Throwbacks provide visual, Chase the focus at Darlington

DARLINGTON, S.C. — The cars perhaps will get more attention than the drivers in Sunday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.

         It’s the second “throwback” race weekend at NASCAR’s oldest superspeedway, and virtually every car in the 40-car field will race with a paint scheme that pays tribute to past drivers, cars and-or sponsors.

         Fans — and broadcasters — might need a program to keep up with cars wrapped in colors very unlike their usual livery.

Gluck: Best retro paint schemes for Darlington Southern 500

 Although the throwback weekend was a big hit last year and is likely to score points with fans again this time, the Southern 500, one of the sport’s toughest races, carries another level of importance in the Chase for the Sprint Cup landscape.        

With only races at Darlington and Richmond International Raceway remaining on the regular-season schedule, drivers shooting for the final open spots on the Chase grid are running out of time.

         Thirteen drivers have race wins and thus have earned Chase spots, assuming they finish the regular season in the top 30 in points. The only winner in serious danger there is Pocono Raceway winner Chris Buescher, who enters Darlington 30th in points, only seven in front of David Ragan. Buescher probably needs solid finishes at Darlington and Richmond to protect his Chase invitation.

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         Assuming there are no new winners at Darlington and Richmond, the final three Chase spots will be determined by points. With two races left, Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon and Jamie McMurray sit in those three positions, with Ryan Newman the first driver outside the cut line. Newman is 15 points behind McMurray.

         Kasey Kahne, Trevor Bayne and Ryan Blaney follow Newman.

         A wild card in Sunday’s race will be Jeff Gordon, who will be substituting again for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt will miss Sunday’s race — and the rest of this year’s schedule — as he recovers from concussion issues.

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         Gordon has won seven times — most among current drivers — at Darlington. Despite the fact Gordon hasn’t produced high finishes — a best of 11th at Bristol Motor Speedway — as Earnhardt Jr.’s substitute, he could be strong at Darlington, a track that rewards experience and persistence.

Points leader Kevin Harvick will start on the pole after qualifying was canceled because of Hurricane Hermine. NASCAR postponed all track activities Friday and determined that additional practice time Saturday was more optimal than allotting time to qualifying. 

Based on owners points, Brad Keselowski will start on the front row alongside Harvick followed by Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch and Joey Logano. Gordon will start 15th and Buescher 31st.

Follow Hembree on Twitter @mikehembree

Bojangles' Southern 500 Lineup

Sunday's lineup at the 1.366-mile Darlington Raceway (car number in parentheses). Lineup set based on owners points:

1. (4) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet

2. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford

3. (19) Carl Edwards, Toyota

4. (41) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet

5. (22) Joey Logano, Ford

6. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota

7. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota

8. (78) Martin Truex, Jr., Toyota

9. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet

10. (20) Matt Kenseth, Toyota

11. (24) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet

12. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet

13. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet

14. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet

15. (88) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet

16. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet,

17. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet

18. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet

19. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford

20. (21) Ryan Blaney, Ford

21. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet

22. (17) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Ford

23. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford

24. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet

25. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet

26. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford

27. (15) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet

28. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet

29. (38) Landon Cassill, Ford

30. (95) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet

31. (34) Chris Buescher, Ford

32. (23) David Ragan, Toyota

33. (7) Regan Smith, Chevrolet

34. (44) Brian Scott, Ford

35. (83) Matt DiBenedetto, Toyota

36. (98) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet

37. (46) Michael Annett, Chevrolet

38. (32) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Ford

39. (55) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet

40. (30) Josh Wise, Chevrolet