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.

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 Racing On Verge Of Victory Lane

When 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 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”

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”