NASCAR Preview: Darlington “Throwback” Weekend
- DIVEBOMB Motorsport
- 6 minutes ago
- 6 min read
Written by Gabriel Tsui & Ashleigh McGregor
After the tempers that flared in Martinsville, NASCAR returns to a bigger track this weekend, as they travel to the historic Darlington Speedway.
The history of Darlington goes back to NASCAR's roots. One year following the first season in 1949, they travelled to Darlington for the first Southern 500. After that point, the track has become a staple of the calendar, now featuring two dates.
Darlington is one of the most unique tracks on the schedule. As a 1.36-mile oval, the first two turns are banked at 25 degrees whilst Turns 3 and 4 are at 22 degrees. Given each corner's different characteristics, it can be hard to setup your car properly to be fast in each section.
Below are the start times for each race plus lap count:
Xfinity: Saturday, 5 April, 15:30 local (20:30 UK) – 147 laps
Cup: Sunday, 6 April, 15:00 local (20:00 UK) – 293 laps
Below are the defending winners for each race:
Trucks (not held this year): No. 45 - Ross Chastain (Niece Motorsports)
Xfinity: No. 7 - Justin Allgaier (JR Motorsports)
Cup: No. 6 - Brad Keselowski (RFK Racing)
Cup Series: Goodyear 400 Preview
Written by Gabriel Tsui
As the month of March comes to a close, we march closer towards the season break in two weeks, as teams will be looking to close off the opening third of the season with momentum before returning at the end of the month in Talladega. Heading into the Darlington weekend, who will come out victorious with a playoff berth in their hands?
Down in Darlington, South Carolina, the drivers will be driving 293 laps around the race track, with 90 laps in the first stage, 95 laps in the second stage, and 108 laps for the final stage, totalling a distance of 400 miles (644 kilometres) run around the track.
The weather projection predicts a low chance for rain, with mostly sunny skies and temperatures hovering around a balmy 30 degrees Celsius (87 degrees Fahrenheit). The race will commence on the 6th of April, at 15:00 Eastern Time (12:00 PT, 20:00 BST).
Race Predictions
The track has historically held two races per calendar year, but from 2005 to 2019 was a time period where the Darlington 400 wasn’t held. The race returned in 2020, and there hasn’t been a clear dominating factor heading into the 69th running of the event.
In the past two seasons, the track has been contested between the Fords and the Chevrolets, with Chase Briscoe as the defending winner at the track and Brad Keselowski being the defending winner of the Darlington 400. Chevrolet’s best, Kyle Larson and William Byron, have also won at the track in the 2023 season, making it tough in making any confident predictions.
That being said, the pick for this race is the one and only, Kyle Larson. Larson had a strong month of March, finishing in the top-ten four consecutive races, while also winning in Homestead Miami.
For now at least, it is hard to envision a race without Larson lurking in the top-five, ready to do some damage, because he has just been that consistent, leading races and making his presence known. Quite frankly, there isn’t anyone else who has been on such a strong momentum heading into Darlington, and he is the driver most would bet on to win.
Three things to look out for
Denny's still got it
Going into the Martinsville weekend, Denny Hamlin was riding a 31-race winless streak, and the fans were questioning if it’s time for Hamlin to ride into the sunset as a series legend following his 20th season. However, Hamlin’s strong and steady performance in Martinsville shows that he is yet to be done with his career, and father time has got to wait.
Hamlin led 274 laps in the 400 lap race, won stage two of the race and collected 53 points out of the weekend, solidifying his spot in the top-ten of the championship standings. Moving onto Darlington, Hamlin has an opportunity to build on this momentum. He has had great performances at the track in the past, so don’t be surprised if he carves out yet another win this weekend.
Ryan Preece’s slow but steady rise
After a string of poor performances from Daytona to COTA, Ryan Preece began to turn it around with a promising performance in Phoenix, rising from 28th place on the grid to crossing the checkered flag in 15th place.
Preece continued his strong run with three consecutive top-ten finishes, with one of his most impressive performances coming in from Homestead-Miami, where he qualified in 31st place then fought his way to a ninth place finish. He currently sits in 14th in the championship standings, amongst the top Ford drivers which includes fellow RFK driver, Chris Buescher.
As we enter the month of April, we will see if Preece can continue his steady performances, possibly reaching top-ten in championship standings by the end of month.
Carson Hocevar’s sophomore struggles
After winning rookie of the year honours in the 2024 championship standings, Carson Hocevar is off to a poor start in the year of 2025. Apart from a second place finish, Hocevar has failed to finish in the top-ten, while placing outside the top-20 in four of his seven starts, while having three DNFs.
He currently sits 28th in the championship standings, but his Martinsville performance provides a glimmer of hope for the young driver. Hocevar is a streaky driver, as he can have the coldest of cold streaks, and also the hottest of hot streaks. We will see if Hocevar can turn it around before the season break comes around, but it isn’t the time to hit the panic button yet.
Xfinity Series: Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 Preview
Written by Ashleigh McGregor
Austin Hill brings home the victory once again. An overtime battle in Martinsville, saw Hill attack to claim that win and the second dash 4 cash prize of $100,000. Last week saw a fiasco of cautions throughout the race. Leaving NASCAR officials not quite happy with how drivers took to racing. This week we move away from Virgina and travel to the Darlington Raceway in South Carolina with hopes of cleaner racing.
Race Weekend Guide
This weekend we celebrate the 70th running of the NASCAR Xfinity Series racing at Darlington.
Drivers will have one day to get it all right. Practice is on Saturday morning at 10:05am local (15:05 UK) lasting for one hour. Qualifying will immediately follow at 11:10am local (16:10 UK). The race will take place later in the day at 3:30pm local (20:30 UK).
Drivers will be covering 147 laps this weekend. Stage 1 and Stage 2 will be 45 laps each with 102 laps making up the final stage.
This weekend will be a hot one with temperatures on Saturday reaching 86°F. Making the track warmer and the cockpits even hotter. Tire management will play a key point in this weekend's race.
Drivers to watch
Justin Allgaier is once again the driver to watch for this weekend. He has previously won three times at this circuit and will be looking to make it four. With back to back wins in this season already, Allgaier will want to add another victory. As the current championship leader with Sam Mayer 41 points behind and with a circuit that he is so comfortable at, it seems very possible.
Cup drivers are making the return to the Xfinity series for this thrilling race. Drivers Ross Chastain, Chase Elliot and Christopher Bell will be joining the grid this weekend. Bell is certainly a driver to watch as he has previously won at this circuit in a race that went into overtime and saw him keep Cole Custer behind to secure it.
Austin Hill won last weekend and he would love to join Allgaier in the back to back wins category. Hill has a strong performance history at this track and was close to winning last year.
Historically the driver who wins Stage 1 goes on to win the entire race. Who are you hoping comes out on top this weekend?
