NASCAR Highlights at Darlington, Race Results: Kyle Larson Captures Southern 500, Finally Breaks Through at Lady in Black – Sporting News

This was what Kyle Larson had been waiting for.

The Hendrick Motorsports star has a closet full of hardware. But jewels are a man’s best friend. And in the Southern 500, Larson had a shimmering gem he hadn’t yet gotten his hands on.

It’s not like he didn’t come close. Larson has previously finished second three times at Darlington. But it always seemed as if something was going against him; from pitfalls in the pit to contact with the inner wall.

Not this time, however. Larson slid through the swamp and raced from 18th to first place en route to his first career victory in the Lady in Black.

It was’nt easy; Larson had to fend off intense rallies from Tyler Reddick and Chris Buescher, both of whom kept things interesting as the rounds got shorter and shorter.

Ultimately, however, it was the 2020 Cup Series champions who had the upper hand, using all their postseason grace to hold off their opponents. Encased in sapphire, he takes his place in the round of 16. Everyone else has to catch up now.

MORE: Watch the Southern 500 Live with Fubo (Free Trial)

The Sporting News followed live updates from Sunday’s race at Darlington, the Southern 500. Below are the highlights and results from South Carolina’s Cup Series playoff opener.

NASCAR results at Darlington

(Results are unofficial)

NASCAR at Darlington live updates, highlights from the Southern 500

(All times Eastern)

10:38 p.m.: Kyle Larson wins the Southern 500! He’s in the next playoff round!

10:35 p.m.: Four more rounds. Larson is still putting up impressive numbers. Reddick tries to keep up, but he also puts Buescher in trouble. Byron is also in the equation. It’s looking more and more like a Larson win is on the horizon. It could make sense for No. 45 to play on defense.

10:31 p.m.: 12 more rounds. Larson is still on top. Reddick still tries to get past Larson, but he falls back. Buescher holds on to third place. Wallace and Chastain are up to speed and put in a very strong performance.

10:27 p.m.: Reddick is a few car lengths away. But this No. 5 just has the composure to keep things calm.

10:24 p.m.: Larson into the wall! Reddick tries to exploit everything in his power. Larson keeps things calm, even as he strips the paint on the inside of the wall.

10:22 p.m.: Green flag out again. Larson and Reddick are competing for the top spot. Buescher, Byron and Wallace are not far behind. The playoff drivers give their best with 30 laps to go. Reddick really hits the gas as he tries to slurp past Larson. However, it looks like the No. 45 car lost some grip in the corner, giving Larson a little more breathing room.

10:13 p.m.: CAUTION! Todd Gilliland spins after losing control near the inside wall. He triggers contact between three playoff drivers: McDowell, Hamlin and Bell. Truex and Harvick weren’t too far away either. Severe damage to McDowell’s right front bumper.

10:12 p.m.: Back on green, Larson is the slimmest ahead of Chris Buescher. 38 laps left and the No. 17 car is flying. Another driver flying: Wallace, who is in P6. Impressive recovery for the 23XI Racing star.

9:58 p.m.: CAUTION! We went green again, but only for a fleeting moment; Alex Bowman aggressively blocked Daniel Suarez and sent the No. 48 into the barrier. Harrison Burton was the oddball who collided with a spinning Burton. Bowman went all the way down and tried to block it again in Suárez’s nose. Really amazing move by Bowman, who basically ruined himself with his belligerence here.

9:48 p.m.: CAUTION! Reddick just holds Harvick back. Ryan Newman loses control after Reddick slows down in pit road in a bizarre attempt to catch the No. 4 car. This is a major breakthrough for the No. 45 car. The same cannot be said for Harvick, however.

9:40 p.m.: Hamlin falls like a stone. He’s one lap behind and is in 30th place. What a difference a few laps make.

9:30 p.m.: Reddick takes the lead after overtaking Corey LaJoie. He has a little more than a second lead over William Byron. There are still 89 laps left in the race.

9:26 p.m.: The first round of pit stops takes place. Quick changes for Larson and Wallace, who both impressed in the final stages. Reddick and Hamlin jostle back and forth in P3 and P4. It looks like car #45 is flying at the moment. Hamlin is having trouble with one of his wheels. He’s on his way to the pit lane.

9:18 p.m.: Strong comebacks from Wallace and Chastain, who both had problems on the second stage. Wallace is in eighth place while Chastain is just outside the top ten.

9:09 p.m.: Green again in Darlington! Kevin Harvick has new tires and is moving to the front of the field. He is currently in P6. Wallace and Briscoe are fighting for P9, but so far Briscoe has the advantage.

9.00: With two laps to go the stage is back in the green! Jones put up a good fight, but fell short of Larson and Hamlin, who took the stage. Impressively, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. moves up to 10th place. Not long ago he was behind on the lead lap.

8:54 p.m.: CAUTION! Contact between Austin Cindric and Ty Gibbs results in a collision. Wallace and Logano did a good job avoiding the wreckage.

8:53 p.m.: Jones is sticking close to Larson while distancing himself from fourth-place finisher Reddick.

8:52 p.m.: Back to green! Hamlin leads the movement on the field. Erik Jones is pushing hard in third place.

8:44 p.m.: CAUTION! BJ McLeod parked in front of his car with 14 laps to go in the second stage. Expect some chaos with the reboot.

8:34 p.m.: Reddick keeps pace with Hamlin and Larson. He jostles back and forth with the No. 5 for P2. As it stands, Larson has the advantage.

8:32 p.m.: Great move from Ryan Blaney, who misses three times before slipping past Busch and Elliott to move up to P7.

8:31 p.m.: Our long national nightmare is over! We’re back in the countryside with the Lady in Black!

8:27 p.m.: Let there be light! Here in Darlington we are back to yellow.

8:24 p.m.: So, The is just funny.

8:21 p.m.: RED FLAG! Cars are parked as the lightning issues prove too damaging to continue for now. Now we wait.

8:18 p.m.: In curves 3 and 4 the lighting conditions have still become weaker. Apparently drivers aren’t too happy with the concept of going green as it’s proving difficult to get around the corner – it’s just too difficult to maneuver past that wall.

8:08 p.m.: Bell had a little horror show. Between his crew’s faux pas in the pit lane and a kiss of death on the inside wall, the number 20 looked anything but the purple blur it was in qualifying yesterday.

8:04 p.m.: CAUTION! Trouble for NASCAR as night falls. The Canary banner waved as track officials worked to commission the interior lights in Turns 3 and 4. Time to breathe.

7:57 p.m.: Numerous drivers are at least a lap behind, including regular season champion Martin Truex Jr. Yikes…

7:37 p.m.: The race restarts and Hamlin is still ahead. Kyle Larson wrote too far back. Wallace didn’t appear to have suffered too much damage.

7:24 p.m.: CAUTION! Hamlin takes over Stage 1. However, as he crosses the finish line, Bubba Wallace spins after colliding with Joey Logano! Not ideal for the 23XI Racing star in his first playoff start.

7:12 p.m.: The same applies to Michael McDowell, who was also just lapped. A challenging escapade for playoff drivers in the early stages.

7:08 p.m.: Ross Chastain has had problems so far. The Trackhouse Racing star was just lapped during the pit stop. Not the best start for the No. 1 car.

7 p.m.: Things remain stable as we approach the end of the first stage. Hamlin drove to the lead and overtook Bell, who suffered an unfortunate indignity on the track – his team’s jack dropped the car on the right side, causing a delay in pit road.

6:30 in the evening: Impressive performance so far from Carson Hocevar. The Truck Series star makes his Cup Series debut in the No. 42 Legacy Motor Club car. He managed a pretty good qualifying round and achieved a top 15 time. I also kept up the pace in the early stages.

6:25 p.m.: Wallace is already on his way up. AJ Allmendinger was slightly behind, but he improved from P18 to P13 in eight laps.

6:20 p.m.: And here we go! Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin do it! Strong run from Tyler Reddick, who moved past Hamlin into second place.

6:10 p.m.: It hasn’t been the most productive season for reigning Cup Series champion Joey Logano. But as the playoffs begin, it might be time for him to make a breakthrough. The racing commandos are here! There are still about 10 minutes until the start of the race.

5:55 p.m.: Ryan Preece is back in the saddle for this race. His eyes may be a little swollen, but his vision is still clear.

5:45 p.m.: First race of the Cup Series postseason. The air here is full of tension. JGR in the driver’s seat with two drivers in the front row.

5:20 p.m.: The only car behind is Kyle Busch. It will be a long road back for the RCR star.

What channel is NASCAR on today?

• TV channel: USA (USA) | TSN5 (Canada)
• Live broadcast: Peacock, Fubo
• Radio: Mister

Saturday’s race will be broadcast on USA Network in the United States. Canadian viewers can catch the action on TSN5.

Veteran announcer Rick Allen will lead the race’s lap-by-lap commentary. He will be joined by former Cup Series stars Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr., as well as former crew chief for Daytona 500 winner Steve Letarte.

Cord cutters can watch the action on Peacock as well as Fubo, which offers a free trial.

NASCAR start time today

• Date: Sunday September 3rd
• Time: 6pm ET

A start time of 6:00 p.m. ET is listed for the Southern 500, but pre-race festivities are expected to push the green flag waving closer to 6:30 p.m. ET.

NASCAR at Darlington 2023 starting grid

Leading the race on Sunday evening are Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin. Below is the rest of the starting grid for the race: