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.