NASCAR Cup Series
Darlington Raceway
Cook Out Southern 500
Team Chevy Post-Race Report
September 6, 2026
Larson Starts Title-Defending Campaign with a Top-Five Finish at Darlington Raceway
Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team started their championship title-defending campaign with a strong top-five finish in the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Despite a deep starting position due to the metric, the California native raced his way into the top-10 during Stage Two and became a familiar face at the front of the pack for much of the remainder of the race – going on to lead a race-high 99 laps en route to his 10th top-five finish of the season. Larson will head to the second stop of the Chase at World Wide Technology Raceway ranked seventh in the standings and 49-points behind the lead.
RACE RECAP:
Stage One:
With the starting lineup set by the metric, Daniel Suarez and the No. 7 Spire Motorsports team inherited a spot on the front row to lead the NASCAR Cup Series to the green flag and the start of the Chase at Darlington Raceway. A strong start saw the Spire Motorsports driver edge his Chevrolet to the top of the leaderboard to pace the opening lap of his title-contention run. But it was early in the run when Suarez reported that he was struggling with the balance of his Chevrolet, ultimately holding on to a top-15 running position en route to the competition caution on Lap 35. A two-stop stage saw the green flag pit cycle begin near the halfway mark of the run. At that point, it was fellow Chase contender, William Byron, that made the steady climb up through the field to make his first appearance in the top-10 of the evening. Once the cycle was deemed complete, the North Carolina native found himself up in the eighth position for the final 35-lap run of Stage One. Hovering around the position for much of the run, Byron was settled in ninth when a caution flew with six laps to go – ultimately bringing the opening stage to a close.
Stage Two:
Byron and Elliott were among the teams that gained track position in the race off pit road, lining up in the eighth and ninth positions, respectively, to start Stage Two. The stage started with yet another green flag run, and while maintaining their running positions, their Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Larson, joined the duo in the top-10 for the first time of the evening. Continuing to pace the Bowtie brigade, Byron reported that he was still looking for better drive in his Chevrolet-powered machine before his next trip to pit road. With another green flag pit cycle underway, crew chief Cliff Daniels opted for a longer run on this set of tires – ultimately giving Larson a brief tenure in the lead before calling his driver to pit road for four tires and fuel. The stage length required a second green flag pit cycle, and while employing a similar strategy, Larson was among the tail-end of the leaders to make his stop – finding his way back to the lead once again before making the dive to pit road. Cycling back up into the seventh position, the reigning champion found his footing late in the run – entering the top-five and quickly making a pass on the No. 1 seed, Denny Hamlin, with 16 laps to go in the stage. It was an impressive run by Larson with the California native driving up into the second position and a margin of just 1.5-seconds behind then race leader, Christopher Bell, at the drop of the second green-white checkered flag.
Final Stage:
The No. 5 pit crew delivered a stellar performance during the stage break to give Larson the win in the race off pit road and a front row starting position to take the green flag for the final stage. Wasting no time, Larson powered his Chevrolet to the lead on the opening lap, going on to pull away to a nearly three-second lead over second with 110 laps to go in the race. Continuing to set a strong pace, Larson maintained the margin throughout the run before being called to pit road for a scheduled stop with 88 laps to go. Cycling back up into the second position, a caution flew just before the end of the green flag pit cycle, and with the direction to stay out, Larson found a familiar spot back on the front row for the restart. Finding his rhythm around the wall of “The Lady in Black”, Larson continued to click off laps in the closing portion of the race as a caution flew on Lap 316 for his teammate, Byron, who’s spin spiraled into what ended up being a race-ending mechanical issue. With the field heading to pit road for what was setting up for the final stop of the race, Larson exited in the third position after service from the No. 5 crew. After a brief red flag for precipitation, it was a gamble from atop the No. 5 box to stay out once the caution period resumed to give Larson crucial track position back on the front row for the restart and a 24-lap run to the end. The restart saw Larson quickly take over the lead once again but with a trio of hard-charging drivers in his rearview mirror that had four fresh Goodyear tires. A valiant effort saw the reigning champion lead Chevrolet with a top-five finish to start his title-defending campaign.
Team Chevy Unofficial Top-20 Results
Pos. Driver
5th – Kyle Larson
11th – Carson Hocevar
12th – Alex Bowman
14th – Chase Elliott
17th – Michael McDowell
Chevrolet’s season statistics with 27 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 6
Poles: 6
Top-Fives: 44
Top 10s: 90
Stage Wins: 18
The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Chase will continue at World Wide Technology Raceway with the Enjoy Illinois 300 on Sunday, September 13, at 3 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the USA Network, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Post-Race Driver Quotes:
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 29th
“Disappointing night for the No. 3 Boot Barn Chevrolet team. We struggled with balance all night, and ended real tight. I couldn’t turn on the bottom and running the top was the only shot we had. We have a lot of work to do. We have nine races to find speed, balance and a little bit of everything. We’re going to keep digging and hopefully that starts to show at World Wide Technology Raceway.”
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 5th
How hard was it to hang on there at the end?
“Yeah, I thought more people would stay out. I think another two or three people staying out would have helped. I think, ultimately, they would have got to me. I was just hoping I could get some laps where I could take care of my tires. (Christopher) Bell got to second really quickly and we were just instantly on the defense trying to block lines, so I wasn’t really able to manage my tires like I would have liked. I feel like I did the best job I could, honestly, but I just didn’t think he would get to second that fast so I could have spent those first five or seven laps saving my tires so I would have something when he got there. And then ultimately, I held him off longer than I thought I could. There was a point where I thought I had maybe damaged his tires enough where maybe I could hang onto it. He was just too close to me in (turn) one and I couldn’t run up the hill like I wanted to.”
You started deep in the field with the metric. What’s it feel like to walk away with a top-five to start the Chase?
“Yeah, it was a great day for this No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team. That first run of the race, we really struggled, and I was like, man, this is going to be a long race and we’re going to lose a lot of points here. But we got the first adjustment in and our Chevy really woke up. I felt like I could run the lines that I’m comfortable running here. My entry was secure enough to allow me to do that. It helped me manage my tires really well on the long run, and we had our strategy working out for us in the second-half of the first stage and all of the second stage. It was amazing to get to second. We had the hiccup there on pit road and lost control of the race there, but then the race kind of got messy after that and you just didn’t know how it was going to play out.”
Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 21st
“It was a long night. Listen, something about the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team this year is that we’ve done an amazing job executing, and if we have a 10th-place car, we finish better, and that’s been our signature for the entire year. Today, we didn’t have the speed at the start of the race. We went from leading the race to back in 20th. And then, we just didn’t execute the little things. Our last pit stop was bad. The adjustments, I feel like we never really improved our car a whole lot. We have to go back and regroup. We also had a couple issues with the fuel pump and an issue with the engine, a couple little things. It wasn’t the way we wanted to start the Chase, but overall, I know I have a great team. At Spire Motorsports, we’re going to go back to work and come back stronger next weekend.”
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Sidelined by a mechanical issue in the final stage.
Finished: 37th
“I’ve never had that happen. I felt like I had a flat left-rear tire in (turns) one and two, so I slowed down quite a bit and I was going to pit and try to be early on the cycle. I’m not sure, it was super odd. I don’t know if I was blowing up in that process and got oil on my tire or what. We had an eighth or ninth-place run going, but it was just an unfortunate end to the evening for this No. 24 Valvoline Restore & Protect Chevrolet team.”
Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 28th
“Man, our Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet fired off really good at the start of the race when the sun was up. We were able to move forward and run solid lap times, staying on the lead lap despite our starting position. Once the track got fully shaded though, the balance took a big swing and we struggled the rest of the night. We were working in a two inch by two inch box with adjustments. The car fired off tight, then would get out of the track with both fronts and rears. The rear end would have a swinging sensation. I hate it for these guys because we showed a lot of promise at the beginning, especially without having practice or qualifying yesterday. We’ll keep grinding.”
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 17th
“A long night here in Darlington, but we showed a lot of speed. I felt like we were right on the fringe of taking home a top-10 finish today, but during that last restart it felt like something broke. Regardless, proud of our No. 71 Delaware Life Chevrolet, this was a lot of progress from where we were in the spring for our guys. We have run well at Gateway in the past, I am looking forward to getting back there with Spire Motorsports and continuing to build this momentum over the last nine weeks.”
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 11th
“Overall, I was pretty happy with our race, considering we started 34th with the metric. Our No. 77 Spectrum Chevrolet handled pretty well throughout the evening. Obviously, we want more, but this is our first run at this whole Chase thing and we’re just gaining experience. We were up there with a lot of other Chase drivers, which is ultimately what we want to do.”
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