DARLINGTON
7 p.m. ET Saturday
FOX


DARLINGTON
7 p.m. ET Friday
ESPN2


CHARLOTTE
7:30 p.m. ET May 15
SPEED


Live: Cup Series practice

Greg Biffle started his own Darlington tradition by winning the first two May races. He was second-fastest in the first practice Friday. Final practice is under way.

Darlington: Practice 1 | Garage Cam | Blog: NASCAR Says | Audio: Preview
Darlington
Partly Sunny 82°
Forecast
____________________________________________
Hi `Jamie Lyn
It's me `Dirty Tony
Luv `ya..If I win I'm gona take a Shower : )
Stewart one of many 0-fers at Darlington

Tony Stewart is winless in 16 previous Cup races at the Lady in Black.
Winless and baffled


Logano looks to keep JGR streak intact

The No. 20 has won the past three Nationwide races at Darlington.
By the Numbers



Nationwide Weekly Preview Show

Scott Lagasse Jr. talks about the rather sneaky way he got into racing.
Practice Speeds


Pam Boas, NASCAR moms a special lot

Tony Stewart's mother shares some insight into her famous racing son.
Off Track w/Stewart



Gordon, Busch among drivers on upswing

Everything you need for 367 laps at race track Too Tough to Tame.
Purchase tickets


Fantasy Preview: Load up on the past

Jeff Gordon has been unstoppable the last five Darlington Cup races.
Fantasy Report


Remembering Pontiac as brand fades away

As GM shuts down Pontiac, six titles left mark on NASCAR.
Superstore: Pontiac

 

ooh lots of TS content this week, me likey

darlington is a tough race to pick top 3, it's one of those where anyone could come out on top. but i'm gonna go out on a limb.

1. kyle busch
2. tony stewart
3. mark martin

kyle can win anywhere in anything, and won here last year. he's got momentum that is gonna be tough to stop. since tony's never won here (in the cup series - he did win here last year in the NW/busch series) and hasn't been practicing too well as of yet today, i think he'll be able to qualify and run up front because he's been running strong everywhere lately, but if he's behind busch, there just seems to be no way around that kid. and martin, well, hell i just like him.

i have no idea my/our plans for tomorrow night so i don't know where i'll be watching the race from. but i'll definitely be watching. space, i hope you'll get to see it this week!!

 

Quick History of Darlington Raceway



Darlington Raceway Through The Years
1950 Californian Johnny Mantz wins the first Southern 500 despite being the slowest qualifier.
1957 Darlington Raceway gets a second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, which is won by Fireball Roberts.
1965 Ned Jarrett wins the Southern 500 by 14 laps, the largest margin of victory in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history.
1968 David Pearson wins his first of a record 10 Darlington races.
1985 Bill Elliott wins the Winston Million at Darlington for capturing three of four selected races during the season.
1997 The track configuration is flipped, making the frontstretch the backstretch and vice-versa.
2003 Ricky Craven edges Kurt Busch by .002 seconds, the closest margin in NASCAR history.
2004 For the first time a Darlington race is held under lights.
2005 Darlington begins a new tradition, hosting its race on Mother’s Day weekend.

Darlington Raceway Steeped In NASCAR Tradition



One year after NASCAR celebrated its 60th year, Darlington Raceway, is set for a 60-year celebration of its own. Darlington is the second-oldest track in NASCAR and has hosted 105 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races over the past 59 years.
“Darlington is steeped in tradition, as much a part of the Southern NASCAR landscape as the sweet scent of magnolias,” said NASCAR Vice President of Communications Jim Hunter, a former president of Darlington Raceway. “The Southern 500 is the Kentucky Derby and Masters of our sport.”
It is only fitting that as part of its 60th anniversary, the track is bringing back the race name that it has been identified with since its first race in 1950. In addition, the outer retaining walls have been painted with red stripes, something that hasn’t been done since 1989.
Continue reading Darlington Raceway Steeped In NASCAR Tradition


Stewart-Haas ready for Victory Lane


Stewart-Haas Racing On Verge Of Victory Lane

When Dirty Tony Stewart (No. 14 Old Spice Chevrolet) made the decision to leave championship-caliber Joe Gibbs Racing to start his own team last season, many skeptics whispered that it would be years before Stewart made another trip to Victory Lane. After all, Haas CNC Racing, the team Stewart took over, had competed in 284 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races and had one top-five finish to show for it. Apparently Stewart wasn’t listening to the grim outlook.
Almost one-third of the way into Stewart’s first season as owner/driver of Stewart-Haas Racing, Stewart is third in the standings and a few breaks away from a trip to Victory Lane. Teammate Ryan Newman (No. 39 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet) is 10th, both in Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup contention. Stewart has finished runner-up in two of the last three races and has been in the top five in four of the last five. Newman has been able to shake off early season struggles, moving up 22 spots over the past six races.
Continue reading Stewart-Haas ready for Victory Lane


Kyle Busch at age 24 already has 50 NASCAR wins



Kyle Busch Has 50 Reasons To Take A Bow
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — As he stood atop his Indiana Jones-themed car, surrounded by smoke from his victory burnout, Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota) bowed to the fans at Darlington Raceway.
It wasn’t the first time Busch took a bow after a win, but was the first time “The Bow” beckoned a reporter to ask about it during post-race interviews.
The question was simple – “What’s with this bow?”
The answer was simpler – “I don’t know. It’s, thank you very much.”
When prodded for a longer response, Busch answered, “I mean, the good burnout, then I can’t get out of the car fast enough, man. I need to work on that… Then I’m up on top, I appear, then I do a bow, thank you very much, then I go on and have a nice day. I’m trying to get more smoke built up before I get out. I’m working on it.”
Continue reading Kyle Busch at age 24 already has 50 NASCAR wins


The Dale Jr. Foundation Announces All-Star Charity Lineup



MOORESVILLE, N.C. (May 7, 2009) – In a monthlong push to raise money and awareness for key charities dedicated to helping children, The Dale Jr. Foundation has created three initiatives as part of its All Star Charity Line Up. Through these events, The Dale Jr. Foundation will donate to Make-A-Wish, March of Dimes / Bikers for Babies, The NASCAR Foundation and Speedway Children’s Charities.
Beginning this Saturday at the Southern 500 presented by GoDaddy.com at Darlington Raceway, The Dale Jr. Foundation (TDJF) will host 50 guests from the Victory Junction Gang Camp, Make-A-Wish and Kid’s Wish Network in a pre-race chalet. The chalet and 50 race tickets were donated to TDJF by GoDaddy.com and includes an appearance by Brad Keselowski.
“The Dale Jr. Foundation is committed to helping underprivileged youth achieve their goals,” said Kelley Earnhardt, vice president and general manager of JR Motorsports. “Last year, with the help of all of our fans and supporters, we were able to donate to over 250 charitable organizations. This year we want to continue setting the bar higher for our charitable goals. These events surrounding the All-Star race are a great way to start our fundraising efforts for 2009.”
Continue reading The Dale Jr. Foundation Announces All-Star Charity Lineup


Jeff Gordon looking for Darlington records



GORDON CAN TIE – AND SURPASS – YARBOROUGH AT DARLINGTON
DARLINGTON, S.C. (May 5, 2009) - With a win on Saturday night at Darlington Raceway, Jeff Gordon can tie Cale Yarborough in victories. And, because of a name change, he can surpass Yarborough, too.
Gordon, who has 82 career NASCAR Sprint Cup victories, is one shy of fifth-ranked Yarborough on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins list and only two away from tying Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip for third.
At Darlington, Gordon has seven wins, three poles, 16 top-fives and 19 top-10’s in 28 starts. Five of those victories occurred in the Southern 500, tying him with Yarborough for most victories in that famed event.
But the Southern 500 has not been held at the historic track in five years. Since
2005, there has been only one Cup race each season at Darlington – and it has not been
named the Southern 500.
Continue reading Jeff Gordon looking for Darlington records

 

 

dude! missing the southern 500 is like a cardinal sin in the racing world. you better have a good excuse j/k

 

Kenseth wins Darlington pole with qualifying record

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- On a "green" race track washed by a hard afternoon rain, Matt Kenseth laid down the best qualifying lap in the history of Darlington Raceway.
Touring the 1.366-mile egg-shaped circuit in 27.394 seconds (179.514 mph), Kenseth won the pole for Saturday night's Southern 500, edging Jeff Gordon (178.861 mph) by a tenth of a second in a session that saw three-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson wreck in Turn 2 on his first lap. Read More


Starting Lineup:
1. Matt Kenseth
2. Jeff Gordon
3. Ryan Newman
4. Sam Hornish, Jr.
5. Joey Logano
6. Jeff Burton
7. Kasey Kahne
8. Kurt Busch
9. Carl Edwards
10. Marcos Ambrose


Complete Race Lineup



• Final practice speeds click here
• Practice 1 speeds click here


Just for fun:




Video: Off Track With Tony Stewart


Visit the Stewart-Haas race shop in Kannapolis, NC with your tour guide, none other than Tony Stewart himself.

 

Out of nowhere

Kyle Busch was the man to beat all race but it was Matt Kenseth who took the checkered at Darlington after a flat tire ended Busch's day with three laps to go. Busch was weaving back-and-forth behind the pace car under caution before the restart, which would have been the last restart of the race, bringing the field to a green/white/checkered flag finish, when he ran over debris. The debris was from the caution flag brought out by a spin and crash by Joe Nemecheck and Scott Lagasse, and had not yet been cleaned up by safety crews. Busch radioed in to his crew that he had a right-rear tire going down and came into the pits. He finished the race on the lead lap, but in 16th place.



Busch had dominated the race, leading 143 of 153 laps up until the tire incident. Carl Edwards held the lead for 5 laps. Kenseth led 4 laps on the day. Tony Raines led 1 lap under caution.



Mike Bliss overcame a 6th lap spin to finish 7th. Brad Keselowski spun not once, not twice, but three times over the course of the race, but managed to stay off the wall (and away from other cars) and rebounded to finish 11th.



Unofficial results:


1. Matt Kenseth
2. Jason Leffler
3. Carl Edwards
4. Erik Darnell
5. Justin Allgaier
6. Ryan Newman
7. Mike Bliss
8. Jeff Burton
9. Scott Wimmer
10. Brian Vickers


Complete Results


The late race woes for Busch allowed Carl Edwards to gain 45 points on Busch's lead in the points standings. Busch is now just 37 points ahead of Edwards.


Unofficial Points Standings after Darlington - Race 10 of 35

 

 

I'll pick Jeff Gordon to win today. And I'll predict that Joey Logano will have a surprisingly good showing. And just for JL, I'll pick Tony Stewart to be in the top 5.

I'll go out on a limb and say Dale Jr will have a mediocre showing at best.