Darlington: Crown Jewel Still Making History

Darlington: Crown Jewel Still Making History

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers, after a weekend of white-knuckle, heart-pounding racing at Talladega Superspeedway, could use a breather.
Darlington Raceway, on deck, won’t provide it. Not a chance.
Known for its unique, egg-shaped layout, cars come to the South Carolina track clean – and leave with the infamous Darlington Stripe after rubbing or smacking the red-and-white wall.
The Stripe is part of history and goes back to 1950, when Darlington hosted its first NSCS race. It was the first paved superspeedway on the series schedule, and Saturday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 remains one of NASCAR’s crown jewels.
The title "Southern 500 Champion" guarantees a coveted place in NASCAR history books. From the first winner – Johnny Mantz – to the most recent – Jimmie Johnson – some of NASCAR’s all-time greats have won the Southern 500. Among that all-sport list: Herb Thomas, Curtis Turner, Fireball Roberts, Richard Petty, David Pearson, Dale Earnhardt, David Pearson and Jeff Gordon.
Saturday’s race marks the 10th anniversary of one of Sprint Cup’s most thrilling finishes. Ricky Craven led just one lap – the final one – in a door-banging, fender-crumpling joust with Kurt Busch that was decided by 0.002 seconds. The margin of victory was the closest in series history since the advent of electronic timing and scoring.
The finish further defined a "Track Too Tough To Tame" as well as the sport itself.
A year ago, Johnson made history for owner Rick Hendrick. His victory was the milestone 200th for the Hendrick Motorsports organization. Hendrick counts the most series victories at the track with 14.
Now it’s teammate Gordon’s turn to take the spotlight. Gordon will make his 700th Sprint Cup start – all consecutive – and become just the 15th driver to reach that plateau.
Gordon’s seven Darlington victories are the most by an active Sprint Cup competitor. Statistics speak to the four-time Sprint Cup champion’s Darlington dominance: Series bests in Driver Rating (111.8); Average Running Position (8.3); Average Green Flag Speed (160.041) and Laps in the Top 15 (2,615).
"They repaved Darlington a few years back so it’s not the same track it used to be 10 years ago," Gordon said. "But it’s still one of those tracks where you have to push hard but be patient.
"And it’s one of those tracks you have to respect."

Great Drivers Dominate But Surprises Happen

Darlington Raceway rarely mints first-time winners. The track’s list of driver and owner winners is a virtual who’s who of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, from Bobby Allison to Glen and Leonard Wood, 12 in all.
There are exceptions to every rule – beginning with Johnny Mantz’s inaugural victory at the track in 1950 and, most recently, Regan Smith’s surprising Bojangles’ Southern 500 win two years ago.
Mantz, driving an underpowered six-cylinder Plymouth, started 43rd but left the competition literally in the pits changing tire after tire. It proved to be the only victory for the Long Beach, Calif., competitor.
Smith recorded two firsts – his initial victory and that of Furniture Row Racing, a single-car team.
Could lightning strike again? Perhaps – especially coming six days after Front Row Motorsports’ one-two upset by David Ragan and David Gilliland at Talladega Superspeedway. Ragan had won before; his team had not.
Ragan’s unexpected victory carried with it a berth in the May 18 Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Only a select few drivers have guaranteed spots for the $1 million to win, non-point affair: 2012-13 Sprint Cup winners and the past 10 years’ All-Star winners and Sprint Cup champions.
The top two finishers of the Sprint Showdown also qualify, as does the winner of the Sprint Fan Vote. Fans can vote an unlimited number of times until 5 p.m. (EDT) on May 18 by downloading the NASCAR Mobile ’13 application or visiting NASCAR.com/SprintFanVote. Votes cast on NASCAR Mobile ’13 will count twice toward a driver’s total.
The 10 drivers currently leading the Sprint Fan Vote standings (in alphabetical order) are AJ Allmendinger, Jeff Burton, Bill Elliott, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray, Juan Pablo Montoya, Danica Patrick, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Martin Truex Jr. and Michael Waltrip.
Any of these drivers – or another competitor – gets in with a Darlington victory, giving Saturday night’s race a "last chance" flavor. Stenhouse, a Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender, might be that guy.
Two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Stenhouse finished sixth in last year’s Darlington NNS event and fifth in 2011.

  

Almirola, Menard Continue Steamroll Toward Chase Berth

This is a season of firsts for Aric Almirola. Prior to 2013, Almirola had never scored back-to-back top-10 finishes. Now, after finishes of seventh at Texas, eighth at Kansas and Richmond, and 10th at Talladega, he has four straight top-10 runs. And, by the way, his top 10s match his single-season career high.
Prior to 2013, he had never cracked the top 15 in points. Now, after those four straight top 10s, Almirola has catapulted up to seventh in the standings and is on his way to a possible berth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Richard Petty Motorsports has only placed one driver in the Chase in its four-plus year history – Kasey Kahne in 2009. Kahne finished the year 10th in points.
Consistently, Almirola has shrugged off the pressures of running a car with the most iconic number in the sport’s history – so any outside intimidations shouldn’t be an issue. That No. 43 made famous by owner Richard Petty visited Victory Lane three times at Darlington, all with Petty. Almirola only has one start at Darlington, a 19th-place finish last year.
Paul Menard shares a lot in common with Almirola. They both have famous owners (Menard’s is Richard Childress), both are in prime position to make the 2013 "postseason," and both have what most would call surprise seasons.
Coming into this season, Menard had been ranked in the top 10 after eight races during his entire career. In this season alone, he has ranked in the top 10 seven different times – including his current position of eighth. Menard has six starts at Darlington, with a best finish of 13th in last year’s Southern 500.