Statistical Advance: Analyzing the Goodyear 400

Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina going into the Goodyear 400 on Sunday, May 8 at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

Darlington Raceway – Qualifying / Race Data

Track Qualifying Record: Aric Almirola, Ford, 184.145 mph, 26.705 secs. April 11, 2014

Track Race Record (500 miles): Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 141.383 mph, (03:32:45), May 11, 2013

Track Race Record (400 miles): David Pearson, Ford, 132.703 mph, (03:00:54), May 11, 1968

2021 Pole Winner: None – Metric Qualifying, Brad Keselowski – Started 1st, May 9, 2021

2021 Race Winner: Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 123.562 mph, (03:14:21), May 9, 2021

At Darlington Raceway:

HISTORY

• Darlington Raceway was built as a 1.25-mile paved superspeedway in 1949-1950.
• Darlington Raceway hosted the first 500-mile race in NASCAR history and the first on asphalt on September 4, 1950 – 75 cars competed in the event. Curtis Turner won the pole at 82.034 mph, and the race was won by Johnny Mantz (Plymouth, 75.250 mph). The race to 6 hours, 38 minutes, and 40 seconds to complete.
• The track was re-measured to 1.375 miles in 1953.
• The track was re-configured to 1.366 miles following the spring race in 1970.
• The track was repaved in 1995.
• The 2005 race was the first Saturday night race at Darlington Raceway.
• The track was repaved again prior to the 2008 season.
• There have been 121 NASCAR Cup Series races held at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. From 1960 – 2004 the track hosted two Cup Series races per year.

STARTS

• A total of 745 different drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway; 467 drivers have competed in more than one race at Darlington.
• NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty leads the NASCAR Cup Series in starts at Darlington with 65.
• Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch lead all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in starts at Darlington with 28
• A total of 124 different drivers have made their NASCAR Cup Series career debut at Darlington Raceway; the most recent was J. Bell (May 7, 2011). The best finish by a driver making their series debut at Darlington was fourth-place by NASCAR Hall of Famer Terry Labonte on September 4, 1979.
• Fred Lorenzen (16 starts) leads the series in average starting position at Darlington with a 3.688.
• Denny Hamlin leads all active drivers in the series in average starting position at Darlington with an 8.4 in 19 starts.

Top 10 in Average Starting Position at Darlington Raceway (All-Time and Active)

POLES

• A total of 51 different NASCAR Cup Series drivers have won at least one pole at Darlington Raceway; 26 different drivers have won multiple poles at the 1.366-mile track.
• Five of the 51 NASCAR Cup Series pole winners at Darlington Raceway are active this weekend.

• NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson leads the NASCAR Cup Series in poles at Darlington with 12 – (1967, ’70, ’72, ’73 sweep, ’75 sweep, ’76 sweep, ’77, ’78 and ’82)
• Pearson’s 12 Darlington poles are tied with NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough (12 poles at Daytona) for the second-most poles all-time at a single track in the NASCAR Cup Series. Pearson also holds the series’ record for most poles at a single track with 14 poles at Charlotte.
• Kurt Busch (2001, 2013) and Kevin Harvick (2014, 2017) lead all active drivers in poles at Darlington with two each.
• Curtis Turner won the inaugural pole at Darlington Raceway in 1950 in an Oldsmobile with a speed of 82.034 mph.
• Nine drivers have won consecutive poles at Darlington, but none are active this weekend – most recent was Kasey Kahne (2005-2006).
• David Pearson holds the record for most consecutive poles at Darlington with five straight from 1975 – 1977.
• Eight drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Cup Series pole at Darlington Raceway.

• Youngest Darlington pole winner: William Byron (Sept. 1, 2019 – 21 years, 9 months, 3 days).
• Oldest Darlington pole winner: David Pearson (Sept. 6, 1982 – 47 years, 8 months, 15 days).
• A total of 12 different manufacturers have won at least one pole in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway.
• Ford leads the NASCAR Cup Series in poles at Darlington Raceway with 43 poles; followed by Chevrolet (22), Mercury (13), Pontiac (10), Dodge (8), Buick (3), Oldsmobile (3), Plymouth (3), Toyota (2), Chrysler (1), Hudson (1) and Studebaker (1).

WINS

• A total of 51 different NASCAR Cup Series drivers have won at Darlington Raceway; 28 drivers have won multiple times.
• Six of the 51 NASCAR Cup Series race winners at Darlington Raceway are active this weekend.

• NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson leads the NASCAR Cup Series in victories at Darlington with 10 wins (1968, ’70, ’72, ’73, ’74, ’76 sweep, ’77, ’79, 80); followed by Dale Earnhardt with nine and Jeff Gordon with seven.
• Denny Hamlin leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in victories at Darlington with four (2021, 2020, 2017, 2010).
• A total of 13 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series have posted consecutive wins at Darlington; Dale Earnhardt (1989-1990) and Jeff Gordon (1995-1996) are tied for the series-most consecutive wins at Darlington with three each.
• Youngest series Darlington winner: Kyle Busch (May 10, 2008 – 23 years, 0 months, 8 days).
• Oldest series Darlington winner: Harry Gant (Sept. 1, 1991 – 51 years, 7 months, 22 days).
• Six drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Cup Series win at Darlington Raceway: Johnny Mantz (1950), Nelson Stacy (1961), Larry Frank (1962), Terry Labonte (1980), Lake Speed (1988) and Regan Smith (2011).
• A total of 20 different starting positions have led to wins in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway.
• A total of 11 different drivers have won from the pole or first starting position at Darlington; led by NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson with four wins (1971, 1972, 1976 sweep). Kevin Harvick is the only active driver to win from the pole (2014) at Darlington.
• 20 of the 119 (16.8%) NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington Raceway have been won from the pole; the most recent was Kevin Harvick in 2014.
• The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (20) than any other starting position at Darlington. The outside front row (second-place) has produced the second-most wins (17).
• The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Darlington is 43rd by Johnny Mantz in 1950 – the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series event held at the historic raceway.
• The deepest in the field that an active race winner has started at Darlington is 16th by Denny Hamlin on May 20, 2020.

NASCAR Cup Series Wins by Starting Positions at Darlington Raceway

• Kurt Busch leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington without visiting Victory Lane at 28 starts; followed by Joey Logano with 16.
• Seven active organizations have won in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway.

• Hendrick Motorsports has the most wins by an organization at Darlington Raceway in the NASCAR Cup Series with 14 victories – Tim Richmond (1986), Ricky Rudd (1991), Jeff Gordon (1995, ’96 sweep, ’97, ’98, ’02, ’07), Terry Labonte (2003), Jimmie Johnson (2004 sweep and 2012) and Mark Martin (2009).
• A total of 11 different manufacturers have won in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway.
• Chevrolet leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Darlington Raceway with 41 victories; followed by Ford (31), Mercury (10), Toyota (10), Oldsmobile (six), Dodge (five), Pontiac (five), Buick (four), Plymouth (four), Hudson (three) and American Motor Company (two).

ADDITIONAL FINISHING POSITIONS

Runner-Up Finishes:

• A total of 62 different NASCAR Cup Series drivers have finished runner-up at Darlington Raceway, led by NASCAR Hall of Famers Darrell Waltrip and Richard Petty with eight second-place finishes each.
• Denny Hamlin (2012, 2013) and Kyle Larson (2021 sweep) lead all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in second-place finishes at Darlington Raceway with three each.

Top Five In Runner-Up Finishes at Darlington Raceway (All-Time & Active)

Top-Five Finishes:

• A total of 142 different drivers have finished in the top-five at Darlington Raceway, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty with 25 top-five finishes.
• Kevin Harvick leads all active series drivers in top-five finishes at Darlington with 12 top fives.

Top Five in Top-Five Finishes at Darlington Raceway (All-Time & Active)

Top-10 Finishes:

• A total of 234 different series drivers have posted top-10 finishes at Darlington Raceway, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott with 35.
• Kevin Harvick leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in top-10 finishes at Darlington with 17 top 10s.

Top Five in Top-10 Finishes at Darlington Raceway (All-Time & Active)

Average Finishing Position:

• Bob Burdick leads the NASCAR Cup Series in average finishing position at Darlington Raceway with a 3.0 in two starts.
• Kyle Larson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series in average finishing position at Darlington Raceway with a 5.500 in eight starts.

Top 10 in Average Finishing Position at Darlington Raceway (All-Time & Active)

TRACK / EVENT STATS

• Since the advent of electronic scoring in 1993, the closest margin of victory in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway is the March 16, 2003 race won by Ricky Craven with a margin of victory of 0.002 second over Kurt Busch.
• Darlington’s 0.002 sec. margin of victory is tied with the 2011 Spring Talladega race as the closest finishes in the series using electronic scoring.

Top Five Closest Margins of Victory in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway

Top Five Largest Margins of Victory in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway

• NASCAR Overtime: Four NASCAR Cup Series races have resulted in a NASCAR Overtime finish at Darlington Raceway:

• A total of 10 of the 121 NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington Raceway have been shortened from their scheduled number of laps; the most recent was in 2020.

• Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway six times: 1952, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2016.
• The last five NASCAR Cup Series races at Darlington did not hold qualifying due to the COVID-19 pandemic/restrictions: In 2020, the May 17 race (random draw), May 20 (inverted field), Sept. 6 (metric qualifying). In 2021 both races were by metric qualifying May 9 and Sept. 5. .
• NASCAR Cup Series has held eight races on Mother’s Day producing seven different winners.
• Last season’s race at Darlington Raceway, won by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., was the most recent Cup race on the holiday Mother’s Day.
• Buck Baker has won the most NASCAR Cup Series races on Mother’s Day – twice (1956, 1954).

LAP LEADERS

• In total 176 different drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series have led at least one lap at Darlington Raceway.
• NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt leads the NASCAR Cup Series in laps led at Darlington Raceway with 2,648 laps led in 44 series starts.
• Kevin Harvick leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers with 812 laps led in 28 starts at Darlington.
• The most laps led in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway by the race winner was 351 laps of the scheduled 400 laps (87%) by Johnny Mantz on September 4, 1950. He started the race from the 43rd position.
• The most laps led in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway by a driver that did not win the race was 284 laps of the scheduled 367 laps (77%) by Kyle Larson on September 2, 2018. He started the race from the second position.
• The fewest laps led in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway by the race winner was just the final lap by Ricky Craven on March 16, 2003. He started the race from the 31st position.

Top 10 Lap Leaders at Darlington Raceway (All-Time & Active)

FEMALE COMPETITORS

• Three female drivers have competed at Darlington Raceway in the NASCAR Cup Series – Danica Patrick, Janet Guthrie and Shawna Robinson.

NASCAR IN SOUTH CAROLINA

• South Carolina has hosted a total of 318 NASCAR national series races among 10 different tracks.

• The first NASCAR Cup Series race held in the state of South Carolina was at Darlington Raceway on Sept. 4, 1950 – the event was won by Johnny Mantz in a Plymouth.

SOUTH CAROLINA IN NASCAR

• A total of 140 different drivers have made at least one NASCAR national series start with their home state recorded as South Carolina.
• James Hylton leads all NASCAR drivers from South Carolina with the most NASCAR national series starts with 607.
• Three drivers from South Carolina have been inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame – David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, and Cotton Owens.
• 11 drivers from South Carolina have won at least one race in NASCAR’s three national series totaling 239 victories; seven have won in the NASCAR Cup Series.

— NASCAR —