2026 Cook Out Southern 500
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 27 of 36 in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | September 6, 2026 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 1.366 miles (2.198 km) | ||
| Distance | 367 laps, 501.322 mi (806.800 km) | ||
| Average speed | 123.741 miles per hour (199.142 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | 23XI Racing | ||
| Grid positions set by competition-based formula | |||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 94 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Time | 29.936 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | USA | ||
| Announcers | Leigh Diffey, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Alex Hayden, Mike Bagley, and Todd Gordon | ||
| Turn announcers | Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Tim Catalfamo (3 & 4) | ||
The 2026 Cook Out Southern 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on September 6, 2026, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina on the 1.366-mile (2.198 km) egg-shaped asphalt oval, it was the 27th race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, the first race of the NASCAR Chase, and 77th running of the event.
Christopher Bell won the race.[7] Ty Gibbs finished 2nd, and Tyler Reddick finished 3rd. Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson rounded out the top five, and Chase Briscoe, Josh Berry, Bubba Wallace, Joey Logano, and Ryan Preece rounded out the top ten.
Report
[edit]Background
[edit]
Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and also the drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped by design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends of the track.
During the offseason, NASCAR announced that Darlington would now get the short track package, as opposed to running the intermediate package from previous years.[8]
Entry list
[edit]- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
- (CC) denotes chase contender.
Qualifying
[edit]Qualifying for the race was canceled due to inclement weather. Tyler Reddick was awarded the pole for the race as a result of NASCAR's pandemic formula with a score of 3.000.[9]
Starting lineup
[edit]Race
[edit]Race results
[edit]Stage results
[edit]Stage One Laps: 107
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 45 | Tyler Reddick (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 20 | Christopher Bell (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 19 | Chase Briscoe (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 60 | Ryan Preece (CC) | RFK Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 2 | Austin Cindric (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 24 | William Byron (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
Stage Two Laps: 123
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 5 | Kyle Larson (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 19 | Chase Briscoe (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 21 | Josh Berry | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 24 | William Byron (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 45 | Tyler Reddick (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 2 | Austin Cindric (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 1 |
Final Stage results
[edit]Stage Three Laps: 137
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | 20 | Christopher Bell (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 367 | 73 |
| 2 | 28 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 367 | 36 |
| 3 | 1 | 45 | Tyler Reddick (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 367 | 46 |
| 4 | 24 | 12 | Ryan Blaney (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 367 | 44 |
| 5 | 25 | 5 | Kyle Larson (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 41 |
| 6 | 7 | 19 | Chase Briscoe (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 367 | 43 |
| 7 | 14 | 21 | Josh Berry | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 367 | 34 |
| 8 | 17 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (CC) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 367 | 44 |
| 9 | 13 | 22 | Joey Logano (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 367 | 28 |
| 10 | 3 | 60 | Ryan Preece (CC) | RFK Racing | Ford | 367 | 31 |
| 11 | 34 | 77 | Carson Hocevar (CC) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 26 |
| 12 | 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 25 |
| 13 | 6 | 2 | Austin Cindric (CC) | Team Penske | Ford | 367 | 28 |
| 14 | 18 | 9 | Chase Elliott (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 23 |
| 15 | 36 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | Toyota | 367 | 22 |
| 16 | 21 | 34 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 367 | 21 |
| 17 | 5 | 71 | Michael McDowell | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 20 |
| 18 | 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin (CC) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 367 | 35 |
| 19 | 22 | 67 | Corey Heim (i) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 367 | 0 |
| 20 | 35 | 17 | Chris Buescher (CC) | RFK Racing | Ford | 367 | 17 |
| 21 | 2 | 7 | Daniel Suárez (CC) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 16 |
| 22 | 30 | 16 | A. J. Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 367 | 15 |
| 23 | 12 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Ford | 367 | 14 |
| 24 | 19 | 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | Legacy Motor Club | Toyota | 367 | 13 |
| 25 | 33 | 38 | Zane Smith | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 367 | 12 |
| 26 | 26 | 97 | Shane van Gisbergen | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 366 | 11 |
| 27 | 23 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 366 | 10 |
| 28 | 32 | 33 | Austin Hill (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 366 | 0 |
| 29 | 9 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 366 | 8 |
| 30 | 15 | 35 | Riley Herbst | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 366 | 7 |
| 31 | 27 | 10 | Ty Dillon | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 366 | 6 |
| 32 | 29 | 4 | Noah Gragson | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 366 | 5 |
| 33 | 16 | 41 | Cole Custer | Haas Factory Team | Chevrolet | 366 | 4 |
| 34 | 31 | 88 | Connor Zilisch (R) | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 365 | 3 |
| 35 | 8 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Hyak Motorsports | Chevrolet | 363 | 2 |
| 36 | 37 | 51 | Cody Ware | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 363 | 1 |
| 37 | 20 | 24 | William Byron (CC) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 319 | 6 |
| 38 | 38 | 66 | Chad Finchum (i) | Garage 66 | Ford | 243 | 0 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
[edit]- Lead changes: 29 among 12 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 6 for 44
- Red flags: 1 for 7 minutes and 39 seconds
- Time of race: 4 hours, 3 minutes, and 5 seconds
- Average speed: 123.741 miles per hour (199.142 km/h)
Media
[edit]Television
[edit]USA Sports covered the race on the television side. Leigh Diffey, 1999 Southern 500 winner Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte called the race from the broadcast booth. Dave Burns, Kim Coon, and Marty Snider handled pit road, while Trevor Bayne provided analysis from the pace car for the television side.
| USA | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | Pace car |
| Lap-by-lap: Leigh Diffey Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte | Dave Burns Kim Coon Marty Snider | Trevor Bayne |
Radio
[edit]MRN had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Mike Bagley, and former championship crew chief Todd Gordon called the action for MRN when the field races thru the front straightaway. Dave Moody called the action for MRN from atop the Sunoco tower outside the exit of turn 2 when the field races thru turns 1 & 2. Tim Catalfamo worked the action for MRN when the field races thru turns 3 & 4. Pit road was operated by lead pit reporter Steve Post, Alex Weaver, and Chris Wilner.
| MRN | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Mike Bagley Announcer: Todd Gordon | Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody Turns 3 & 4: Tim Catalfamo | Steve Post Alex Weaver Chris Wilner |
Standings after the race
[edit]
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References
[edit]- ↑ "2026 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ↑ "Darlington Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
- ↑ "NASCAR releases 2026 schedule, adding Chicagoland and shifting All-Star to Dover". NASCAR. August 20, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
- ↑ "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 5, 2026. Retrieved September 5, 2026.
- ↑ "Cook Out Southern 500 Results". Racing-Reference. September 6, 2026. Retrieved September 6, 2026.
- ↑ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 6, 2026. Retrieved September 6, 2026.
- ↑ Page, Scott (September 7, 2026). "Christopher Bell wins Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved September 7, 2026.
- ↑ "NASCAR issues technical updates, specifying rules for 750-horsepower tracks, A-post flaps". NASCAR. November 14, 2025. Retrieved November 14, 2025.
- ↑ DeGroot, Nick (September 5, 2026). "NASCAR Cup Darlington Southern 500 starting lineup after lightning cancels qualifying". Motorsport.com. Darlington, South Carolina: Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 5, 2026.