The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) heads to Darlington Raceway for the Cook Out Southern 500, the first race of the 10-race Chase, on Sunday, September 6, at 5 p.m. ET on USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and HBO Max.
In August of 2025, Denny Hamlin captured the pole for the Southern 500 with a lap of 171.381 mph for his second Cup Series pole at Darlington. Then Chase Briscoe dominated the Southern 500 and won back-to-back Southern 500s by 0.408 seconds over Tyler Reddick.
In March, Tyler Reddick captured the pole for the Goodyear 400 with a lap of 169.152 mph in his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota, and Reddick also won the race, but it wasn’t that easy. Reddick reported a brake issue early in the stage and overcame early electrical issues to lead 77 laps en route to his fourth win of the 2026 Cup Series season.
The NASCAR Cup Series Reseeded Driver Points for the Chase
| Rank | Driver | No | Points | Ldr | Nxt | Race Wins | Stage Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | 2100 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 2 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | 2075 | -25 | 25 | 3 | 8 |
| 3 | Tyler Reddick | 45 | 2065 | -35 | 10 | 5 | 1 |
| 4 | Ty Gibbs | 54 | 2060 | -40 | 5 | 2 | 5 |
| 5 | Chase Briscoe | 19 | 2055 | -45 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | Christopher Bell | 20 | 2050 | -50 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| 7 | Kyle Larson | 5 | 2045 | -55 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | Chase Elliott | 9 | 2040 | -60 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| 9 | Joey Logano | 22 | 2035 | -65 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| 10 | Chris Buescher | 17 | 2030 | -70 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Daniel Suarez | 7 | 2025 | -75 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Carson Hocevar | 77 | 2020 | -80 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 13 | William Byron | 24 | 2015 | -85 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
| 14 | Bubba Wallace | 23 | 2010 | -90 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| 15 | Austin Cindric | 2 | 2005 | -95 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | Ryan Preece | 60 | 2000 | -100 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
Track & Race Information for the Cook Out Southern 500
Track Length: 1.366 miles
Degree of Banking in Corners: 25 degrees – Turns 1 & 2 and 23 degrees – Turns 3 & 4
Degree of Banking on Straights: 6 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 1,229 feet
Backstretch Length: 1,229 feet
The Purse: $11,849,963
Race Schedule, Length and Stages for the Cook Out Southern 500
Race Length: 501.32 Miles (367 laps)
Stage 1 & 2 Length: 115 Laps (each)
Final Stage Length: 137 Laps
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
1:30 PM – 2:20 PM: NOAPS PRACTICE
2:35 PM – 3:30 PM: NOAPS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND)
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM: NCS PRACTICE TRACK HOT
5:10 PM – 6:00 PM: NCS QUALIFYING
7:00 PM: NOAPS FLEETIO 200 DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS ON THE CW NETWORK
7:30 PM: NOAPS FLEETIO 200 RACE (STAGES 45/90/147 LAPS = 200.8 MILES) ON THE CW NETWORK
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
4:20 PM: NCS COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500 DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS ON THE USA NETWORK
5:00 PM: NCS COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500 RACE (STAGES 115/230/367 LAPS = 501.32 MILES ) ON THE USA NETWORK
*All times are Eastern. NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS)
Who and what should you look out for at Darlington Raceway?
Denny Hamlin leads the Cup Series point standings to begin the postseason, holding a 25-point lead over second place. Hamlin leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in wins with five victories (2010, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2025). Hamlin also leads all active NCS drivers in second-place finishes with four, followed by Kyle Larson and Tyler Reddick with three, and Brad Keselowski with two.
Joey Logano (2022) and Tyler Reddick (2026) are the only active drivers to win from the pole, and a total of 22 of the 130 (16.92%) NCS races have been won from the pole or first starting position. The most recent one was Tyler Reddick in 2026.
Kyle Larson leads all active drivers in laps led with 1,070 laps led in 17 starts.
The Driver Picks for the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway!
- Chris Buescher: One top five, eight top 10s, and an average finish of 15.222.
- Ryan Blaney: Two top fives, five top 10s, and an average finish of 17.895.
- Christoper Bell: One pole, three top fives, four top 10s, and an average finish of 15.571.
- William Byron: Two poles, one win, five top fives, eight top 10s, and an average finish of 14.938.
- Denny Hamlin: Two poles, five wins, 14 top fives, 20 top 10s, and the series-best average finish of 8.000.
