Darlington Raceway Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer The entry list for Sunday’s resumption of the NASCAR Cup Series campaign at Darlington Raceway came out Monday with 40 cars slated to run the 400-mile one-day event. Among the 40, two teams stand out and those were Tommy Baldwin Racing and B.J. McLeod Motorsports. Making their first attempt since Ryan Truex failed to qualify in the 2019 Daytona 500, TBR confirmed that they’ll be running the 293-lap race with Josh Bilicki behind the wheel of the No. 7 Gravely/CNC Swiss Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Baldwin, who’llRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer When the dust settled on NASCAR’s 2020 schedule realignment due to COVID-19 last Thursday, it became apparent that by having multiple races at both Darlington Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway, certain tracks will pay the unfortunate price. On Friday, NASCAR announced that three tracks will lose their dates in favor of having additional races at Darlington and Charlotte. Those were Sonoma Raceway, Chicagoland Speedway and Richmond Raceway, with the first two no longer having a race at their venue in 2020. The latter track maintained itsRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Since the sports world went dark due to the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March, it has been a waiting game to see which sport would be the first to make its return. As of Thursday afternoon, it appears NASCAR will be the first out of the gate to start competing again, as the sanctioning body announced races, without fans, are scheduled to begin on May 17 with a visit to Darlington Raceway for the NASCAR Cup Series. Over the next 11 days, all three NASCAR national seriesRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer The road towards a return for NASCAR saw an encouraging turn after North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper made several announcements for the state regarding COVID-19 Thursday. Although the stay-at-home order has been extended from April 29 to May 8, Gov. Cooper stated that race teams can indeed work on their cars at their race shops after being the sport was considered “essential business” just as long as social distancing practices are followed at all times. According to FOX 46 Charlotte’s Will Kunkel, Gov. Cooper also providedRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Although any form of racing action won’t start anytime soon, it’s never too early for Joey Gase to announce Wednesday what throwback scheme he’ll run in the Southern 500 September 6. For the 71st renewal of one of NASCAR’s most iconic races, Gase will honor Bobby Allison’s 1971 Coca-Cola paint scheme with Gase’s primary sponsor Agri Supply being onboard of Rick Ware Racing’s No. 51 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Gase is far from the only competitor that’s driven one of Allison’s schemes on Throwback Weekend over theRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Erik Jones has called the No. 20 team at Joe Gibbs Racing home for the past two seasons and heading into the 2020 season, he will continue to occupy that seat as the team announced a contract extension for the 23-year old on Friday. “I’m so happy to finally have my plans for 2020 confirmed and to talk about it,” Jones said in a team release. “I’m excited to be staying with Joe Gibbs Racing and the 20 team and to continue the success thatRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DARLINGTON, S.C. – As the clock ticked toward 2 a.m. on Monday, in a race delayed by  rain for nearly four hours, Erik Jones claimed the most important victory of his career in the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. With his contract status at Joe Gibbs Racing a source of speculation throughout much of the current Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, Jones made an emphatic statement, holding off teammate Kyle Busch and charging Kyle Larson after taking the lead from Larson onRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DARLINGTON, S.C. – It looked like more of the same at Darlington Raceway for driver Denny Hamlin—until post-race inspection happened. A five-time NASCAR Xfinity Series winner at the 1.366-mile track, Hamlin was first across the finish line in Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200, but the disqualification of Hamlin’s No. 18 Toyota for a ride-height violation made a winner of Cole Custer, who trailed Hamlin by .602 seconds at the finish line. “It’s a really strange feeling, honestly—obviously,” Custer said after being notified heRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DARLINGTON, S.C. – In his sophomore season in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series—and his first with veteran crew chief Chad Knaus—William Byron continues to make history. On Saturday at Darlington Raceway, Byron covered the 1.366-mile distance at the egg-shaped track in 28.510 seconds (172.487 mph), winning the pole position for Sunday’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Not only did Byron claim his first Busch Pole Award at Darlington and his fourth of the season, butRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor After a weekend off to recharge the batteries before making the final 12 race push to finish off the season, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to one of the crown jewels on the circuit, Darlington Raceway, for this weekend’s running of the Bojangles’ Southern 500. Darlington Raceway has been a staple of the Cup Series since opening in 1950 for its annual Labor Day weekend event with the Southern 500 being held on that date until a controversial decision was made to moveRead More