Instead of focusing on setting up hazards, Machoke's purpose as a lead is to threaten the opposing lead with brute force and Dynamic Punch's confusion rate. Machoke can take a huge chunk out of leads that set up entry hazards and limit the number of entry hazards they can set up, weakening them to a point where they can be finished off easily. Dynamic Punch is the major pull to using Machoke as a lead, as it not only hits any Pokemon who don't resist it for major damage, but also guarantees confusion on slower leads like Omastar and Rhyperior, as well as incoming Pokemon intended to counter Machoke such as Scyther and Moltres. Confusion is what makes Machoke such a great anti-lead, either giving your opponent a 50% chance of getting up Stealth Rock or Spikes, or forcing your opponent to switch, thus preventing hazards from being set up. Confusion also prevents common switch-ins from a guaranteed attack on Machoke, giving him a chance to retaliate and KO, or switch to an appropriate counter at little cost.
The second option comes down to which popular lead your team wants to OHKO: Moltres or Alakazam. Payback hits Alakazam for an OHKO, while Rock Slide guarantees the OHKO on Moltres. Bullet Punch may seem trivial, but it's one of the most important moves on Machoke, helping him take out other Focus Sash leads like Alakazam and Ambipom, and often turning 3HKOs and 4HKOs into 2HKOs and 3HKOs. Protect rounds out the set, allowing Machoke to defeat the popular Fake Out users of UU, like Ambipom and Kangaskhan. It also doubles as a scouting method, effectively dealing with leads he cannot combat using his attacking moves, like Trick users.
A choice needs to be made between Rock Slide and Payback. Rock Slide hits Moltres for a guaranteed OHKO, while also hitting the Bug- and Flying-types of UU, which include Scyther and Venomoth, for super effective damage. Note that Machoke must be at full health to deal with the majority of these switch-ins, so that he can use his Focus Sash to survive the would-be OHKO. Payback, on the other hand, guarantees a win against Alakazam leads. Payback also hits non-bulky variants of Rotom and Mismagius for OHKOs, and has a higher Base Power than Rock Slide, assuming that Machoke is the slowest Pokemon on the field. The choice also depends on your own team and determining what opposing leads will give the team trouble in the long run.
It is possible to drop Protect altogether, placing Payback and Rock Slide on the same set, to deal with both Moltres and Alakazam leads. However, Ambipom can 2HKO Machoke with Fake Out + Return, forcing Machoke out and reducing his role in the match. Machoke also loses his ability to scout other leads and switch-ins, as well as his ability to scout Trick users.
Focus Sash is necessary to survive Psychic from Alakazam and Air Slash from Moltres without getting OHKOed. It's possible to run a Lum Berry to prevent any Ghost from burning Machoke with Will-O-Wisp, allowing you to KO most of them (bar Spiritomb). However, without a Focus Sash, Machoke will automatically lose to leads like Alakazam and Moltres. A type-resist Berry is also acceptable, letting Machoke survive Psychic or Air Slash with slightly more HP than Focus Sash allows, but note that Focus Sash still beats both leads effectively and provides a cushion against powerful neutral attacks.
The EVs are designed to give Machoke as much attacking power as possible, while still outrunning certain leads and tanks to prevent Stealth Rock from being set up. With an Adamant nature and 252 Attack EVs, Machoke hits a respectable 328 Attack stat, more than enough to cause massive damage to opposing leads and switch-ins. 100 Speed EVs allow him to outrun the standard lead Hariyama by one point, as well as any Pokemon slower than Hariyama (including Rhyperior, Omastar, Regirock, Donphan, Chansey and Registeel). The remaining EVs are dumped into HP in order that Machoke can take weak neutral hits better.
Machoke will have immense problems against Spiritomb leads, against which he can do very little. Machoke also has trouble against Uxie and Mesprit leads because of their Speed, although Mesprit is 2HKOed with Payback. The only popular leads that will be able to set up Stealth Rock against Machoke are Uxie, Mesprit, Kabutops, and Donphan. Donphan is slower than Machoke, but has enough bulk to survive two or three Dynamic Punches. The other three simply are faster than Machoke. For these reasons, pairing Machoke with a Spiritomb is often the best choice to deal with the leads Machoke cannot beat, successfully countering each Pokemon with his bulk and support-based moves. A Rapid Spinner like Donphan or Claydol ensures that Stealth Rock will not be on the field very long after these leads place them down. Chansey, Registeel, and Milotic also make fine partners to combat powerful special attackers like Moltres and Alakazam when Machoke lacks the appropriate move.