Track: Darlington Raceway
Location: Darlington, South Carolina
Track length: 1.366 miles
When: Sunday, 6 p.m. ET
Where to tune in: USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App
Race purse: $10,447,135
Race distance: 367 laps | 501.32 miles
Stages: 115 | 230 | 367
Defending winner: Chase Briscoe, September 2024
Starting lineup: Denny Hamlin on pole in search of fourth Southern 500 win
RELATED: How to watch on USA Network
Southern 500 kicks off 16 drivers’ run to a championship
DARLINGTON, S.C.. — There is no more grueling crown-jewel race on the NASCAR Cup Series calendar than the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
Looming in its shadow? The debut of the 2025 Cup Series Playoffs.
MORE: Playoff standings before Darlington
The track’s abrasive surface grinds tires to shreds over the course of long runs, demanding finesse behind the wheel. A transition from daylight to nighttime through the South Carolinia sunset alters the finicky handling characteristics of that worn-out asphalt. On average, it takes 4 hours, 15 minutes to complete 367 hot, exhausting laps. That all combines to make it one of — if not the most rewarding race to win in NASCAR.
Just ask Chase Briscoe, the defending winner of the Southern 500. This year, he’s driving the No. 19 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Last year, he was driving the No. 14 Ford for the outgoing Stewart-Haas Racing, ultimately earning SHR’s final Cup victory.
“You definitely don’t realize how big of a deal it is when you do it. But a year removed, it definitely feels like a bigger deal,” Briscoe reflected on Saturday. “You know, I still have a group chat with the 14 guys, and we were literally talking about that this morning — just how, when you look back at what we did a year ago, it’s crazy. Like we were proud then and thought it was a big deal. But now, being a year removed and all of us are at different places, it really kind of sank in, I think, for all of us coming back here a year later.
“It’s special coming back here. I definitely have confidence every time I come here, just in general, but especially now more than ever, just with knowing that this race is as grueling as it is and knowing that I’ve been able to do it before. There’s just a confidence that comes along with that. So hopefully we can do it again this weekend.”
His Joe Gibbs Racing teammates share that love for the track dubbed “Too Tough to Tame.” Ty Gibbs, driver of the team’s No. 54 car, relishes the opportunity to wheel a stock car around these hallowed grounds as the track celebrates its 75th anniversary. The challenge provided by its unique design — a wider, sweeping radius through Turns 1 and 2 compared to a far tighter left-hander through Turns 3 and 4 — necessitates a certain level of driver skill the 22-year-old adores.
“This is one of the greatest tracks there is, for sure,” Gibbs said. “This track is awesome. There’s so much character to it. I hope that they don’t ever try to touch it, unless the thing is falling into the ground. This one of those places that you can make a difference as a driver, same as Richmond. You’re not just relying on the car. You can just make it happen yourself.”
The other element to this crown jewel that separates it from others? A win here for any of the 16 playoff contenders would launch them into the Round of 12 of the postseason without having to worry about the next two races in the opening stanza of the playoffs.
Postseason contenders dominated Saturday’s qualifying session, earning each of the top dozen spots on the starting grid. But if you want to win at Darlington, buckle up. It’ll be a brutal bout.
“At the start of this race, there will be some sort of sunlight, and then we’re going to go into full night,” polesitter Denny Hamlin said. “So you’re going to have to build some adaptability in your car. And that’s something that we always plan for the end of the race, and we figure out how to make it work at the very beginning. And so certainly, when you start up front like we are, that’s going to help us band-aid the car for a little while until it comes in.”
RELATED: Full Saturday recap from Darlington
From atop the pit box …
What do crew chiefs have in focus to win Sunday’s race?
As heated as the drivers’ compartment will get Sunday evening, there appears to be a reprieve from Mother Nature in sight.
A hallmark of the Southern 500’s Labor Day Weekend tradition is typically a sweltering heat that beats down on fans, drivers and pit-crew members alike. This year seems to offer a break, with an expected green-flag temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit and a cool 69 degrees at the 10 p.m. ET hour, according to AccuWeather. Crew chiefs aren’t meteorologists, but a good understanding of how the weather impacts their vehicles’ handling will be key in determining Sunday’s outcome at Darlington.
RELATED: Darlington schedule | Full 2025 schedule
Richard Boswell returns as the reigning winning crew chief of this race after scoring the victory with Briscoe in 2024. Now atop the pit box for Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing entry, Boswell and Dillon have been hard at work, fine-tuning those details as they return as playoff underdogs.
“There’s never enough time, right?” Boswell told NASCAR.com. “Like he’s constantly learning me; I’m constantly learning him. And we could work together for the next 10 years and I think we would say the same thing. Are we at a deficit to guys that have worked together three or four years? Yeah, but that’s always going to be there, right? So it’s really just a matter of continuing to build off of what we’ve had from every single week. I can tell you I’m way more confident in what he needs this race at Darlington than I was with the spring race.”
First-year crew chief Miles Stanley and driver Josh Berry locked themselves into the playoffs in the fifth race of the season with a win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Berry has run well at the “Lady in Black,” evidenced by a third-place finish in last year’s spring race during his rookie campaign. But that remains his only finish better than 30th in four starts. Stanley and Berry are in a similar position to Boswell and Dillon — both first-year pairings set to begin their first postseasons together.
But Darlington presents its own challenges that each shot-caller will need to be aware of and be willing to adapt to throughout the course of 500 miles under the lights, particularly with such severe tire wear expected as most Darlington races produce. More tire wear equals more pit stops.
“A lot of stops, making sure the pit crew stays focused,” Stanley told NASCAR.com. “They stay on their job, keep their head in the game, locked in the whole race. It’s a long race. I mean, it’s tough to make sure you maintain that track position and everything. Inevitably, you’ll fall back at some point, whether it be a pit cycle or you pit under green (and) the caution comes out immediately after — whatever the case may be. So you just need to keep everybody’s head in the game, stay focused and try and execute the whole race.”
Both teams enter the postseason below the provisional cutoff line to advance into the Round of 12, which will be set after this three-race stretch from Darlington to Gateway to Bristol. Boswell, Dillon and the No. 3 team enter 15th in the standings, two points out.
“This place is brutal, right?” Boswell said. “They don’t call it the ‘Lady in Black’ for nothing. And really, the biggest thing for us is we just can’t beat ourselves. We just execute a clean race, we’re going to be in contention for a top 10 at the end of the day.”
Stanley and Berry are 13th, one point out and carrying the same mindset.
“If we execute here the best we can, which is not a stretch by any means, we’ll be in really decent shape going into the next couple weeks,” Stanley said.
RELATED: See where drivers will pit for Sunday’s race
History tells us …
Leading a lot doesn’t often mean winning a lot. According to Racing Reference, the driver who led the most laps in the Southern 500 has finished 22nd or worse in three of the event’s last five runnings.
He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for …
ERIK JONES. It’s hard to look away from a two-time winner of the Southern 500, especially as Jones enters with the momentum of a Daytona top five in hand. Two of the team’s three top fives have come on drafting tracks this season, but Jones is a contender every time he gets to the “Lady in Black.” The No. 43 Toyota could find a way to play spoiler again in the final crown-jewel race of the season.
Fantasy update
NASCAR Fantasy Live expert Dustin Albino provides insight for your Sunday lineup.
As expected, the 2025 playoff drivers came to play in the opening practice and qualifying sessions of the postseason at Darlington. The top 12 drivers in the starting lineup are held by drivers fighting for the Bill France Cup. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe put together monster qualifying laps after fighting the balance of their respective cars during practice. Long-run pace is crucial at the 1.366-mile oval, and playoff drivers William Byron and Ryan Blaney had loads of it. I’ve bumped Blaney into my lineup, replacing Chris Buescher.
Lineup: Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Ryan Blaney.
Garage: Chase Briscoe.
MORE: Lineup advice in Fantasy Fastlane
Speed reads
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
• NASCAR at Darlington: Key info, qualifying reports and more from doubleheader weekend | Read more
• Plenty to say: See some of the best quotes from NASCAR Playoffs Media Day | Read more
• Respect the legends: Jeff Gordon recounts what made him electric as all-time winningest Southern 500 racer | Read more
• Racing Insights: Projected results for Sunday night’s grueling crown jewel | Read more
• Bubble Watch: Capitalizing is key in Southern 500 playoff opener | Read more
• Turning Point to Darlington: No playoff contender is safe at “Lady in Black” | Read more
• At-track photos: Scenes, sights from Darlington to Xfinity Series race in Portland | View gallery
• Paint Scheme Preview: Bright designs for under the lights | View gallery
• Power Rankings: Evaluating the 16 playoff racers | This week’s top 20
