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2021 Goodyear 400
Race details [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
Race 12 of 36 in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series
Layout of Darlington Raceway, the track where the race was held
Layout of Darlington Raceway, the track where the race was held
Date May 9, 2021 (2021-05-09)
Location Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1.366 mi (2.198 km)
Distance 293 laps, 400.238 mi (644.121 km)
Average speed 123.562 miles per hour (198.854 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Team Penske
Grid positions set by competition-based formula
Most laps led
Driver Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 248
Winner
No. 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network FS1
Announcers Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN
Booth Announcers Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegle
Turn Announcers Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Mike Bagley (3 & 4)

The 2021 Goodyear 400 [7] was a NASCAR Cup Series race was held on May 9, 2021, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested over 293 laps on the 1.366-mile (2.198 km) egg-shaped oval, it was the 12th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, and the 65th running of the race.

Report

Background

2021 Goodyear 400 program cover

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 drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped 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.

Events leading up to the race

When the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule was announced on September 30, 2020, a second race at Darlington was added for May 9, 2021, marking the first time since 2004 that the track had two races on the schedule (the 2020 season, changed by the pandemic, had three races). [8]

On December 11, 2020, Darlington Raceway announced its highly popular NASCAR Throwback weekend would move to the new May 7–9 weekend, effectively making a lineal swap of the two race meetings at the track. [9] On April 14, 2021, longtime NASCAR tire provider Goodyear announced a race sponsorship deal to call the race the Goodyear 400. [10]

Entry list

  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
  • (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
No. Driver Team Manufacturer Sponsor or Throwback
00 Quin Houff StarCom Racing Chevrolet Bos Klein/ RCAJohn Andretti's No. 98 paint scheme from 1997. [11]
1 Kurt Busch Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Monster Energy
2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford Freightliner Trucks
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Bass Pro ShopsNASCAR Hall of Famer Fireball Roberts' Pontiac paint scheme from 1959. [11]
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mobil 1 – Harvick's No. 29 GM Goodwrench paint scheme from his Cup debut at Rockingham following the death of Dale Earnhardt in 2001. [11]
5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet HendrickCars.com – Scheme paying homage to Larson's first race car. [11]
6 Ryan Newman Roush Fenway Racing Ford Kohler – Scheme paying homage to Kohler Generators' 1976 SCCA Runoffs win. [11]
7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet ValvolineAlan Kulwicki's Zerex Antifreeze paint scheme from 1989. Spire Motorsports has alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which is currently sponsored by Valvoline. The Valvoline division of Ashland, Inc. acquired Zerex from BASF in 1994, and the entire Valvoline division was spun off in 2017 to its own separate company.
8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Joe Nichols/Quartz Hill Records – Scheme paying homage to Grammy Award winning singer and NASCAR driver Marty Robbins. [11]
9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Hooters – Team manager Brian Whitesell's first NASCAR Cup Series Championship, as a mechanic on the 1992 Championship team whose No. 7 paint scheme is used. Whitesell was a part-time mechanic on the team of Alan Kulwicki. [11]
10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Smithfield Foods/ Winn-DixieMark Martin's No. 60 paint scheme from the 2000 NASCAR Busch Series Texas race that was not televised after rain delays and a request by MTV Networks management. [11]
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Sport Clips – Slick Johnson's No. 18 Seamless Machine paint scheme from 1983. [11]
12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford Advance Auto Parts – Scheme paying homage to Blaney's 2010 PASS Series Late Model car. [11]
14 Chase Briscoe (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford HighPoint.com - A. J. Foyt's Copenhagen paint scheme from 1986. [11]
15 James Davison Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet Strategic Wealth Partners/Smart Sanitizer – Dick Johnson's No. 38 Redkote paint scheme from 1989 (Davison and Johnson are Australians). [11]
17 Chris Buescher Roush Fenway Racing Ford Fifth Third Bank
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota M&M's – 80th anniversary. [11]
19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Auto-Owners Insurance matte black (a reference to matte black cars Truex drove for Furniture Row Racing). [11]
20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Rheem
21 Matt DiBenedetto Wood Brothers Racing Ford Menards/ Dutch Boy Paint (Alternate sponsor Motorcraft was not scheduled to be the primary sponsor on the car for this weekend; announced on May 28 the team will run the throwback scheme from the 2001 season where Elliott Sadler won the Food City 500 at Bristol during the September race.)
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford Shell – Scheme paying homage to Mario Andretti's first F1 win at Kyalami, South Africa (Shell also sponsors Scuderia Ferrari in F1). [11]
23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota Root, Inc. – Scheme paying homage to NASCAR Hall of Famer Wendell Scott. [11]
24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet ValvolineNeil Bonnett's No. 75 paint scheme from 1987. [11]
34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford FR8 Auctions – Bill Elliott's No. 9 Coors paint scheme that won the 1985 Daytona 500. [11]
37 Ryan Preece JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Velveeta – Crew chief Trent Owens' No. 15 Dickies paint scheme from the 2002 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. [11]
38 Anthony Alfredo (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford We Care/Fr8Auctions – Alan Kulwicki's No. 38 Hardee's paint scheme from 1985. [11]
41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford HaasTooling.com – Special Mother's Day paint scheme honoring Margaret Haas, mother of team owner Gene Haas. [11]
42 Ross Chastain Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet McDonald'sHut Stricklin's No. 27 paint scheme from 1993. [11]
43 Erik Jones Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet STP – Scheme paying tribute to John Andretti's 1999 Goody's Body Pain 500 at Martinsville race-winning car. It was the last win for Petty Enterprises. [11]
47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Kroger/ TideRicky Craven's No. 32 Tide paint scheme from 2001 to 2004. Among the races won includes this race in 2003. [11]
48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Ally – Scheme paying homage to crew chief Greg Ives' Super Late Model car. [11]
51 Cody Ware (i) Petty Ware Racing Chevrolet Nurtec ODT – based on Darrell Waltrip Motorsports' No. 17 Exxon Superflo paint scheme used in Xfinity Series races. [11]
52 Josh Bilicki Rick Ware Racing Ford Insurance King – Lennie Pond's No. 54 Burger King paint scheme from 1979. [11]
53 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford FatBoy Ice Cream/Tunnel to Towers Foundation
77 Justin Haley (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Fraternal Order of EaglesRobert Pressley's Jasper paint scheme from 1999. [11]
78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford Keen Parts/Corvetteparts.net – Scheme paying homage to NASCAR Hall of Famer Joe Weatherly's last win at Darlington in 1963. [11]
99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet Camping World – 55th anniversary. [11]
Official entry list

Qualifying

Brad Keselowski was awarded the pole for the race as determined by competition-based formula. [4]

Starting Lineup

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer
1 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford
2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
4 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
5 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
6 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
7 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
8 21 Matt DiBenedetto Wood Brothers Racing Ford
9 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
10 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
11 17 Chris Buescher Roush Fenway Racing Ford
12 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford
13 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford
14 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
15 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet
16 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford
17 1 Kurt Busch Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
18 42 Ross Chastain Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
19 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
20 6 Ryan Newman Roush Fenway Racing Ford
21 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
22 14 Chase Briscoe (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
23 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota
24 41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
25 38 Anthony Alfredo (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford
26 43 Erik Jones Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet
27 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
28 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
29 37 Ryan Preece JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
30 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
31 77 Justin Haley (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
32 78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford
33 51 Cody Ware (i) Petty Ware Racing Chevrolet
34 53 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford
35 00 Quin Houff StarCom Racing Chevrolet
36 15 James Davison Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet
37 52 Josh Bilicki Rick Ware Racing Ford
Official starting lineup

Race

Brad Keselowski was awarded the pole for the second straight race. Aric Almirola slammed the wall after a flat tire while Kyle Busch spun while leading with a flat tire. Martin Truex Jr. dominated by leading the most laps and winning both stages. Cole Custer slammed the wall after contact with Anthony Alfredo while Kurt Busch got into the wall and caught fire after making contact with Bubba Wallace. Drivers split the final stage by pitting for green flag pit stops three different times. Kyle Larson was the only driver to challenge Truex for the lead as lapped traffic caused issues. Truex was able to pull away from Larson and win for his third win of the season.

Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 90

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 10
2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 9
3 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 8
4 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 7
5 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 6
6 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 5
7 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 4
8 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 3
9 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 2
10 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1
Official stage one results

Stage Two Laps: 95

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 10
2 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 9
3 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 8
4 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 7
5 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 6
6 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 5
7 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 4
8 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 3
9 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 2
10 17 Chris Buescher Roush Fenway Racing Ford 1
Official stage two results

Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 108

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 4 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 293 60
2 14 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 293 48
3 3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 293 43
4 5 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 293 43
5 7 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 293 48
6 2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 293 37
7 6 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 293 33
8 16 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 293 35
9 11 17 Chris Buescher Roush Fenway Racing Ford 293 29
10 20 6 Ryan Newman Roush Fenway Racing Ford 292 27
11 22 14 Chase Briscoe (R) Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 292 26
12 10 8 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 292 36
13 12 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 292 33
14 21 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 292 28
15 18 42 Ross Chastain Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 291 22
16 9 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 291 21
17 19 48 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 291 21
18 26 43 Erik Jones Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 291 19
19 8 21 Matt DiBenedetto Wood Brothers Racing Ford 290 18
20 28 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 290 17
21 23 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 290 16
22 30 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 290 15
23 15 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet 290 14
24 1 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 290 13
25 29 37 Ryan Preece JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 290 12
26 25 38 Anthony Alfredo (R) Front Row Motorsports Ford 289 11
27 13 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 288 10
28 31 77 Justin Haley (i) Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 288 0
29 34 53 J. J. Yeley (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 286 0
30 35 00 Quin Houff StarCom Racing Chevrolet 286 7
31 36 15 James Davison Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 286 6
32 32 78 B. J. McLeod (i) Live Fast Motorsports Ford 285 0
33 37 52 Josh Bilicki Rick Ware Racing Ford 245 4
34 33 51 Cody Ware (i) Petty Ware Racing Chevrolet 188 0
35 17 1 Kurt Busch Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 106 2
36 24 41 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 97 1
37 27 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 5 1
Official race results

Race statistics

  • Lead changes: 19 among 10 different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 6 for 36
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 3 hours, 14 minutes and 21 seconds
  • Average speed: 123.562 miles per hour (198.854 km/h)

Media

Television

The race was carried by FS1 in the United States. Mike Joy, five-time Darlington winner Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer called the race from the broadcast booth. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.

FS1
Booth announcers Pit reporters In-race analyst
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon
Color-commentator: Clint Bowyer
Jamie Little
Regan Smith
Larry McReynolds

Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.

MRN Radio
Booth announcers Turn announcers Pit reporters
Lead announcer: Alex Hayden
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody
Turns 3 & 4: Mike Bagley
Steve Post
Kim Coon

Standings after the race

References

  1. ^ "2021 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
  2. ^ "Darlington Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 30, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
  3. ^ "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 3, 2021. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Starting Lineup". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. May 5, 2021. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  5. ^ "Darlington 400 Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. May 9, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  6. ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 9, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  7. ^ "Darlington Raceway Rolls with Goodyear for the Goodyear 400 on May 9". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. April 14, 2021.
  8. ^ "NASCAR's 2021 Cup Series schedule revealed". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. September 30, 2020.
  9. ^ "NASCAR Throwback Weekend at Darlington shifts to May". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. December 11, 2020.
  10. ^ "Darlington Raceway rolls with Goodyear for Goodyear 400". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. April 14, 2021.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad "2021 Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway Paint Schemes". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 30, 2021.


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2021 Buschy McBusch Race 400
NASCAR Cup Series
2021 season
Next race:
2021 Drydene 400