TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
Darlington Raceway
April 5-6, 2025
The celebration of Darlington Raceway’s 75th anniversary season will get underway this weekend with the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series partaking in the sport’s annual ‘Throwback Weekend’.
The 1.366-mile oval famously known as ‘The Lady in Black’ will play host to NASCAR for two events yet again this season, with NASCAR’s premier series and the Craftsman Truck Series returning to the venue in August to begin their respective playoffs. Part one of the doubleheader weekend will see the Xfinity Series hit the track in Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200, with the series’ reigning champion, Justin Allgaier, returning as the defending winner of the track’s spring event. The Cup Series will take its turn in tackling the track ‘Too Tough to Tame’ on Sunday with the Goodyear 400, with the Bowtie brand looking to add to its already leading legacy at the historic venue.
Leading at ‘The Lady in Black’
Chevrolet is the all-wins leader in both of NASCAR’s top two divisions at Darlington Raceway, heading into the weekend with 44 Cup Series wins and 23 Xfinity Series wins at the track.
Chevrolet’s first trip to victory lane at Darlington Raceway came in the 1955 Southern 500 with Hall of Famer Herb Thomas – the sixth running of the sport’s crown jewel event. Fast forward to 2025, the 1.366-mile South Carolina oval has since hosted 127 events for NASCAR’s top division. Throughout NASCAR’s tenure at the ‘Track to Tough to Tame’, the longest win streak by a single manufacturer has been four-straight, which is a feat that Chevrolet has been able to accomplish on four separate occasions (Apr. 1979 – Sept. 1980; Apr. 1986 – Sept. 1987; Sept. 1989 – Apr. 1991; Mar. 1995 – Sept. 1996). The Bowtie brand owns half of the wins in the Next Gen era at the track, including two Southern 500 victories (Erik Jones – Sept. 2022; Kyle Larson – Sept. 2023) and the 2023 spring event with William Byron.
For the past four Xfinity Series seasons, Chevrolet has been a frequent visitor to victory lane at Darlington Raceway, with the manufacturer tallying the triumph in five of the series’ past seven races at the track. Among those feats includes an active streak of four-straight wins in the track’s spring event including Justin Allgaier’s three career Darlington wins (2021, 2022, 2024), as well as Kyle Larson’s win with Kaulig Racing in May 2023. Only four active past Darlington winners are entered for Saturday’s 200-mile race, including Allgaier and a special appearance by the 2020 Cup Series Champion, Chase Elliott.
DARLINGTON DOUBLE
There will be four drivers that will do the ‘Darlington Double’ this weekend, three of which come from the Chevrolet camp.
The Xfinity Series’ most recent winner, Austin Hill, will make his first of five starts in NASCAR’s top division this weekend – getting behind the wheel of a third entry for Richard Childress Racing. The 30-year-old Georgia native will have a familiar voice calling the shots from atop the pit box with the driver being reunited with Andy Street, who led Hill’s Xfinity Series team for the past three seasons. This weekend will mark Hill’s 11th career Cup Series start, with his best finish of 14th coming at Daytona International Speedway in Aug. 2023.
Team Chevy’s Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain are among the three Cup Series regulars that will face the Xfinity Series in Saturday’s event. Elliott will take his turn behind the wheel of the No. 17 Chevrolet for his lone appearance in Hendrick Motorsports’ part-time Xfinity Series entry this season. The 29-year-old Georgia native made his last Xfinity Series appearance at Darlington Raceway in Aug. 2024, where he earned a fourth-place finish. Elliott made a name for himself in the Xfinity Series early in his career when he became the first rookie to win a championship title in the NASCAR national ranks (2014). Elliott is a six-time winner in the series, one of which came in the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at Charlotte Motor Speedway last season. Chastain will climb back into the driver’s seat of a fifth entry for JR Motorsports this weekend – marking his second of five starts with the No. 9 Chevrolet team. The 32-year-old Florida native already has one start until his belt with the team – earning an eighth-place finish at Circuit of The Americas. Chastain has one NASCAR national series win to his name at Darlington Raceway, which came in the Truck Series’ most recent appearance at the track in May 2024.
SUPERIOR IN THE STANDINGS
With seven points-paying races complete, the Hendrick Motorsports quartet continues to be a dominating force in the NASCAR Cup Series standings. Despite an early pit road issue providing an uphill battle for the No. 24 team, William Byron was still able to maintain the points lead for the sixth-consecutive week. The 27-year-old North Carolina native heads to Darlington Raceway with a 16-point lead over second-place Kyle Larson and a 32-point lead over third-place Chase Elliott, who each drove their Chevrolet-powered machines to top-five results at Martinsville Speedway last weekend. Sitting just behind his teammates is Alex Bowman, who ties competitor Christopher Bell in the fourth position of the standings. Consistency has been key for Bowman and the No. 48 team this season, with the 31-year-old Arizona native being one of just two drivers who have earned a series-best five top-10 results thus far this year.
RCR HITS A MILESTONE
Austin Hill may have led only one lap in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway, but it was the one that mattered most. Taking the green-white-checkered from the seventh position, Hill was able to survive the closing lap mayhem to become the series’ second repeat winner of the 2025 season and ultimately deliver Richard Childress Racing its milestone 100th all-time Xfinity Series victory. Kevin Harvick carried the Chevrolet organization to its first Xfinity Series victory at World Wide Technology Raceway in Jul. 2000. Over the next 25 years, 20 different drivers have tallied triumphs to lead the organization to this milestone feat – all of which have been done in partnership with Chevrolet. The organization’s winningest Xfinity Series driver is Harvick, who earned 35 of his 47 career Xfinity Series victories behind the wheel of a Richard Childress Racing entry. Of the 20 different drivers who have scored a Xfinity Series victory with Richard Childress Racing, Hill is the only other driver with a double-digit win count – earning all 12 of his Xfinity Series wins in the No. 21 Chevrolet.
CONTINUING TO COMMAND
Chevrolet continues to have a commanding start to the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. Austin Hill’s victory at Martinsville Speedway last weekend marked the Bowtie brand’s third consecutive trip to victory lane in the series, and the manufacturer’s overall sixth win in seven races thus far this season. The 30-year-old Georgia native is just the series’ second repeat winner of 2025, with fellow Chevrolet driver and the series’ reigning champion, Justin Allgaier, being the first driver to accomplish the feat at Homestead-Miami Speedway the prior weekend. The Bowtie brand is the only manufacturer with drivers already locked into the series’ playoffs by virtue of a win, with youngsters Jesse Love and Connor Zilisch also earning one win a piece.
Chevrolet swept the weekend across all major statistical categories at Martinsville Speedway, with Zilisch driving his No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet to the pole win and a sweep of the stages – giving the Bowtie brand its fifth pole in seven races and now 12 wins in 14 stages. Chevrolet has accounted for at least half of the top-10 finishing positions in all but one race this season, including a season-best seven top-10 results on two different occasions (Atlanta Motor Speedway – earned by six different Chevrolet organizations; Homestead-Miami Speedway – earned by five different Chevrolet organizations).
HEMRIC CLOCKS IN
It hasn’t taken Daniel Hemric long to settle into his new home at McAnally Hilgemann Racing. In just the fifth NASCAR Craftsman Truck race of 2025 at Martinsville Speedway, Hemric drove his No. 19 Chevrolet to the victory to deliver the Bowtie brand its series-leading third win of the season. The 34-year-old North Carolina native is just the series’ second full-time competitor to earn an early ticket into the 2025 playoffs, joining Toyota’s Corey Heim. The series will remain idle this weekend before reuniting with the Cup and Xfinity Series for a tripleheader weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway on Apr. 11-13.
Chevrolet’s season statistics with seven NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 2
Poles: 3
Laps Led: 472
Top-Fives: 15
Top-10s: 32
Stage Wins: 3
Chevrolet’s season statistics with seven NASCAR Xfinity Series races complete:
Wins: 6
Poles: 5
Laps Led: 944
Top-Fives: 22
Top-10s: 42
Stage Wins: 12
Chevrolet’s season statistics with five NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races complete:
Wins: 3
Poles: 2
Laps Led: 292
Top-Fives: 11
Top-10s: 21
Stage Wins: 3
BOWTIE BULLETS:
· Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Darlington Raceway:
Kyle Larson – one win (2023 Southern 500)
William Byron – one win (May 2023)
Kyle Busch – one win (2008 Southern 500)
- In 127 NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington Raceway, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 44 victories. In six events in the series’ Next Gen era, Chevrolet has earned three victories – recorded in consecutive events by Erik Jones (Sept. 2022), William Byron (May 2023) and Kyle Larson (Sept. 2023).
- Chevrolet is the only manufacturer to accomplish a tripleheader sweep across all three NASCAR national divisions this season – earned at Homestead-Miami Speedway courtesy of victories by Kyle Larson (Cup and Truck Series) and Justin Allgaier (Xfinity Series).
- In 115 points-paying races in the Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 54 victories – a winning percentage of 47%.
- With its 43 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 868 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history.
TUNE-IN:
NASCAR Cup Series
Goodyear 400
Sunday, April 6, at 3 p.m. ET
(FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200
Saturday, April 5, at 3:30 p.m. ET
(CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Do you reflect on all of the sweat equity that you’ve put in to get to where you are today?
“My dad (Ralph) sent me photos recently of us at Martinsville with the 15 Cup car where it was just me, dad and Pat Tryson (crew chief) standing around the car at pre-race. It was a small group and no one was paying attention. We had all kinds of issues with brakes and things like that. We were talking about how dad went over with Pat after practice at Martinsville and Stewart-Haas took off their brakes after practice and were bolting on their race brakes. We got rotors off of one of their cars and put them on our car for the race. That was in the Cup Series just a few years ago, 2018, I think. It’s wild, I had forgotten about that. To run used brake rotors is just not something you do. We don’t change them anymore with Gen 7 but back then you needed new rotors to start the race. I had to take care of mine because I was already using used ones.”
How do you get yourself in the right mindset at Darlington to race how you need to race and not get caught up in the mid-race shenanigans and actually make it to the end?
“It’ll start with the Xfinity car. I’ll get on track with that first and get reacclimated with the track and then getting up to speed in the Cup car will be next. Just making it through 400 miles there is the important part. It’s tough and it’s famous for a reason. Darlington is such a special track for me. I love it so much and it would be a big deal to me personally to get a Cup win there.”
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
“Darlington Raceway is one of my favorite tracks and I love racing there. It’s a racer’s track, and the history there is so special. It’s one of the hardest races to win. I have finished second there in the past, so we want to improve on that. The track gets slick and wears tires quite a bit. The key to Darlington Raceway is trying to race the track and not the competition. It would be nice to knock another Crown Jewel off. I’ve got two of them and another one would be pretty special to take the No. 3 Chevrolet to Victory Lane Sunday night.”
Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
“Darlington is one of my favorite tracks. I’m excited to get there this weekend and continue to make gains with the No. 7 team. We’ve shown a lot of speed and I think that will show again this weekend.”
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
What do you remember about your first race at Darlington, how long did it take before you got your first stripe?
“I’m trying to remember if I hit the wall in my first race there. I remember that it was in the No. 87 Chevrolet. I don’t think I hit the wall in my first race there. I finished second. I don’t know if I ever hit the wall, because I ran the bottom of three and four the whole time. That was my money maker, so I didn’t have to run the wall. I was fast without it. My next race there, though, I was in the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports and I knocked it down. We were getting really loose on the long runs and I was kind of backing it into the corner like a dirt car, putting the right rear tail light up against the fence and the right rear tail light grabbed and slapped the front over, you know, so, don’t do that. It’s not a cushion, and this isn’t dirt car.”
Is there a particular race at Darlington that stands out to you as more difficult than another?
“Not really. I would say they’re all pretty tough, you know, but I think the long ones, the 500-mile races. But no, I can’t think of one that comes to mind.”
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
“Darlington is probably my favorite racetrack on the circuit. I just have always felt a good connection with that place, and I love racing around there – the history, driving down to Darlington is always a fun time for me, and I’ve had success there. I feel like it’ just one of those places that I’ve got a good natural feel for and I’m looking forward to doing it with this No. 10 team and Kaulig Racing.”
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
“Darlington is a racetrack that has been a struggle for me in the past. I felt like over the last couple years, I’m definitely getting more confident there. I feel like our program this year has been strong on bigger racetracks so I’m looking forward to going there and fighting for 400 miles to get some momentum back. Overall, this is the most confident I have felt going to Darlington and I know we will show up there and have speed like we have all year.”
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet
With such an old racetrack like Darlington, it can be difficult to navigate a long race there. How do you approach each race at Darlington given its difficulty?
“You have to approach Darlington the same way every time. It’s been the same since forever. This is a place where you have to race the racetrack and keep your car clean, specifically keep it out of the fence. There’s a lot of areas where you can make mistakes at this racetrack. It’s about just keeping your car under the limit and figuring out what is too far. That’s the way you have to race Darlington. It’s been the same ever since they built it. This track is a battle and it’s tough, but it’s also a lot of fun.”
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
What are your thoughts about going to Darlington?
“Darlington has been a good track for us. I really enjoy Darlington. It’s so tough; it is everything that we promote it to be as far as the level of difficulty, and you’re just right up against the limit, right up against the wall, and tires still fall off, even with this NextGen era. It’s one of those races where you earn your money, and the driver has a lot of value for taking care of the tires, long run, pace, and all those things. I enjoy Darlington; it’s also one of those races that I need to add to the Crown Jewel victories because I got the 500, and I got the Brickyard. The Southern 500 is the one you need, right? I know it’s not the Southern 500, but a Darlington win would be enough to cover it. If I can check the box, I would love to.”
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
You had a great run at Darlington last September. How does that translate to the Spring race?
“I would say the day race is probably more difficult. It’s a shorter race and you don’t have a drastic change in the track from day to night. You can’t bank on those extra laps or the track getting tighter and allowing you to get caught up on the handling. Everyone wants to win the Southern 500, but a win at Darlington in either scenario is really special. We’ve improved a lot as team since that last race at Darlington where we qualified well, and I think we have a good chance to show speed in practice, qualify decent and have another good points day.”
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Seven races into the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, what is the biggest difference in running full-time in the Cup series compared to full-time in the Supercars series?
“Good question (laughs). It’s a massive difference racing every week, rather than every two or three weeks. It’s been good to build a relationship with a whole bunch of different people, the No. 88 guys, a lot of new people at Trackhouse, but just learning everyone and getting into a rhythm is probably the biggest thing. It still feels fresh but there is 30-something more weekends to go. It’s a long season, but I’m enjoying the new challenge.”
You’ve mentioned Darlington is one of your favorite tracks on the NASCAR circuit. What are you looking forward to most about racing there this weekend?
“Yes, it’s one of my favorite tracks that we race. Darlington is such a massive challenge and it’s a track everyone wants to win at. The history of the racetrack brings a different feel when we get there and get out on track. It’s pretty neat. I ran well there in the Xfinity car last season and struggled a bit in the Cup car, but excited to see what my WeatherTech team can accomplish this weekend.”
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Are you ready for Darlington?
“Yes, we have been preparing very well. Every NASCAR driver respects Darlington and it’s a place where you must do a good job if you want to run well. It’s always a really big challenge. It’s a tough track, you have to race the track as much as you race the rest of the field. Darlington isn’t just a mental challenge but a physical challenge as well. If you win there you know you have done something special. We spend a lot of time training for races like Sunday.”
First Outing for Quaker State in 2025:
“I have told the story several times but Quaker State is one of Mexico’s most popular racing sponsors. I watched Adrian Fernandez race the Quaker State car when he was in IndyCar in my hometown of Monterrey, Mexico. I dreamed of driving the Quaker State car. Last year we got to honor Adrian in Darlington and that might have been one of my all-time favorite paint schemes. Everyone recognizes Quaker State in Mexico and America. I feel very honored to drive the Quaker State Chevrolet. We also benefit from their technical alliance with Trackhouse Racing. They are great partners.”
Connor Zilisch, No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
“Darlington has been around forever and the Southern 500 is one of the bigger races in NASCAR, one of the crown jewels. I’m excited to get my first race there. We have such a cool throwback paint scheme on our WeatherTech Chevrolet to honor Buddy Baker’s Crisco car. It means a lot to bring some history back to this race and run a throwback car to honor a guy like Buddy Baker who has such a rich history in NASCAR. It’s going to be such a cool weekend. Darlington is tough but I’m excited to go there for the first time. I’ve run a few laps in the SIM. It’s one of the tougher tracks we go to. I just want to get through the day cleanly, try not to hit the wall too many times and hopefully keep all four tires up the whole race. JR Motorsports always has good cars at Darlington so we should have a good shot. Justin (Allgaier) won there last year so I’m confident we’re going to have a fast WeatherTech Chevrolet. It’s going to be about me figuring it out as quickly as possible. That’s going to be a tough one, but I’m excited to learn about Darlington.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2024): 43
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)
Most recent: 2024
Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
Drivers Championships:
Total (1949-2024): 33
First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)
Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)
Most recent: Kyle Larson (2021)
Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021
Event Victories:
Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)
2025 STATISTICS:
Wins: 2
Poles: 3
Laps Led: 472
Top-Fives: 15
Top-10s: 32
Stage Wins: 3
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 868 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 756
Laps led to date: 253,183
Top-fives to date: 4,384
Top-10s to date: 9,039
Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:
General Motors: 1,202
Chevrolet: 868
Pontiac: 154
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65
Ford: 841
Ford: 741
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 191
Chrysler: 59
Toyota: 193
About General Motors
General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.
