Official Release

Taking a page from its own history book, Richard Petty and STP once again reached an agreement to place the STP day glo red on the Petty blue No. 43 for today's running of the Bojangles' Southern 500 at the Darlington Raceway. The agreement is to celebrate the longest and most famous paint scheme in the history of NASCAR, and to also relive the story of how this iconic paint scheme came to be. The car was transformed this morning after approval from NASCAR.

RICHARD CHILDRESS, TEAM OWNER, RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING – Driving his own 1969 Camaro “I’m looking forward to getting back on a racetrack with my 1969 Camaro. I ran a Camaro in the Talladega 500 in 1969 when the track was opened, so it seems fitting for me to be a part of Chevy’s Camaro parade laps. Darlington’s throwback weekend is really special for our fans and a good way to remember our heritage. I’m honored to share the track with this group, I just hope they make sure my Camaro is out front!”

Ryan Reed took on the historic track of Darlington Raceway for NASCAR’s Throwback weekend in his No. 16 Drive Down A1C Lilly Diabetes Ford Fusion Saturday afternoon. Reed started the race 14th and despite dealing with a tight-handling condition was able to maintain his ground to cross the finish line 13th.

GMS Racing sits 10th in the owners points standings; 4 points behind JR Motorsports in ninth place. “I was way too loose. The back end kept getting out from underneath me. I appreciate GMS Racing letting me get back behind the wheel of the No. 23 Chevrolet. We will keep chipping away and I look forward to Indy next weekend.”

Matt Tifft Earns First Top-10 Finish at Darlington Raceway and Clinches Playoff Spot in No. 2 Surface Sunscreen Chevrolet "It feels awesome to come out of Darlington Raceway with a top-10 finish and a clinched playoff spot, especially considering last year when I wasn't able to make a lap during the race due to early contact. My No. 2 Surface Sunscreen Chevrolet Camaro handled better and better throughout this weekend and came into its prime right as I started to figure out how to get around this track."

Camry driver Denny Hamlin (fourth) was the highest-finishing Toyota driver in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway.

AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 60 Ford Hall of Fans Ford Mustang – (Retired after being involved in an accident on lap 2). “My only mindset coming in today was to learn 200 miles around Darlington. That’s all I cared about. All I cared about was getting a good run for this team and to be taken out on lap two sucks. It sucks bad. It just shows the level of respect some guys race with and it’s tough. It bothers me a lot, but you’ve got to keep fighting. You can’t give up. It’s been a tough year.”

Austin Cindric’s first-ever competition at Darlington Raceway did not go according to plan, as contact with the No. 11 on the final corner of the first lap sent the No. 60 Ford Hall of Fans Mustang into the interior wall just past the start-finish line. Damage was too severe to continue, and Cindric was scored with a 40th-place finish.

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Throwback Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing - Qualifying Position: 1st - How significant is this pole as you look to defend your Southern 500 title from last year? “The number one pit stall is obviously very important here. I’m excited about that. Really, the team has done a great job with the car all weekend, so pretty optimistic and you know hopeful that we have a good smooth race on Sunday and continue to build some momentum here over the next few weeks.”

KURT BUSCH, No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Fusion – “We worked really hard to qualify ninth.  I just messed up the first time out in round two.  I chose the middle lane in three and four and I should have stayed on the bottom.  That put us in P13, so we went back out and picked up time, so it verified the line that I chose, it’s just that we had an extra outing on our tires for round three.  There’s no way to go for the pole.  There’s no way to try to stretch it, especially with an impound and having an extra lap on the tires, so that’s kind of the cash register of stuff we went through to qualify ninth, so we’ll go from there.”