Darlington Raceway 2025 NASCAR Track Profile

[Editor’s note: The following article is from Athlon Sports’ 2025 Racing Annual magazine. Order your copy online today, or buy one at retail racks and newsstands nationwide.]

Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C., is one of the oldest and most prestigious tracks in NASCAR, having hosted sanctioned events since 1950. Winning either race at the egg-shaped, 1.366-mile oval is special, but the fall race, the famed Southern 500, is considered one of the crown jewels of the sport. When a driver is up for Hall of Fame consideration, the number of Southern 500 wins is vital to their resume.

The Track Too Tough to Tame provided two thrilling races with magical storylines in 2024. The first had a run-in between Tyler Reddick and Chris Buescher that paved the way for Brad Keselowski to win his first race since buying in to RFK Racing in 2022. The Southern 500 served as the regular season finale and saw Chase Briscoe make a daring three-wide pass to grab the last spot in the playoffs. Briscoe’s win was ultimately the final one for Stewart-Haas Racing before closing down.

This year, the spring date moves a month earlier, while the Southern 500 will be the playoff opener. Instead of drivers below the playoff bubble throwing Hail Marys to try to win, the 16 playoff drivers will try to win their way into the Round of 12 or position themselves points-wise to advance.

It’s tough to predict who will win Darlington, as there have been nine different winners from six different teams in the last nine races. But Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson are up front nearly every visit. Hamlin leads all active drivers with four wins, 13 top 5s, 18 top 10s, and an 8.2-place average finish in 25 Darlington starts. Larson has only one Darlington win but owns the second-best average finish (10.8) and has led the most laps (1,048).

Darlington Raceway track into

Site: Darlington, South Carolina

Laps: 1.366-mile oval

Banking/Turns: 25 and 23 degrees

Banking/Straightaways: 3 degrees on frontstretch; 2 degrees on backstretch

2025 Dates: April 6; Aug. 31

Distance: April 6 - 293 laps, 400 miles; Aug. 31 - 367 laps, 600 miles

2024 winners

May: Brad Keselowski

September: Chase Briscoe

Scouting report

There’s nary a track that doesn’t change regardless of what car or rules package NASCAR throws at it. Except Darlington. Drivers love the Lady in Black because it requires them to race the track more than their competitors. The coastal Carolina environment weathers the surface, which chews up tires unlike any other venue, resulting in racecraft overcoming engineering (to a point). That’s why Erik Jones and Chase Briscoe have won the Southern 500 in recent years with non-powerhouse organizations. Drivers will tell you the Daytona 500 is the biggest race of the year – and that’s hard to argue – but the Southern 500 holds more esteem on a driver’s résumé.