Goodyear 400 Preview: Track Too Tough to Tame

The Track Too Tough to Tame is the next stop on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule. Darlington Raceway is an egg-shaped 1.366-mile oval and is really unlike any other race track on the circuit. It's not an intermediate oval and not a superspeedway, but somewhere in between. The course has two distinctly different sets of turns. Turns 3 and 4 are much narrower than turns 1 and 2. 

This is a challenging aspect for crew chiefs as the handling setup for the stock cars is a bit more complex. You have to find a happy "middle ground" for your handling set up so that one set of turns doesn't upset the car. All this combined with the 23 – 25-degree variable banking, and wide racing grooves makes for some of the most exciting, side-by-side racing that NASCAR has to offer. 

The first thing that the casual fan will notice when watching a race at Darlington Raceway is how high the cars run through the turns. On most ovals, the preferred line is low and tight to the inside lines, but Darlington is a very unique facility. Most drivers prefer to run the high line right out next to the wall and carry that momentum into the straight-aways as they accelerate coming out of the turns. This historic oval's unique configuration almost always makes the high groove the fastest way around the race track. Considering that we just came from wide turns and multiple grooves of racing at Las Vegas, we're in for a big change this weekend. The rim-riding action of Darlington this Sunday afternoon can be as entertaining as any event in the NASCAR Cup Series schedule.

Nearly all the tracks that the NASCAR Cup Series has visited to this point will not be of much help in figuring out Darlington Raceway this weekend. While Darlington is considered a superspeedway, the racing is not like any other superspeedway on the circuit. So, for this race, the loop data from Darlington Raceway will be an extremely important component in developing a list of fantasy racing drivers. The recent hot streaks coming into the weekend will prove to be a bit of a wrinkle as well, but historical trends should run pretty true. There is small group of drivers that perform well at the South Carolina oval, and as you will see in the table below, they're quite easy to identify. The loop stats in the table below cover the last 20 years or 28 races at Darlington Raceway.

When we take a look at the loop stats in the table above, we immediately notice that there appears to be a bit of parity between the different manufacturers and super stables in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington. However, one brand (Toyota) has reeled off two Darlington victories in a row and turned what was a track of parity into a facility that is definitely leaning towards the Toyota brand now. Ford had won the two prior races at Darlington Speedway until this recent Toyota streak, and Chevrolet has been shut out of victory lane at the track since 2023. We could be in for some more manufacturer upheaval this weekend. Toyota just came off a rather dominant showing at Las Vegas this past Sunday and only Ford and Toyota have won to this point in the 2026 schedule. Can Chevrolet break into the win column at Darlington Raceway?  

If Chevrolet hopes to get back into victory lane at Darlington Raceway, those hopes will largely ride with Kyle Larson and William Byron. If Ford has aspirations to get back into the Darlington win column, it will most likely be one of the Penske Racing drivers such as Ryan Blaney or Joey Logano. The two have only combined for one-career Darlington victory, but seem best positioned right now to return this brand to victory lane in South Carolina. Toyota faces a battle to hang onto their throne at Darlington Raceway but the drivers of this manufacturer are racing really well right now. Tyler Reddick, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe stand ready and capable of defending their hill this Sunday. The picks below are our best bets for fantasy racing success at Darlington Raceway.    

The Contenders – Drivers in the Hunt for the Win

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook as of 6:00 PM ET Wednesday

Kyle Larson (+600) – Larson had never won at the Track Too Tough to Tame, until the 2023 Cook Out Southern 500. The Hendrick Motorsports star added to his three runner-up finishes and two third-place finishes at the South Carolina oval with a convincing Darlington win three seasons ago. Larson has led over 1,000 laps for his career at Darlington Raceway, so it had been a real frustration for him until that big win. He now sports a sparkling 12.9 average finish at the Track Too Tough to Tame along with an astonishing 44-percent Top-5 rate. The Hendrick Motorsports star loves the high-groove style of racing at this track, so a second Darlington win could be in the offing this Sunday afternoon.

Tyler Reddick (+650) – The driver of the No. 45 Toyota has been razor sharp to start the season and he'll carry that momentum into South Carolina this week. This Sunday Reddick visits one of his favorite mid-sized ovals on the circuit. In 13-career starts at the South Carolina track, Reddick has nabbed three runner-up finishes, five Top-5 and seven Top-10 finishes. The runners up and Top 5's are noteworthy as they all have come in the last eight races at the egg-shaped oval. He now boasts and average finish of 11.5 at the Track Too Tough to Tame, and that puts Reddick at the upper tier of drivers in terms of performance here. Last season alone Reddick led 45 combined laps and picked up finishes of fourth- and second-place at Darlington Raceway.

Denny Hamlin (+550) – Hamlin is a five-time Darlington winner and sports a strong 74-percent Top-10 rate at this track. The 7.9-career average finish leads all active drivers at the Track Too Tough to Tame. The last of Hamlin's five victories at the South Carolina oval came in this event one year ago. The driver of the No. 11 Toyota returned to Darlington last fall and won the pole on his way to a strong seventh-place finish in the Southern 500. We don't believe for a second that Hamlin is done just yet. The Joe Gibbs Racing star is just too good at Darlington Raceway and he's almost always a threat to win here each time the NASCAR Cup Series visits South Carolina.   

Christopher Bell (+900) – Bell finished third- at COTA, runner-up at Phoenix in a dominant performance and fourth at Las Vegas recently and he comes to Darlington with a bit of momentum. Bell has not been a world beater at this track in South Carolina, but he did claim his first Darlington pole position in 2023. The Joe Gibbs Racing star has nabbed a pair of third-place finishes in his last three Darlington Raceway starts. Those efforts have boosted his career averages at this oval, but some fantasy players will still probably pan the driver of the No. 20 Toyota this weekend. Bell should not be overlooked in Sunday's Goodyear 400.

Solid Plays – Near Locks for a Top 10 with an Outside Shot to Win

Chase Briscoe (+700) – Our last Darlington winner is also the victor of two of the last three events at the egg-shaped oval. Briscoe has been razor sharp at this track over the past two seasons. Prior to that, he hadn't accomplished very much at the Track Too Tough to Tame. In his last three starts the driver of the No. 19 Toyota has posted a 3.0 average starting spot and 10.0 average finish. The 338 combined laps led in those starts also stands out. If you're looking at career averages at this track, you're not going to be very impressed with Briscoe's 30-percent career Top-10 rate at Darlington, but if you examine just his most recent starts, you're going to be impressed. He's had a bumpy start to the season, but this is an event that will get him back on track.

Kyle Busch (+3000) – Busch's mixed start to the season not withstanding he'll bring fantasy value to the table this weekend. He'll be slotted in the solid plays list this week as he looks to rebound at Darlington. Busch is a one-time winner at Darlington Raceway, although it came way back earlier in his career in 2008. Looking back at his history at Darlington, we see a strong 61-percent Top-10 rate and nearly 900-career laps led with a respectable average finish of 13.1. He claimed a strong eighth-place finish here last August and that's much of the reason for our optimism this weekend. He rides a three-race Darlington Top-10 streak into Sunday's Goodyear 400.  

Bubba Wallace (+2500) – After many struggles at this challenging oval earlier in his career, Wallace has really taken a liking to Darlington Raceway the past few seasons. The 23XI Racing veteran has Top 10's in five of his last seen starts at the facility and last August he qualified eighth on the grid and led 10 laps before finishing a strong sixth-place. Wallace and the No. 23 team come to South Carolina second in the driver points after a very strong start to this season. The No. 23 Toyota team have heated up and are firing on all cylinders right now. With Wallace's recent Darlington success, he makes a strong fantasy play this weekend.

Chase Elliott (+1400) – The Hendrick Motorsports star has three Top 10's in his last five races and is coming a strong runner-up at Vegas. He comes to Darlington Raceway in good shape in terms of performance. The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet has a steady 44-percent career Top-10 rate at Darlington Raceway, but he's trended better in more recent outings. Elliott's last six Darlington starts have netted one Top-5 and three Top-10 finishes for an average finish of 9.8 across the past three seasons. That's well better than his career average finish at the track. We don't expect Elliott to be a big lap leader or stage winner this Sunday afternoon, but he should have little trouble sticking inside the Top 10 and mixing it up among the lead pack.

Sleepers – Drivers with Good History at Darlington & Solid Upside

William Byron (+800) – A slow start to the season was tempered a bit by his first Top 10 at Phoenix a couple weeks ago. The Hendrick Motorsports star is now gathering momentum and headed to one of his better ovals. Byron now has 15-career starts at Darlington Raceway with one pole position, one win (this event three seasons ago) and a strong runner-up finish in this event one year ago. The driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet qualifies very well here and that counts for something as Byron checks in with a strong 9.9 average start position. Byron's seven-career Top-10 finishes at the Darlington oval check in at a reasonably good 47-percent rate. He should challenge the Top 10 again in the Goodyear 400.   

Chris Buescher (+2500) – Buescher is off to a reasonably good start to the season, but he's not quite up to full speed yet. We have slotted him in the sleepers list this week as a result. As it relates to Darlington Raceway, he's not great career-wise at this challenging oval, but he's been very strong in recent visits. Five of his last six visits to Darlington have netted Top-10 finishes. That 83-percent Top-10 rate is well above his career 41-percent rate. Also, Buescher finished a respectable 10th-place in last August's Cook Out Southern 500. That bodes well heading into Sunday's 400-mile battle in Darlington.      

Ross Chastain (+2000) – The Trackhouse Racing veteran has been reasonably good on the mid-sized ovals early in this season. Chastain earned a Top-10 finish at the oval in Atlanta. The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet doesn't have career-long success at the Track Too Tough to Tame, but the success has been more recent for Chastain. He's earned a pair of Top 5's, three Top 10's and a pair of 11th-place finishes in his last five starts at the egg-shaped oval. The high-groove racing style has begun to appeal to Chastain and he's started to pull in some of his best finishes at the track over his last three campaigns. He finished a competitive 11th-place in last August's Cook Out Southern 500. His 7.8 average finish over those five starts speaks volumes.

Ty Gibbs (+3000) – Gibbs has started the season well and strides 15th-place in the championship points into South Carolina this weekend. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has had a mixed bag of performance at Darlington Raceway in his brief Cup Series career, but it's been trending in the right direction the last couple seasons. Gibbs led 34 laps and earned a runner-up finish in this event two seasons ago. He returned to the Track Too Tough to Tame in this event last season and forged a steady ninth-place finish on the high-banked oval. That's now two Top-10 finishes in his last four Darlington starts and a reasonable sign of where things are headed for the No. 54 Toyota team.  

Brad Keselowski (+3000) – The two-career Darlington wins and 50-percent career Top-10 rate at the South Carolina oval speak volumes. This second of his two wins came in this event two years ago. His recent efforts have lowered the owner/driver's average finish at the Track Too Tough to Tame to a razor sharp 12.1. That average finish spread over 24 starts is a very impressive statistic. With just a single DNF in those 22 starts, there's a certain measure of security that comes with a Keselowski fantasy racing start at Darlington Raceway. Keselowski consistently finishes on the lead lap here and he puts it in the Top 10 more often than not.       

Erik Jones (+5000) – Jones is a two-time winner at the Darlington oval and spread across two different race teams. The racing style here really appeals to the veteran driver and it shows in his career-long results in South Carolina. The Legacy Motor Club driver earned a brilliant third-place finish in his last start here in last August's Southern 500. That was Jones' ninth-career Top 10 in 16 starts at the raceway. The 56-percent career Top-10 rate ranks Darlington Raceway as one of Jones' top performing tracks. The accompanying 12.8 average finish ranks fourth-best among active drivers and that's a pretty impressive statistic.

Slow Down – Drivers to Avoid this Week

Ryan Blaney (+900) – Blaney has had a long, tough run of races at Darlington Raceway. With just four Top 10's in 18-career starts (22-percent), most fantasy racing players will likely pass on the driver of the No. 12 Ford. He's been strong to start the season, however, the Penske Racing star has his weak tracks and this is one of them. The high-line, outside lane, rim-riding action just doesn't seem to appeal to Blaney. His start here last August resulted in a 12th-place qualifying effort and a subpar 18th-place finish in the Southern 500. That's totally in line with his career average finish here of 18.7. There are better tracks to deploy Blaney and his Penske Racing team.    

Joey Logano (+1800) – Despite being a one-time Darlington winner and having a career 46-percent Top-10 rate at the South Carolina oval, Logano has been uneven at best in recent races at the track. He has just one Top-10 and three Top-15 finishes in his last six Darlington starts. The 17-percent Top-10 rate is below his career average and his 15.3 average finish across that span is above his career average of 13.6. Logano and the No. 22 Ford team have just one Top 10 this season and that came in the season-opener at Daytona. He has been mediocre at best to start the 2026 season. Among the A tier, elite drivers Logano is probably the riskiest fantasy prospect of the lot at Darlington Raceway.   

Daniel Suarez (+13000) – Outside of a Top-5 finish at Atlanta, this has been an inconsistent start to the season for the No. 7 Chevrolet team. In addition, Suarez has always had his struggles at Darlington Raceway. In 16-career starts he has just one Top-10 finish and just four Top-15 finishes. That average finish is working out to a lofty 23.1 across his career. Last season alone was subpar for this veteran driver at the Track Too Tough to Tame. Suarez registered finishes of 15th- and 25th-place at Darlington Raceway in 2025. Given his current status and his lack of performance at Darlington, it's best to stay clear of the Spire Motorsports veteran this weekend.  

Michael McDowell (+15000) – McDowell is off to a good start this season, but we're calling for the fantasy racing fade this Sunday at the Track Too Tough to Tame. The driver of the No. 71 Chevrolet has never really shown a liking for the high-groove racing action at this oval. In 21-career starts McDowell has only managed three Top-10 finishes at Darlington Raceway. The last of those came in 2024. The veteran driver's last three Darlington finishes have been performances outside the Top 25. The 14-percent career Top-10 rate at the egg-shaped oval tales the tale for this driver and team. With a 26.4 average finish at Darlington, McDowell is clearly a driver to pan this weekend in fantasy games.