Today’s tire test drew several
hundred fans to the track from as far as Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia, to see the new Gen-6 car.
“We were running some really fast
times today. I think you’ll see a good possibility of the qualifying record
being broken here at Darlington in May,” said Carl Edwards, driver of the No.
99 Fastenal Ford Fusion. “I love this race track and being able to test out
here today and see how well the new car handled is great for our team and
Goodyear.”
With its annual NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series race weekend just under 100 days away, Darlington is looking forward to
being just one of only two tracks in the sport to claim it has seen every
generational style of race car compete on its oval since its inaugural season
in 1950. Martinsville Speedway is the other.
The first generation of race cars
that were introduced in NASCAR were from 1948-1966, which featured Plymouth,
Oldsmobile, Hudson, Ford and Studebaker to name a few.
Many of these early models, like the
famed Hudson Hornet which won the Southern 500 at Darlington in 1951 and 1952,
competed at various other tracks during the early 1950’s but most are not in
use on the current NASCAR schedule today and tracks such as Daytona and
Charlotte were raced on the beach and on dirt, respectively. Other Generation 1
cars, like the 1956 Ford Convertible, made its last appearance in NASCAR
competition at Darlington in 1962.
Darlington and Martinsville are the
only two tracks still around today that hosted the original models of
Generation 1.
“It’s amazing that there are only
two tracks in NASCAR today that have hosted every generation of race car since
1949,” Darlington President Chris Browning said. “Darlington takes great pride
in knowing that we are one of two facilities around today that hosted the first
Generation 1 models back then and will now be racing the Gen-6 car in 2013.
We’ve seen every make and model and every great NASCAR driver throughout the last
60-plus years of stock car racing!”
Through the other Generations, some
notable cars made history in NASCAR at Darlington.
Generation 2 (1967-1980): Richard Petty’s 1967 Plymouth won
both races at Darlington that year. It was the first time in track history that
a driver swept both races at Darlington in the same year. With his wins that
year, he passed his father, Lee, as the all-time winningest driver in NASCAR.
Generation 3 (1981-1991): Bill Elliott won the Winston
Million, a million-dollar prize given to a driver who won three of the four
“crown jewels” of racing, in his Ford Thunderbird in 1985. Elliott won the
Winston Million after winning at Daytona, Talladega and the Southern 500 at Darlington
that year.
Generation 4 (1992-2006): Ricky Craven piloted his Pontiac
Grand Prix to the closest finish in NASCAR history with a .002 margin of
victory over Kurt Busch in the March 2003 event at Darlington. It was Pontiac’s
final victory at the track Too Tough To Tame.
Generation 5-COT (2007-2012): Jimmie Johnson’s victory in the 2012
Bojangles’ Southern 500 gave owner Rick Hendrick his 200th career
victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. It was the last race for the COT and
Chevy Impala car at Darlington.
“These are just a few of the many
great racing memories that put Darlington on the map,” Browning said. “It’s
amazing to think about all the different manufacturers that raced at Darlington
and how each one has impacted our sport, from the 1950 Plymouth driven by
Johnny Mantz to the 2012 Chevy Impala driven by Jimmie Johnson in 2012. Many
manufacturers have had success at the Lady in Black.”
Tickets
to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles’ Southern 500 on May 11 and
Nationwide Series 200 on Friday, May 10 are on sale now! Remember, kids 12 and
under are half off for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 and FREE for the Nationwide
Series 200 in general admission sections. Visit www.DarlingtonRaceway.com or call 866-459-7223 for
tickets.
That's some crazy equipment on the wheels.
ReplyDeleteMore notable Darlington races over the varied generations -
ReplyDeleteThe Generation 2s saw the most competitive races in Darlington history, highlighted by Cale Yarborough's Southern 500s in Junior Johnson's Chevrolets and Oldsmobile, and David Pearson's rampages in the Wood Brothers Gen-2 Mercury. But the wildest two of all were the 1979 Rebel 500 in Gen-2 Monte Carlos and the 1980 Southern 500 with Gen-2 Chevys.
The early-Gen-3s saw the most competitive Southern 500 in 1982's thriller, as well as its most famous melees in 1984's races.
Despite Ricky Craven's 2003 win, the Gen-4s were not that good, and the Gen-5s were a total competitive bust.
Thank you for sharing this amazing post.. Good one.
ReplyDelete