Here are the Stage 2 Results:

Pos

Car

Driver

Points

Playoff Pts

1

11

Denny Hamlin

10

1

2

9

Chase Elliott

9

--

3

23

Bubba Wallace

8

--

4

54

Ty Gibbs

7

--

5

19

Chase Briscoe

6

--

6

12

Ryan Blaney

5

--

7

1

Ross Chastain

4

--

8

20

Christopher Bell

3

--

9

5

Kyle Larson

2

--

10

45

Tyler Reddick

1

--

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. earned the free pass during this caution.

Lap 174: Chase Elliott Passes Bubba Wallace for Second-Place

Chase Elliott continues to move forward as there are just six laps left in Stage 2 of Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville. Elliott is now trying to chase down Denny Hamlin for the Stage Win. Hamlin holds a 1.029-second advantage.

Lap 161: Chase Elliott on the Move as Hamlin Reaches Lapped Traffic

Denny Hamlin has caught the end of the field, and is in a throng of lapped traffic. The driver of the No. 11 Progressive Toyota has seen a 1.5-second lead over Bubba Wallace drop to 1.2-seconds.

Meanwhile, Chase Elliott has begun to move his way forward. Elliott just passed Chase Briscoe and Ty Gibbs to take over the third position.

Lap 139: Toyota Takes Over Top-Four Spots

As Denny Hamlin continues to lead Bubba Wallace on Lap 139, Toyota now holds the top-four spots on the racetrack. Chase Briscoe worked his way around Daniel Suarez for the fourth position in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Ty Gibbs is the other Toyota inside of the top-four, as he runs third, currently.

Lap 134: Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace Lead Field Back to Green

Denny Hamlin has assumed the race lead as we go back to green on Lap 134, and Bubba Wallace, who drives for Hamlin's 23XI Racing team, sits in the runner-up spot. Wallace was the fastest driver in NASCAR Cup Series practice on Saturday.

Lap 129: Alex Bowman Makes Additional Pit Stop For Loose Wheel

Alex Bowman, who was scored in the 12th position, will drop to 35th on Lap 129 as he had to bring his No. 48 Chevrolet back down to pit road moments after a pit stop under caution. Bowman had a loose wheel and had to have it tightened back up.

Lap 121: Burt Myers Slows to a Crawl On Track; Caution Out Again

The fourth caution of the early portion of Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway has come out due to Burt Myers, who had his car lose power on Lap 121. As Myers attempted to limp his car back around to pit road, the car came to a stop on track on the exit of Turn 2.

Myers, who competed in the preseason exhibition event at Bowman Gray Stadium, is making his official NASCAR Cup Series point race debut today in the No. 50 Team AmeriVet Chevrolet.

Casey Mears, making his first NASCAR Cup Series start since 2019, will get his third free pass of the race under this caution.

Lap 106: Alex Bowman Drops From Top-Five

Alex Bowman's older tires are causing him to fall in the running order. On Lap 106, Ty Gibbs got around Bowman for the fifth position.

Chase Elliott leads over Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Gibbs on Lap 106.

Lap 93: Chase Elliott Gets Past Bowman for Lead

Chase Elliott on fresher tires lined up to the outside of Alex Bowman on the Lap 93 restart, and he would waste little time getting around his teammate for the race lead.

Denny Hamlin followed Elliott into the second position.

Lap 89: Josh Berry, Austin Cindric Get New Batteries

Josh Berry has now dropped from one lap down to two laps down due to the ongoing power issues with his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford. Austin Cindric, who drives the No. 2 Team Penske Ford suffered a similar issue, and both drivers got new batteries swapped into their race cars on Lap 89.

Cindric sits 37th, the last car on the lead lap, while Berry is last, two laps off the pace.

Lap 87: Alex Bowman to the Race Lead Under Caution

Joey Logano brought his No. 22 Team Penske Ford to pit road, and relinquished the lead to Alex Bowman, who remained on track during the caution between Stages 1 and 2.

John Hunter Nemechek is now scored in the second position in the No. 42 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota. Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, and Cole Custer round out the top-five drivers after the yellow flag pit sequence.

Stage 1 Updates

Lap 80: Joey Logano Takes Stage 1 Win

Joey Logano was able to hold off Alex Bowman over the final couple of laps of Stage 1 to take the Stage Win. Logano hasn't pitted since Lap 32.

Here are the Stage 1 Results:

Pos

Car

Driver

Points

Playoff Pts

1

22

Joey Logano

10

1

2

48

Alex Bowman

9

--

3

16

AJ Allmendinger

8

--

4

6

Brad Keselowski

7

--

5

43

Erik Jones

6

--

6

42

John Hunter Nemechek

5

--

7

60

Ryan Preece

4

--

8

9

Chase Elliott

3

--

9

11

Denny Hamlin

2

--

10

41

Cole Custer

1

--

Chris Buescher, who spun out earlier in the race, received the free pass under this caution, and is now back on the lead lap.

Lap 76: Josh Berry's No. 21 Car Loses Power; Logano to the Lead

Josh Berry's No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford, which was leading the race prior to the caution for Chris Buescher's spin, saw his car lose power under the caution after contact with Bubba Wallace on pit road.

The loss of power led to Berry losing a lap. He was able to get his car fired back up, but he went from first to last.

Meanwhile, Joey Logano stayed out under the caution and took over the lead of the race.

Lap 71: Chris Buescher Gets Turned by Carson Hocevar to Bring Out Second Caution

Chris Buescher, who was running 24th on Lap 71, received contact from Carson Hocevar, which sent him spinning out to bring out the second caution of the race. Due to the contact, Buescher now finds himself 38th in the 38-car field.

Casey Mears collected his second free pass of the race, and will rejoin the lead lap cars.

There are under 10 laps remaining in Stage 1.

Lap 68: Joey Logano Moves Past Custer for P2

Joey Logano has moved into the runner-up position as he got around Cole Custer on Lap 68. Now, Logano will set sail on Josh Berry for the race lead. There are 12 laps remaining in the opening Stage of the race.

Lap 62: Berry Still Leads Custer, But Fresh Tires Are Coming

Josh Berry still holds the lead over Cole Custer, however, the cars that hit pit road under the last caution are starting to really work their way up the running order.

Joey Logano, Alex Bowman, and Chase Elliott have all worked their way into the top-five behind Berry and Custer.

Lap 45: Riley Herbst Dropping Like a Rock

After restarting inside of the top six after staying on track during the first caution of the race, 23XI Racing driver Riley Herbst has falled to the 36th position. Herbst had a moment, where he nearly collided with the wall under duress, but he saved it.

Lap 39: Back to Green

The field, led by Josh Berry, have been shown the green flag on Lap 39 after the race's first caution flag period. On the restart, Austin Cindric, who was in the second postion, spun his tires on the restart, and had to fight hard with Cole Custer for the second position.

Custer, the Haas Factory Team driver, would prevail and is trying to chase Berry for the race lead.

Lap 34: Josh Berry Inherits the Lead as Six Drivers Stay on Track Under Caution

Josh Berry, who has won at Martinsville Speedway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as well at the regional racing level, has inherited the race lead in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford. Berry was the highest-running of six drivers, who stayed on track under the first caution of the race, while the remainder of the field pitted.

In addition to Berry, Austin Cindric, Cole Custer, Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney, and Riley Herbst did not pit and will start from the top-six spots on the upcoming restart.

Lap 31: Debris Brings Out First Caution

A piece of ductwork, potentially a brake duct fell off of one of the 38 cars in the field, and landed inside of the racing groove in Turn 4. As a result of the debris on track, NASCAR called the first caution of Sunday's Cook Out 400 at Martinsville on Lap 31.

Casey Mears, making his first start at Martinsville since the 2016 season, got the free pass under this caution, and is now back on the lead lap.

Lap 24: Chase Elliott Takes the Lead From Christopher Bell

Chase Elliott was able to track down polesitter Christopher Bell for the race lead, and on Lap 24, the driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet executed the first lead change of the race. Bell held onto the second spot and sits ahead of Alex Bowman.

Green Flag - 3:12 PM ET

The Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway has gone green, and Christopher Bell has pulled out front by himself from the pole position. After a few laps, the top-five positions were settled as Chase Elliott held onto the runner-up position, while Alex Bowman, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Larson are the remainder of the top-five.

Pre-Race Updates

Closing in on the Green Flag for the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville

The seventh race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway will see an approximate green flag time of 3:11 PM ET. The race will be broadcasted on FS1, and will be streamable on the FOX Sports App with a valid television provider login. The official race broadcast will begin at 3:00 PM ET.

Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will carry the radio broadcast of the event.

Currently, no cars have been tagged with going to the rear of the field prior to the green flag of the race.

The Cook Out 400 will be a 400-lap race around the 0.526-mile Virginia short track, and the race will be comprised of three Stages. Stage 1 will end at the conclusion of Lap 80, Stage 2 will end at the conclusion of Lap 180, and the race is scheduled to end at the conclusion of Lap 400, unless an Overtime finish is required.

Pit road speed is set at 30 mph, and the pace car will log laps at 35 mph, and the esitmated fuel window is 175 laps.

Christopher Bell on the Pole

Christopher Bell, who was the 17th of 38 cars to take a lap in Saturday's NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session had mentally reserved the fact that he had no shot at the pole position for Sunday's Cook Out 400 at Martinsville, despite being second-fastest in practice earlier in the day. Why? His poor slot in the qualifying order.

Bell, who recorded three consecutive wins earlier this year, was pleasantly surprised as his 19.718 seconds (96.034 mph) lap time withstood all challengers over the duration of the session and he was awarded his first Busch Light Pole Award of the 2025 season. By recording his 14th career NASCAR Cup Series pole position, Bell was able to prevent Hendrick Motorsports from a 1-2-3 sweep in qualifying.

Chase Elliott was the fastest of the three Hendrick cars directly behind him on the qualifying speed charts and will start from the outside of the front row in Sunday's race.

Cook Out 400 Starting Lineup

Pos

Car

Driver

1

20

Christopher Bell

2

9

Chase Elliott

3

48

Alex Bowman

4

5

Kyle Larson

5

11

Denny Hamlin

6

17

Chris Buescher

7

22

Joey Logano

8

23

Bubba Wallace

9

45

Tyler Reddick

10

24

William Byron

Click here for the full starting lineup.

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Toby Christie
TOBY CHRISTIE

Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.

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