The NASCARCup Series is taking its talents down to South Carolina this weekend for the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway. The track is a superspeedway with two different turn radii, earning it the nickname “egg-shaped oval.”
The most recent victor at Darlington is Chase Briscoe, a back-to-back Southern 500 champion. Denny Hamlin is the defending champion of the spring race rendition, the Goodyear 400. Leading into the weekend, the race is considered very wide open with no driver at less than 5/1 odds, but a whole bunch under 10/1.
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Denny Hamlin, among others, noted that we are to expect severe tire falloff at Darlington this weekend. The fact is that the new car design limits underbody/downforce, while Goodyear also introduces higher-wear tires. The car is expected to slip up the track much more, thereby wearing the tires. NASCAR has designated 11 sets of tires, plus re-use of the qualifying sets for the race; much more than usual.
Race Entries for the Goodyear 400 at Darlington
|
Number |
Driver |
Team |
|
1 |
Ross Chastain |
Trackhouse Racing |
|
2 |
Austin Cindric |
Team Penske |
|
3 |
Austin Dillon |
Richard Childress Racing |
|
4 |
Noah Gragson |
Front Row Motorsports |
|
5 |
Kyle Larson |
Hendrick Motorsports |
|
6 |
Brad Keselowski |
RFK Racing |
|
7 |
Daniel Suarez |
Spire Motorsports |
|
8 |
Kyle Busch |
Richard Childress Racing |
|
9 |
Chase Elliott |
Hendrick Motorsports |
|
10 |
Ty Dillon |
Kaulig Racing |
|
11 |
Denny Hamlin |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
|
12 |
Ryan Blaney |
Team Penske |
|
16 |
AJ Allmendinger |
Kaulig Racing |
|
17 |
Chris Buescher |
RFK Racing |
|
19 |
Chase Briscoe |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
|
20 |
Christopher Bell |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
|
21 |
Josh Berry |
Wood Brothers Racing |
|
22 |
Joey Logano |
Team Penske |
|
23 |
Bubba Wallace |
23XI Racing |
|
24 |
William Byron |
Hendrick Motorsports |
|
34 |
Todd Gilliland |
Front Row Motorsports |
|
35 |
Riley Herbst |
23XI Racing |
|
38 |
Zane Smith |
Front Row Motorsports |
|
41 |
Cole Custer |
Hass Factory Team |
|
42 |
John Hunter Nemechek |
LEGACY MOTOR CLUB |
|
43 |
Erik Jones |
LEGACY MOTOR CLUB |
|
45 |
Tyler Reddick |
23XI Racing |
|
47 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
Hyak Motorsports |
|
48 |
Justin Allgaier |
Hendrick Motorsports |
|
51 |
Cody Ware |
Rick Ware Racing |
|
54 |
Ty Gibbs |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
|
60 |
Ryan Preece |
RFK Racing |
|
66 |
Timmy Hill* |
Garage 66* |
|
71 |
Michael McDowell |
Spire Motorsports |
|
77 |
Carson Hocevar |
Spire Motorsports |
|
88 |
Connor Zilisch |
Trackhouse Racing |
|
97 |
Shane van Gisbergen |
Trackhouse Racing |
*Open car entry
Open Cars
Timmy Hill of Garage 66 is the sole open entry this weekend, being sponsored by Auto Direct USA. Hill, 33 years of age, has 144 career starts under his belt. Hill has never finished in the top-10 as his average finishing position is 34.8. Garage 66 is here for exposure and nothing more.
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Best Historical NextGen Drivers at Darlington
Chase Briscoe, driver of the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota, in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
(Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Briscoe is the sole driver to have won multiple times at Darlington Raceway. Briscoe is the back-to-back Southern 500 champion as he leads into raceday with 7/1 odds to win.
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
The best average finisher at Darlington since 2022 is none other than 3-time 2026 NASCAR race winner, Tyler Reddick. Reddick averages a 9.6-place finish, having 5 top-5 finishes in 8 races, though never winning.
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Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
The Toyotas dominated at Las Vegas, as they have dominated every track all season. They now hope to dominate Darlington. Hamlin has 1 win, 3 top-5’s, and 5 top-10’s in the eight-race NextGen era. Hamlin has five career wins at Darlington, among his best tracks historically.
Worst Historical NextGen Drivers at Darlington
Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
In 8 career NextGen starts at Darlington, Suarez averages and finishes 22nd. Despite having one top-10 here, Suarez should lack much success here. He is +550 (11/2) to finish in the top-10.
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Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Dillon has little excuse for bad finishes at Darlington. He has raced nearly all running laps since 2022, yet Dillon averages an 18th-place start and a 21st-place finish. Dillon has one top-10 and is +650 (13/2) to finish in the top-10. Richard Childress Racing is in shambles, to be blunt.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the Racing section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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