The NASCAR Cup Series is headed to Darlington Raceway in South Carolina for the Goodyear 400 on May 14th. This historic track, known as “Too Tough To Tame,” is one of the most challenging on the circuit, and the drivers will be looking to make their mark and take home the win.
One driver who has found success at Darlington is Erik Jones. The Legacy Motor Club driver has struggled so far this season, with only two top-10 finishes in 12 races. However, he has scored two of his three career Cup wins at Darlington, including a thrilling victory last year in the playoff race.
Jones led the final 23 laps of last year’s race, edging out Denny Hamlin by 0.252 seconds for his third career Cup Series win and second at Darlington. He will be looking to repeat that success this year and climb the standings after a slow start to the season.
The points leader heading into the race is Ross Chastain, who emerged as the leader after a dramatic finish at Kansas Speedway. Chastain bumped the leader before making a last-lap pass for the win, leading to a post-race dustup with Noah Gragson. Chastain now has five top-five finishes this season and will be looking to extend his lead in the standings with a strong performance at Darlington.
Another driver to watch is Denny Hamlin, who heads to Darlington as the active driver with the most wins at the track (four). Hamlin earned his first win of the season a week ago and will be looking to continue his momentum at Darlington.
How many laps is the race at Darlington?
The Goodyear 400 is a 293-lap race around the 1.366-mile oval for a total of 400.24 miles. The race will feature three segments (laps per stage) — Stage 1: 90 laps; Stage 2: 95 laps; Stage 3: 108 laps. Joey Logano led 105 laps in last year’s race before losing the lead to William Byron, only to retake it with two laps remaining and pull away from Tyler Reddick by 0.775 seconds.
Where and when can I watch the Cup Race at Darlington?
Fox Sports 1 (FS1) will be broadcasting the Goodyear 400, with a pre-race show beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET and the race starting at 3 p.m. ET. It promises to be an exciting race, with the drivers looking to make their mark on one of NASCAR’s most iconic tracks.
