Race Notes from Darlington Raceway
Denny Hamlin won Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway for his first NSCS victory of 2015.
Hamlin joins Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski as drivers who have qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup field as a result of their race wins this season.
Hamlin’s victory snapped a 31-race winless streak for Joe Gibbs Racing. The organization’s last win came when Hamlin won at Talladega Superspeedway 11 months ago.
Harvick, the defending Sprint Cup Series champion and 2014 Bojangles’ Southern 500 winner, had his streak snapped of consecutive first or second place finishes at eight after placing eighth at Martinsville.
Chase Elliott made his NSCS debut at Martinsville finishing 38th. Elliott, who won the NASCAR XFINITY Series VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero 200 at Darlington in 2014 and also the series championship, will compete in both events at the Lady in Black in 2015.
Keselowski, Logano, Matt Kenseth and David Ragan rounded out the top five.
Logano won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville on Saturday.
Next on the schedule:
NASCAR racing is off for the Easter weekend (April 4-5)
Darlington Raceway News:
Turn 3 Theater dates set: Due to its overwhelming success last summer, Darlington Raceway is bringing back its family fun Turn 3 Theater Presented by Raceway Ford Chevrolet. This year’s free movie lineup will feature Warner Bros. The Lego Movie on April 24, Columbia Pictures Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 on May 15 and Paramount Pictures’ famed 1978 motion picture Grease on June 19. The events will once again be FREE and take place in the track’s hospitality village. For more information, visit DarlingtonRaceway.com.
Country concert May 9: The Darlington County Education Foundation will host a country concert at Darlington Raceway on Saturday, May 9, from 5 p.m.-11 p.m. The concert will feature Nashville recording artists’ Outshyne, Radio Romance and John Stone. Tickets to the event are $15 each and go on sale Monday, March 30, with proceeds benefiting the Darlington County Education Foundation. They can be purchased at Darlington Raceway, Carolina Bank locations, Markette Convenience Stores, Vintage and Midnight Rooster
in Hartsville. The concert will take place in the track’s famed infield.
Tickets on sale now: The Tradition Returns to Labor Day weekend as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles’ Southern 500® is set for Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. The NASCAR XFINITY Series VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero 200 will race on Saturday, Sept. 5. Tickets officially went on sale to the public on Feb. 18 and are available
by calling 866-459-7223,
visiting www.DarlingtonRaceway.com, or through the mobile app.