Cook Out Southern 500

The Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway is the oldest superspeedway race on the NASCAR schedule and one of the most prestigious non-Daytona events in the sport. The Track Too Tough To Tame opened in 1950 and has worn a distinctive egg-shape ever since — 1.366 miles of asymmetrical, 23-degree banked turns where Turn 1 is tighter and faster than Turn 4, and the wall eventually catches every driver who pushes too hard. That's the origin of the Darlington Stripe, the unmistakable scrape mark that nearly every car carries home from this place. The Labor Day weekend tradition reaches back decades — Dale Earnhardt Sr., Jeff Gordon, and Dale Jarrett all won Southern 500s that shaped their legacies, and Kyle Larson's 2023 Southern 500 win came on a late restart that showcased everything that makes Darlington great. The 367-lap race serves as the traditional kickoff to The Chase, where the 16 qualifiers begin their 10-race run to the championship. Throwback weekend paint schemes celebrate NASCAR's history, and the unforgiving old-school racing surface separates the Chase contenders from the pretenders.