Photo – Emily Horos/AP
The traditional Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway found itself in an unusual spot in 2004. A big shake-up in the Cup schedule moved the Labor Day date to the second-to-last race in the inaugural Chase for the Nextel Cup.
The 2004 championship was coming down to the wire. Kurt Busch held the points lead over Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, and others. Inclement weather during the weekend cancelled qualifying, giving Busch the pole. Continue reading
Photo – Ford
Jeff Burton came so close to winning at Darlington Raceway in August 1997. He rubbed fenders with Jeff Gordon in the final laps, but Gordon hung on to win the race and the Winston Million.
Burton won a race in the first three races of the 1999 season by picking up the victory at Las Vegas.
He was still looking for his first win at Darlington. Rain was going to be an issue in the 1999 edition of the TranSouth Financial 400. On lap 43, the race was stopped because of Mother Nature. Continue reading