Darlington Raceway
Sunday, March 22
1.366-Mile Egg-Shaped Oval
3 p.m. ET
Location: Darlington, South Carolina
TV: Fox
Event: NASCAR Cup Series race (6 of 36)
RADIO: SiriusXM

5 KYLE LARSON
Age: 33 (July 31, 1992)
Hometown: Elk Grove, California
Last Week: 7th (Las Vegas)
Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels
Standings: T-7
 
No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet

• Kyle Larson and the No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM team led 62 laps en route to a seventh-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last Sunday. The result marked their third consecutive top-10 finish of the season.
• Larson has finished in the top three in six of his 16 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, including a win in the fall of 2023. He has led laps in all but four of those races and has led 394 of the 1,050 total laps run at Darlington in the Next Gen car, most of any driver.
• The defending Cup Series champion has won six stages at Darlington, second most among all drivers.
• Larson will fill in for Alex Bowman in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series race Saturday at Darlington, driving the No. 88 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet for JR Motorsports for the second straight week. Last weekend at Las Vegas, Larson put the ride in victory lane.

9 CHASE ELLIOTT
Age: 30 (Nov. 28, 1995)
Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
Last week: 2nd (Las Vegas)
Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
Standings: 5th

No. 9 UniFirst Chevrolet

• Last weekend, Chase Elliott earned his best finish of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, placing second at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
• Elliott’s average finish of 9.4 is his best through five races of any season since 2017 and ranks third best among his competitors. He is one of five drivers to finish on the lead lap in every race this season.
• In 2026, the Dawsonville, Georgia, native has spent the eighth-most laps inside the top 10.
• This weekend, the series heads to Darlington Raceway, where Elliott has a best finish of third (spring 2023). He has four finishes of eighth or better in his last eight Darlington Cup Series races.
• In this race last spring, the 30-year-old driver earned an eighth-place finish.

24 WILLIAM BYRON
Age: 28 (Nov. 29, 1997)
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Last Week: 3rd (Las Vegas)
Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle
Standings: T-7

No. 24 RAPTOR Chevrolet

• At Las Vegas Motor Speedway last week, William Byron scored a stage two win and led 26 laps before recording a season-best third-place result.
• Byron has scored 35 stage points through five NASCAR Cup Series events in 2026, the sixth most. He also has an average running position of 10.03, which ranks third, and has a sixth-best average finish of 12.6. The 28-year-old has run the fifth-most laps in the top five (412) and the second-most laps in the top 10 (818).
• In four of the last five seasons, Byron was the first driver to visit victory lane for Hendrick Motorsports. His teammate Kyle Larson scored the first win of the year in 2022.
• The Charlotte, North Carolina, native has two pole awards, one win (spring 2023), four stage wins (third best) and five top-five finishes (tied for second-best personally) in 15 career Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway.
• In last year’s spring race at Darlington, Byron won the first two stages and led 243 laps before a green-flag pit cycle relegated him to a runner-up result. That was the third-most laps that Byron has led in a single race in his Cup career. It was also the sixth most led from the start of any event in the modern era and the most in track history.
• In the Next Gen era at Darlington, Byron has led the third-most laps (328), run the most laps in the top five (1,489) and the second most in the top 10 (2,101). Byron has finished eighth or better in five of the last seven races at the egg-shaped oval.

48 JUSTIN ALLGAIER
Age: 39 (June 6, 1986)
Hometown: Riverton, Illinois
Last Week: 25th
Crew Chief: Blake Harris
Standings: 36th (owner’s points)

No. 48 Ally Chevrolet

• Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, will not compete in this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series event at Darlington Raceway as he continues to recover from vertigo. Justin Allgaier will fill in for Bowman.
• It will mark the second straight Sunday with Allgaier behind the wheel after the 2024 NASCAR O’Reilly Series champion subbed for Bowman at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last week.
• In the NOAPS, Allgaier has earned stage points in every stage so far this season.
• Allgaier won the NOAPS race at Phoenix Raceway earlier this year, breaking the record for most consecutive seasons (10) with a win in the series.
• At Darlington Raceway in the NOAPS, Allgaier has earned the most wins (three) among active drivers, has led the fourth-most laps (7,202) and carries the longest active top-10 streak with nine.

17 COREY DAY
Age: 20 (November 28, 2005)
Hometown: Clovis, California
Last Finish: 8th (Las Vegas)
Crew Chief: Adam Wall
Standings: 7th

• Corey Day is set to make his first NASCAR O’Reilly Series start at Darlington Raceway this Saturday.
• In 2025, the Clovis, California, native competed at Darlington in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports entry in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, qualifying 15th and finishing ninth.
• Day heads to Darlington following a breakthrough performance at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he led laps (nine) for the first time in his stock car racing career.
• As Day prepares for his sixth NOAPS start of the season, he does so with momentum, having earned four straight top-10 finishes.

Hendrick Motorsports

• Hendrick Motorsports enters this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway as the facility’s all-time leader in wins (16), top fives (58), top 10s (97) and laps led (4,269).
• The organization’s drivers have combined to win five of the last eight stages at the famed 1.366-mile oval. At least one Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet has finished in the top 10 in 12 of the last 13 Darlington races.
• The Hendrick Motorsports engine department enters the weekend with 559 victories across all three national NASCAR touring series including four straight in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series.
• Hendrick Motorsports remains the premier series’ all-time standard bearer in wins (320), poles (250), top-five finishes (1,326), top 10s (2,268), laps led (85,525) and championships (15).

 QUOTABLE /
 
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet, on returning to Darlington Raceway: “I’m looking forward to getting back to Darlington and applying what we’ve learned as an organization. I feel like this track suits my racing style, and I’m excited to continue the momentum we’ve built as a team and hopefully put the HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevy back in Victory Lane.”

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet, on this weekend’s race at Darlington Raceway: “Darlington has been a tough one for us. But it is a place I really enjoy. A lot of times when you like a track or enjoy going there, you tend to run well or are in the mix a little more. We had some good runs in the previous gen car there, but certainly that’s not mirrored in the Next Gen era the last handful of years. It’s been a challenge. I would say, for us, probably the first thing would be trying to have a better Saturday. I think having a good Saturday certainly sets yourself up for more success than having to play catch up. So, hopefully that’s the case when we get there.”

William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet, on heading to Darlington Raceway off of a good run at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: “Last week’s race (at Las Vegas) was definitely more indicative of what we are expecting for this season. We were close on speed from unloading and got the car better throughout the weekend and just needed a little bit more in the end. We’ve had success at Darlington but last fall was a bit worrisome. Hopefully we can use some of the notes we have on the new Chevrolet body from this year and apply it to what we used for last spring’s race. I’m hopeful, for sure.”

Justin Allgaier, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet, on filling in for Alex Bowman at Darlington Raceway: “We are all continuing to keep Alex (Bowman) top of mind and hope that his recovery continues so that he can get back behind the wheel of this car. Hopefully we can go out and make him proud this weekend. I’ve always loved racing at Darlington, and I feel like we have a great chance to have a really solid day on Sunday.”

Corey Day, driver of the No. 17 Chevrolet, on Darlington Raceway: “Darlington has always been a race I enjoy watching, it always puts on a great show and I’m excited to be a part of it this year in the No. 17 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet. Last year, I ran the track in the truck series so I have an understanding of the visuals, but this will be my first time in a NOAPS car. I’m ready to try it out, see how much speed we get, and experience another new track with the team.”

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Ford Racing Media Zoom Call
Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Chris Buescher, driver of the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse, is coming off a sixth-place finish last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He currently sits ninth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings as the circuit heads to Darlington Raceway.

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT DOES A SIXTH-PLACE FINISH AT LAS VEGAS SAY ABOUT WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED VERSUS JUST HAVING A GREAT FINISH, AND HOW DO YOU LOOK AT DARLINGTON? “Darlington is very separate from Las Vegas, I believe. But starting with that one, I’d say that the beginning of the season is, in a way, strange right now with superspeedways, road course, Phoenix is somewhere between a short track and not, but it was hard to get a read on where we felt like we were at to fire off the season. We’ve been kind of looking to get through the Phoenix and Vegas swing to understand and so, for us, I think that coming out of Vegas with a strong day, not a real strong practice for us, but the team did a phenomenal job. We got the car underneath us for qualifying and was able to get a good pit stall selection, a good start to the race and just steadily work our way through it. The pit crew did a great job. The whole team fired on all eight the entire race and just had very good execution, which put us in the hunt for a top five. We faded a little bit in the last 15 or 20 laps, but it was a really strong day overall. Obviously, we can see we’re gonna hunt a little bit more speed yet. We’re not completely where we want to be, but it was a solid first real mile-and-a-half to get our bearings about us and understand where we feel like we’re sitting at, and I felt like it was strong. To tackle the Darlington side of it, we’ve got a lot more questions than answers right now. With this package, with the limited amount of sim that we’ve tried to do and tried to understand, predicting fall off to be several seconds to the point where we don’t think we’re gonna have to count on two hands, but we might max out one. It’s gonna be big from that side of things and it’s gonna certainly change the race and how we approach it and how hard you want to push. Can you conserve the tire enough to survive late into a run? It’s the shorter Darlington race, but, that being said, it’s still gonna present a lot of challenges that Darlington has come to present all on its own, and now we’re tacking on the horsepower, the less downforce, and the higher falloff tires, so lots of excitement going into this one, lots of hope to see some really unique, good racing.”

CAN YOU SET THE SCENE FOR THE FANS OF DARLINGTON BEING SPECIAL AND IS BIFFLE GOING TO BE RIDING WITH YOU THIS WEEKEND? “We had a good time cruising with a Roush-charged Mustang down to Darlington. It’s a wonder we didn’t get pulled over. I know better nowadays. I drive and F-350 every day because, let’s be real, I’m not gonna get caught running triple digits in a truck that won’t allow you to run that fast. I know my limits nowadays, but, aside from that, we have the three Biffle memorial paint schemes or throwbacks if you want to call them that. For all of our cars to be able to do that and for Fifth Third Bank to be open and allowing us to take their branding and turn it into a remembrance for the Biffle family altogether is truly special for us. We certainly want to go make big things happen for everybody. We had a real neat moment in Daytona with all four of our cars getting to run the stylized font, but this is something that I wouldn’t say as big of a surprise to me as the rest of the industry, but I certainly didn’t see it coming and it’s a pretty neat opportunity for all three of our RFK drivers to be able to do this and carry Biffle with us.”

DO YOU THINK DARLINGTON COULD RESEMBLE BRISTOL IN TERMS OF TIRE FALL OFF AND DO YOU THINK THIS IS GOING TO BE A TRACK TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE THING? “I would not predict it to look like Bristol one way or the other. I know Bristol has been all over the map, but I think what we are going to have is going to be less based on how quickly the tire shreds or grinds away and more versus how the tire falls off on a pace aspect as it gets hot, as it gets slick and almost slimy, and as we get down to some wear indicators. So, I don’t think it’s going to be weather sensitive nearly to the extent that you see at Bristol. I don’t think it’s the same challenges that we’ve had there. I think you will see it to where if it’s, which it’s looking like it’s gonna be really warm, I think you’re going to have a lot of fall off in speed, a lot of movement in the race cars. I think you’re going to – BK was making jokes about needing more tires, but also maybe needing more toe links for the field because it’s just going to be that difficult to drive. That’s our main prediction versus just wearing them out that quickly. When we’ve had our most accelerated wear at Bristol, the pace has stayed really high all the way to the point where there was just no rubber left. I don’t predict that’s what you’re going to see when we get down to Darlington.”

COMPARING THIS TO PAST DARLINGTON RACES SINCE THE NEXT GEN CAR HAS COME OUT. IT SEEMS LIKE YOU GET TO A CERTAIN POINT IN A RUN AND IT’S VERY DIFFICULT IF YOU’RE UP ALONG THE WALL FOR THE CAR TRAILING TO GENERATE ANY KIND OF MOMENTUM TO COMPLETE A PASS ON THE INSIDE. DO YOU EXPECT THAT TO BE DIFFERENT? “That will still be there, just in the sense that everybody is going to be grip limited at the tail end of the run. I think our hope is that you just see it at different rates. If somebody is going to go be aggressive and really push hard and just wear out tires early, the hope is that you will see them fall off three or four tenths harder over the last 15-20 laps of a run versus somebody that just tries to be more consistent throughout the entire thing. I would say that if you have two cars that battle it out from the green flag until a green flag cycle, and are both pushing extremely hard, you’re going to see a minimal difference in fall off, which I think is not going to lead to those two cars being able to trade places as easily at the tail end of a run versus somebody that’s not pushing as hard early. That’s my prediction. I don’t know if that’s completely accurate, but, ultimately, we are all going to be grip limited. You’re just going to be looking for some amount of clean air, some amount of grip on the racetrack. We’ve seen the bottom, what you would almost call the apron of three and four come in in year’s past. That’s hard on tires, but it is gripped up because it’s not been run in so hard through the years, so is that an option for a couple laps? Probably. Is that somewhere you’re gonna run an entire run? I would say very unlikely, so there are some options at Darlington for sure. Like I said at the beginning, I think we have a lot more questions than answers right now, and I’m excited to see how that all plays out. Fortunately, all of our RFK Fords are in group two, so we get to watch that first practice and take notes or point and laugh or whatever it may be that we’re doing, but we will be watching with a sharp eye for sure.”

DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE IMPROVED ON THE 1.5-MILE TRACKS, ESPECIALLY WITH KANSAS COMING UP IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS? “I think Kansas is the one that we definitely feel like Vegas should relate to the most. I think Vegas has been our weaker mile-and-a-half through the years, so we’re very hopeful that that means when we come to Kansas that that one takes a step up as well. We’ve been really good at the mile-and-a-halves the last couple years, but last year was stellar. Our qualifying efforts were unreal year over year. I would say I struggle with my qualifying most of my career and last season we killed it in qualifying all year long. Everywhere we went, so that was awesome, and now we just have to equate that to how do we balance all of that qualifying speed to race speed throughout a run, and I think we’ve had great fire off at some of those races, and we’ve had great long run speed at others, we’re just looking for that balance in the middle. Vegas was interesting because I feel like we had a good car that fired off, restarted well, and then didn’t fall off too hard throughout the entire run. Now the last run we pushed hard and paid a price, but with that exception, the entire race our balance didn’t change very much through runs, which gives me that much more hope that when we get to Kansas that we’re gonna be good throughout an entire run, which really should put us in the hunt to win races. We’re ready for some more mile-and-a-halves because that was certainly a strong suit for us last year.”

WHAT KIND OF TRAINING PROGRAM DO YOU HAVE TO PREPARE FOR RACING? ARE YOU JUST FARM STRONG? “That’s what Newman used to always tell us is he slings hay bales around. I called him a liar a lot because I know he had a tractor and I know he was using a bale spear, so, that being said, yes, we’re not lazy during the week. We have a lots of chores to do around the farm, but we also have a very good group around us at RFK that not only us three drivers, but all of the pit crew members. We have a very nice human performance center, a gym that is very, very nice, very new to us. It’s taken a big step in the right direction. We have Les (Ebert), our trainer, came over from the NFL world about right after I got to Roush, so it’s probably 15-16 years ago now, so we workout with him several times a week through strength and conditioning. We have a nutritionist. We have all the tools to dive into, so I can’t speak for the other Ford teams, but I know that it is a big deal to us here at RFK that we do try to plan out for these races knowing that it’s gonna be hot in Darlington. It’s a physical race. We have done studies on expenditures during races to see. We burn similar amounts of energy or sometimes more in the case of like a Bristol than those running a marathon. There are some really interesting data that we’ve picked up through the years and has really changed how we approach races now. I will certainly say that my rookie season I was not prepared to go 500-600 miles in a race, or well beyond that, but I’m at a point now to where I’m glad to say when we get done with any of these races, whether they’re hot or whether a cool shirt stops working, whatever it may be, we get out of the car and take a breath and walk back to the hauler and feel good about it. It’s something we take very seriously, but it’s more internal to RFK Racing. That’s the only real program that I know.”

DOES THE SIM HELP WHEN PREPARING FOR DARLINGTON AND CAN YOU PROGRAM IN THINGS LIKE TIRE WEAR AND SUSPENSION IN THE MIDDLE OF A RUN? “Yes. We get a 25-minute practice when we get to Darlington and we are told which adjustments are illegal for us to even make. We can’t lift all four tires off the ground during practice at any given time, so it is important that we get as much info as possible ahead of time. Is that difficult going into a weekend where we have as much new as we do this go-around? Yes. So, do you feel like you get to run in the simulator and believe 100 percent of what you get out of it? No. I don’t think that’s fair, but I don’t think any organization, manufacturer, team, whatever it may be, is going to say we believe 100 percent, but there are certainly things that we take away from that that we believe to be accurate and maybe directionally correct and are able to apply that towards setting up for the weekend. So, yes, it is a crucial part of how we prepare for any given weekend, and how we work to make our program better after any given weekend. We have weekly time slots that we are in there to constantly work on trying to improve our on-track performance, so the most basic way to answer that is yes, it is very important to how we approach our race weekends and how we get better.”

THERE WAS A GATHERING OF DRIVERS PAST AND PRESENT AT RFK ON TUESDAY TO HONOR JACK. WHAT WAS THAT LIKE? “I could talk way too long on this subject because I’ll start with where you ended. I’ve been under this roof in these four walls at RFK for over half of my life at this point. I got here as I was almost 16 years old because I had a handful of people that took chances, believed in me and pushed me to get to this point. That was Ken Ragan, David Ragan’s family took me in and really helped me kind of find my way in North Carolina and pushed me in the door here to meet Jack Roush and Robbie Reiser, who kind of looked through past results. I didn’t have the credentials to walk in these doors. I’m not gonna lie about that. I walked in and said, ‘Look, I’m willing to put in the work to get there and figure out how to win races here.’ And that was something ultimately that Jack signed off on and said, ‘Yeah, I want to do this and I want to take that chance.’ Did a year-and-a-half go by where Jack called me Kevin? Yes, but did it get to the point where we got through ARCA, some of the driver development programs with the Roulo Brothers up north, with working in the shop here. I remember 2013 I had seven races planned in an Xfinity car here and kind of laughing at Jack’s bootcamp now. It used to always be for those that wrecked race cars and tore stuff up and they got sent to the shop to figure out how to work on them. I had to go beg to go work in the shop because I was gonna be bored at seven races, so I’ve seen this place through a lot of different eras. I’ve seen it from all the different departments. I’ve seen the amount of people that have been here for 22, 25, 30 years under Jack’s guidance. I’ve seen it evolve and get back to the point now where we are in the hunt to win races. We fell a little short last year, but for many years I’ve been able to win races consistently, not as many as we want, but getting back to a point where everytime you see Jack he’s smiling, he’s cutting up, he’s telling stories and that’s really rewarding to be a part of it at this point, personally and selfishly. The second part is yesterday’s quarterly lunch that we did, I did not know all of that was coming, so walking in and seeing Mark Martin here, and Carl Edwards, and David Ragan, Jamie McMurray and listening to the stories. Ricky Stenhouse, listening to the stories that everybody had with Jack and realizing that not a single driver came in these walls with a very storied background or a whole lot of credentials either. Jack was a firm believer in developing people. That’s evident in the drivers that ultimately have become Hall of Famers of our sport, that have all been able to win races at the top level of NASCAR all came in these doors here with Jack willing to take a chance and put in the development. You don’t see that everywhere. That’s not the story of any other team in the garage. That means something. That’s special to Jack’s legacy. That’s special to me personally. It was special to hear those stories from all of those drivers that had the same story. To hear Mark Martin tell that in the same way that I just did about himself, knowing that Mark Martin was the driver that I looked up to as a kid was really special. It was neat to see Jack. I think he really enjoyed it. He was smiling the whole time. It was a really good time and what was an hour lunch was very soon over two hours of a gathering for everybody in the shop. I think we got to really get a great appreciation for what Jack has done for our sport as a very broad overreaching whole, and also for all of us as drivers and people that have worked here their entire careers, it was really neat. It was very interesting. It was fun to hear stories. He’s a special guy and has taken very good care of a lot of people through the years.”

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
Darlington Raceway
March 20-22, 2026

After back-to-back idle weekends, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will be back in action to join the O’Reilly Auto Parts and Cup Series for a tripleheader weekend at one of the sport’s most iconic venues – Darlington Raceway.

Three days of action at the ‘Track Too Tough To Tame’ will kick-off with the Truck Series under the lights Friday evening, where Team Chevy’s Ross Chastain – the event’s 2024 winner – will begin his quest towards a triple-duty sweep. As the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series takes center stage on Saturday, the Bowtie brand will have the opportunity to reach a record-setting undefeated season of six-straight victories. Earning a pair of podium results in the new Camaro ZL1’s first outing on an intermediate oval, the Chevrolet will look to build onto that momentum Sunday with its first trip to victory lane of the season in NASCAR’s top division.

 
Leading at the ‘Lady in Black’:

Sunday’s Goodyear 400 will mark the NASCAR Cup Series 130th appearance at Darlington Raceway. Chevrolet’s storied history at the South Carolina circuit dates back to the 1955 Southern 500 when NASCAR Hall of Famer, Herb Thomas, drove the manufacturer to its first of a series-leading 44 all-time victories at the track. Among those triumphs includes three in eight races held during the Next Gen era, including a pair of Southern 500 victories (Erik Jones – Sept. 2022; Kyle Larson – Sept. 2023) and William Byron’s victory during the 2023 spring date.

STACKING STRONG POINTS DAYS

The NASCAR Cup Series’ first appearance on an intermediate oval saw Team Chevy’s Chase Elliott and William Byron net their season-best results – bringing home a pair of podium results at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The duo, along with their Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson, were among a short list of drivers that put together a strong points day. Among the four-highest point-earners in Sunday’s race, Larson and Byron were able to make a big gain in the points standings to give Chevrolet three drivers in the top-eight heading into the Darlington race weekend.

TRIPLE-DUTY ON DECK

Team Chevy’s Ross Chastain will look to conquer the ‘Track Too Tough To Tame’ and achieve one of the sport’s most difficult feats – a tripleheader sweep. In addition to his full-time ride with Trackhouse Racing in NASCAR’s top division, Chastain will rejoin Niece Motorsports and JR Motorsports to pilot a Chevrolet-powered machine in all three events this weekend. The Alva, Florida, native has already proven he knows how to find victory lane at Darlington Raceway, with the Team Chevy driver earning the manufacturer its most recent Truck Series win at the track in 2024. While it will be his first Truck Series appearance of the season, Chastain already has two O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts under his belt with Jordan Anderson Racing – both of which ended with a top-10 finish. This weekend, the Team Chevy driver will compete under the JR Motorsports banner in the second-level series, with the organization riding the wave of three-straight trips to victory lane.

The only driver in NASCAR history to successfully complete a tripleheader weekend sweep is one of the sport’s most decorated drivers – Team Chevy’s Kyle Busch. The two-time Cup Series Champion was able to accomplish the feat twice in his career (2010 and 2017) – both of which took place at Bristol Motor Speedway.

 
A HISTORY-MAKING WIN ON THE HORIZON

Chevrolet’s unstoppable season in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series continued at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last weekend. Taking his turn behind the wheel of the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, Kyle Larson became the fifth different Team Chevy driver to make his way to victory lane to keep the Bowtie brand undefeated in the second-level series. Heading back to the east coast, Chevrolet is on the brink of making history this weekend. A win in Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 would mark its sixth-straight season-opening victory, which would surpass the record that Chevrolet previously set back in 1994.

It’s not just the wins category that Chevrolet has commanded this season. With five races complete, the manufacturer also remains undefeated in stage wins and has sat on the pole in all but one event. In addition, the top-10 of the points standings sees a Team Chevy takeover with the manufacturer’s past-two champions, Justin Allgaier and Jesse Love, leading a contingency of drivers that represent six different Chevrolet organizations.

JRM Streak Continues into South Carolina:

Coming off a record season, JR Motorsports is quickly picking up right where they left off. In his first appearance in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series of the season, Kyle Larson turned an uphill battle into a trip to victory lane – driving the No. 88 Chevrolet entry to the organization’s third-straight, and 108th all-time, victory in the division. With Darlington Raceway on deck, JR Motorsports carries a lot of confidence to keep that streak alive. The organization is a seven-time winner at the track, with three coming alongside veteran driver, Justin Allgaier. The organization will field five entries in Saturday’s event, including Team Chevy Cup Series regulars, Larson and Ross Chastain.

Day Tallying Top-10s:

In his first full-time campaign in the NASCAR national ranks, Hendrick Motorsports’ Corey Day is already making impressive gains. The 20-year-old Clovis, California, native closed the chapter of the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series west coast swing with his fourth-straight top-nine result – a string of performances that dates back to his career-best fourth-place finish that came in the second race of the season at EchoPark Speedway. Leading his first-ever laps in the division and a points-earning effort in both stages, Day left Las Vegas Motor Speedway with yet another gain in the points standings with the rookie contender ranked seventh heading into his first Darlington appearance.

ECKES EYES OPPORTUNITY AT DARLINGTON

While it’s been a rocky start to his return to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, the culmination of a two-week break and his return to a statistically-strong track is just what McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes needs to turn his season around. The 25-year-old Middletown, New York, native is one of just four past Truck Series winners at Darlington Raceway. In his two career starts at the track under the McAnally-Hilgemann Racing banner, Eckes has finished no worse than fourth, including a trip to victory lane in May 2023.

 
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 129 NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington Raceway, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 44 victories. In eight 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).

· With Kyle Larson and JR Motorsports win in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Chevrolet remains undefeated this season with five-straight wins – matching the series’ record for a season-opening streak by a single manufacturer, which Chevrolet previously set during the 1994 season.

· In 149 points-paying races in the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 67 victories – a winning percentage of 44.9%.

· Chevrolet is coming off its 29th all-time sweep of the NASCAR Cup Series championship titles – capturing its 34th driver championship and 44th, and fifth consecutive, manufacturer championship in 2025.

· With its 44 NASCAR Cup Series manufacturer championships, 34 NASCAR Cup Series driver championships, and 881 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, Mar. 22, at 3 p.m. ET

FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series

Sports Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200

Saturday, Mar. 21, at 5:30 p.m. ET

CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

Buckle Up South Carolina 200

Friday, Mar. 20, at 7:30 p.m. ET

FS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

 
QUOTABLE QUOTES:

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

What do you think the recipe for success Sunday will look like?

“Darlington Raceway is a place where tires wear out really fast so being good on the long run definitely matters. You’ve got to be able to have a car that keeps going forward on the long run and be able to make passes at the beginning of a run more often than not. We’ve got to do a good job of trying to calculate the additional horsepower and less downforce at Darlington. I think it’s going to be a different race than last year’s race because of that.”

What is the physical toll of racing at Darlington?

“You’re dancing the whole time on the edge of what it takes to be good at Darlington. It takes a lot of precision. You really have to stay on your game because one slip can knock you out of the race and put you in a bad position.”

Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

What are your thoughts heading into Darlington?

“Darlington is going to be a very interesting race. It will be very low grip with a low downforce package and high horsepower. It’s going to be a challenge for everyone – one I’m looking forward to. Hopefully, we can continue to have good speed and have a good race in the No. 7 NationsGuard Chevrolet.”

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

How do you manage Darlington as a driver?

“Darlington Raceway is tough. It’s definitely one of the hardest tracks on the schedule with the way the asphalt is worn out. You’ve got to run right next to the wall at Darlington. Obviously, the place is famous for the ‘Darlington Stripe’ for a reason. One lap, you feel really good. The next lap, you’re out of control, sideways, spinning out. You just never know. A lot of times you go through a lot of changes at that track. Starting out the track is always loose. It gets really tight during the middle part of the race and then starts to free up back up at the end. You’re always chasing it with the car.”

Does moving Darlington earlier in the schedule create any effect on track conditions?

“Just the weather a little bit. Hopefully, it will be a little bit nicer for the drivers behind the wheel. Hopefully, we’ll have no rain and we can have a good clean weekend.”

AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

What are your thoughts on Darlington Raceway?

“Darlington is always a racetrack where I’m trying to get more and more comfortable. Last year’s Southern 500 was really good for us. So that gives me a little more confidence going back there. But every year is a new year.”

What is different this time?

“There will be more horsepower, so that changes the way you drive it just a little bit. I’ll keep studying and trying to get better at it. Over the last couple of years though, I’ve definitely gotten more comfortable there and a little more confident. Hopefully, we can unload well, have a good practice and set ourselves up to have a decent 400 miles around that place.”

Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet

“Darlington is going to be a fun one, as we’re going to have a lot less downforce with the new rules package, and more motor than last year. So it is going to be a lot of slipping and sliding around, and it’s going to be a curveball for all of the teams to figure out, and it is going to be exciting to see who can put it all together this weekend. I know my guys on the HaasTooling.com Chevrolet Team are up for the challenge.”

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet

“Having Jack Link’s back with us at Darlington is really cool. They bring a lot of energy to the team, and it’s always fun representing a brand that fans recognize so well. We’re looking forward to giving them a strong run this weekend.”

Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet

“They call it the track ‘Too Tough to Tame’ for a reason. The way that place is built, it’s just tough, no matter how many times you’ve been there. There’s never a time where you unload off the trailer and fire off for practice and qualifying that you feel comfortable. Even if you have speed and you’re competitive, you’re still on edge. And when your car isn’t where you want it handling-wise, you’re even more on edge. You’re always white-knuckling it, sawing at the wheel, manhandling the racecar every lap.

This year, for sure, is going to be more about racing the track and racing the tire. We have more horsepower, less downforce, and the tires are going to wear out faster. It’s going to make for a wild Sunday afternoon.

Just focusing on what we need to manage our tires, where we have as little tire degradation and lap-time falloff as we can throughout a run, that’s going to be the key to having a successful day at Darlington. And, of course, being smart when you’re up against that wall, and also navigating restarts. Turn two is always a pretty tricky place, and getting through those first couple of laps on the start and on restarts is going to be very important to having a good day.”

Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

There is a lot of conversation about the tires and fall off in Darlington, what are you expecting?”

“I try not to predict what it is going to be like. It’s not that I don’t prepare—we had no downforce in 2014, so you’re slipping and sliding around, and you get used to what that feels like. After that, you had low horsepower and high downforce. We’ve had everything. So, I try not to predict too much because a lot of the time we think that it’s going to be huge and then oversell it. Then you have other times where you think the changes won’t make that much of a difference, and it’s a big deal. I don’t know where it will fall. It is a difficult track already, so if you take away downforce, I think it will make it more difficult, which is pretty obvious, but when you take away downforce, you won’t be able to utilize that power as much either. It will be interesting to see. I think Darlington will be a fun weekend. On top of that, the weather is going to play a part; it could be 60 degrees, or it could be 80, but I am excited to see what the new package is going to be like. It will be fun.”

Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

What do you think about your paint scheme heading into Alumni Weekend?

“It’s cool that Chili’s, a huge consumer-facing brand, had the idea to honor Dale Earnhardt on Alumni Weekend with a really cool scheme. They basically changed all their brand guidelines to replicate the original car as much as possible for this specific race. Unfortunately, I never got the opportunity to watch him race, but I watch a ton of old races and have great respect and admiration for those who have come before me. It will be really cool to honor him this weekend.”

How does Darlington fit your driving style?

“I’ve always been comfortable at Darlington. There’s just not a lot of grip and you have to save your stuff as much as possible. We’re always fast in qualifying at Darlington but I’ve gotten caught up in incidents that keep us from getting the finishes. This weekend is a little bit of an unknown with more horsepower and our new Camaro body, so the pressure will be on the crew chiefs and engineers. I know Luke (Lambert) and the No. 77 guys will bring us a really good car and we will have the opportunity to run well.”

Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

What are your thoughts entering Darlington this weekend?

“I’m excited to go back to Darlington this weekend. I’ve only been there once in the O’Reilly Series and we finished sixth there last year and I’m looking forward to building on that in the Cup car. We’ve got a really unique package this year that’s going to bring a lot of question marks. The Trackhouse team has been working really hard to make sure that we show up on the right side of it. It’s going to be a chaotic race with low downforce, high horsepower, and soft tire package. I’m excited to see what that’s like. Darlington is a historic track. There’s a lot of lanes to run in Turns 3 and 4 and it’s unique with the amount of tire falloff. Looking forward to getting there in a Cup car for the first time and trying to figure it out.”

Managing tire wear is always a challenge at Darlington. How do you learn tire management?

“You never want to be spinning the tires. It’s always a bad thing when you’re spinning the tires. You’re not going any faster and you’re only making your issues worse. Whether it was go-kart racing or late model racing, that’s something that I’ve learned along the way. The concepts apply no matter what race car you’re in. I’ve been fortunate to drive a lot of race cars through my career and been able to learn that along the way.”

Shane Van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

You’ve mentioned Darlington is a crazy track. Do you have more confidence heading there this weekend?

“Yeah, it will be my fourth race there. Just with more experience, I’ve gotten more comfortable. Darlington qualifying is one of the craziest experiences you’ll feel. You finish practice and will be four seconds slower, than what you are going to do in qualifying. It’s a crazy track, but I enjoy it. It’s probably one of my favorite ovals we go to.”

How are you feeling on the ovals? It looks like from the outside you are getting more comfortable and finding more speed.

“It’s been good. I think last year we had that trend; it was really getting better. I feel like we’re an eighth to 15th place car most weeks, which probably doesn’t sound like a lot. But we started at tracks running 30th, so it’s been a huge improvement. I’m pretty stoked about that, but still a long way to go.”

Bubba (Wallace), said he expects you to win on an oval. What are your thoughts on that?

“I’m a long way from that, But I certainly feel and can see it now. I know every week will come with learning more things and I feel a big improvement still. I know what’s going on, rather than deer in headlights (laughs). That’s a pretty cool compliment, but I know I’m still a little bit away from an oval win.”

 
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturer Championships:

Total (1949-2025): 44

First title for Chevrolet: 1958

Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Most recent: 2025

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, 2025

Driver Championships:

Total (1949-2025): 34

First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)

Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Most recent: Kyle Larson (2025)

Driver and Manufacturer Championship Sweeps: 29

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, 2025

Event Victories:

Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)

2026 STATISTICS:

Wins: 0

Poles: 1

Laps Led: 233

Top-Fives: 10

Top-10s: 17

Stage Wins: 2

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:

Total Chevrolet race wins: 881 (1949 to date)

Poles won to date: 767

Laps led to date: 256,967

Top-fives to date: 4,446

Top-10s to date: 9,168

Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:

       General Motors: 1,215

       Chevrolet: 881

       Pontiac: 154

       Oldsmobile: 115

       Buick: 65



       Ford: 848                                                                               

       Ford: 748

       Mercury: 96

       Lincoln: 4



       Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467

       Dodge: 217

       Plymouth: 191

       Chrysler: 59



       Toyota: 207

 

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.

GM Motorsports, including the Cadillac Formula 1® Team develops and proves advanced technologies in the most demanding environments, accelerating innovation in performance, safety, efficiency, and electrification for its production vehicles. Cadillac Racing is one of the leading manufacturers in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships (WEC). Chevrolet competes in single seaters in the US IndyCar series, and in NASCAR with multiple team partners and drivers. Corvette customer teams compete in GT series across the globe including IMSA and WEC. Learn more at GM.com.