The 2023 Goodyear 400 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on May 14, 2023, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested over 295 laps – extended from 293 laps due to an overtime finish, on the egg-shaped oval, it was the 13th race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season. It was the 67th running of the event.
Report
Background
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.
Since 2015, the race has hosted NASCAR's Throwback weekend, which features cars sporting paint schemes that pay homage to past teams and drivers. (The lineage of this race includes races billed as the Southern 500 from 2005 to 2020).
Entry list (R) denotes rookie driver. (i) denotes the driver ineligible for series driver points.
Driver Team Manufacturer Sponsor or throwback 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet Worldwide Express/UPS – Dale Jarrett's 2001 No. 88 paint scheme (Worldwide Express is an authorized UPS reseller) 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford Freightliner Trucks 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Sunny Delight – Harvick's cancelled 2001 No. 30 America Online paint scheme (he was originally scheduled to run part-time that season, but the death of Dale Earnhardt at the 2001 Daytona 500 moved him full-time in the No. 29) 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet HendrickCars.com – Tony Stewart's 2009 second-tier series No. 80 paint scheme that won at Daytona. 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford BP - Castrol GTX Classic, used most notably by Castrol-sponsored NHRA driver John Force (1987–93) and also Tom Walkinshaw Racing's Jaguar XJR-9 in IMSA. 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet NationsGuard – Tribute to LaJoie's grandfather Don LaJoie 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Lucas Oil – Busch's first win with RCR at Fontana 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet LLumar Window Film – Bill Elliott's 2001 Dodge paint scheme 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Smithfield Foods – Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 8 Budweiser MLB paint scheme that won at the 2001 Pepsi 400 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota FedEx – 50th anniversary tribute scheme using 1973 logos 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford Menards/Dutch Boy Paint – Dave Blaney's 1995 World of Outlaws No. 12 Casey Luna Ford/Vivarin paint scheme 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mahindra Tractors – Tony Stewart's 2000 Turkey Night Grand Prix No. 9 paint scheme 15 Brennan Poole (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford MACC Door Systems - Bobby Allison's 1978 Norris paint scheme that won the 1978 Daytona 500 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Black's Tire & Wheel Distributors 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford Fifth Third Bank 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Auto-Owners Insurance – Truex's 2017 No. 78 paint scheme 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota DeWalt – Matt Kenseth's 2003 No. 17 paint scheme 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford DEX Imaging – Jeff Burton's 1999 No. 99 Exide paint scheme 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford Shell – Mark Donohue's 1973 No. 16 AMC Matador paint scheme to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Penske's first NASCAR win 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota Dr Pepper 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Axalta – Jeff Gordon's 1998 DuPont NASCAR 50th Anniversary gold paint scheme raced at that year's NASCAR All-Star Race 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Leaf Filter 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford Stage Front VIP 38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford Serial 1 E-bikes – Elton Sawyer's 1997 NASCAR Busch Series Barbasol paint scheme 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford United Rentals – Jeff Preece's 1998 Late Model No. 4 paint scheme 42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet Sunseeker Resort – Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 Lowe's stars and stripes paint scheme that won at the 2014 Coca-Cola 600 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet Allegiant Air – Richard Petty's 1968 Plymouth with a vinyl roof (the black parts of the wrap replicated the vinyl roof) 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota McDonald's/Xfinity/Monster Energy – Kurt Busch's 2003 No. 97 Rubbermaid paint scheme which finished second to Ricky Craven at Darlington 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Kroger/Country Crock – Special Mother's Day throwback featuring Stenhouse's favorite grilled cheese and Dale Jarrett's 2001 No. 88 UPS paint scheme 48 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Ally Financial – Spotter and former driver Kevin Hamlin's 2007 NASCAR Busch Series No. 42 Havoline paint scheme 51 Ryan Newman Rick Ware Racing Ford Jacob Industries – Newman's 2002 No. 12 Mobil 1 paint scheme that scored his first career win at New Hampshire 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Shriners Hospitals for Children – Bobby Labonte's 1996 No. 18 Interstate Batteries/Washington Redskins paint scheme that honored Joe Gibbs' induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Garner – Tribute to Joe Lee Johnson (inaugural Coca-Cola 600 winner) 78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet The Daily Downforce/Out of the Groove 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet Shell – Ricky Rudd's 1988 No. 26 paint scheme with Quaker State (a Shell brand since 2002)Official entry list
Practice Chase Elliott was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 29.231 seconds and a speed of .
Practice results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.231 168.232 2 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 29.332 167.653 3 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.350 167.550Official practice results
Qualifying Martin Truex Jr. scored the pole for the race with a time of 29.028 and a speed of .
Qualifying results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer 1 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.941 29.028 2 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 29.084 29.040 3 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 29.183 29.141 4 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.246 29.212 5 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 29.112 29.255 6 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 28.946 29.300 7 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.052 29.348 8 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 29.012 29.365 9 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 29.147 29.392 10 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 28.872 29.572 11 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 29.059 — 12 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 29.107 — 13 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 29.114 — 14 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 29.117 — 15 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 29.139 — 16 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 29.238 — 17 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 29.271 — 18 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 29.291 — 19 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 29.324 — 20 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 29.348 — 21 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.354 — 22 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 29.386 — 23 48 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.399 — 24 38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 29.413 — 25 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 29.428 — 26 51 Ryan Newman Rick Ware Racing Ford 29.440 — 27 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 29.456 — 28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 29.463 — 29 42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 29.477 — 30 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 29.501 — 31 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 29.684 — 32 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 29.762 — 33 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 29.961 — 34 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 30.066 — 35 78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 30.577 — 36 15 Brennan Poole (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 30.684 —Official qualifying results
Race
Race results
Stage results
Stage One Laps: 90
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 102 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 93 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 84 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 75 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 66 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 57 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 48 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 39 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 210 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1Official stage one results
Stage Two Laps: 95
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 102 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 93 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 84 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 75 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 66 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 57 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 48 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 39 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 210 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1Official stage two results
Final Stage results
Stage Three Laps: 108
Pos Grid Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points1 4 24 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 295 562 20 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 295 423 21 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 295 344 10 6 Brad Keselowski RFK Racing Ford 295 445 2 23 Bubba Wallace 23XI Racing Toyota 295 406 14 21 Harrison Burton Wood Brothers Racing Ford 295 317 12 8 Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 295 458 22 31 Justin Haley Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 295 299 11 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 295 3110 27 17 Chris Buescher RFK Racing Ford 295 2711 24 38 Todd Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 295 2612 8 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 295 2513 3 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 295 3014 16 20 Christopher Bell Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 295 2915 32 41 Ryan Preece Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 295 2216 13 54 Ty Gibbs (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 295 2117 31 14 Chase Briscoe Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 295 2018 15 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 295 1919 25 2 Austin Cindric Team Penske Ford 295 1820 7 5 Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 295 2521 17 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 295 1622 9 45 Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing Toyota 295 723 30 16 A. J. Allmendinger Kaulig Racing Chevrolet 294 1424 34 7 Corey LaJoie Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 293 1325 28 43 Erik Jones Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 293 1226 29 42 Noah Gragson (R) Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet 293 1127 33 77 Ty Dillon Spire Motorsports Chevrolet 293 1028 26 51 Ryan Newman Rick Ware Racing Ford 291 929 5 1 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 287 2530 23 48 Josh Berry (i) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 286 031 1 19 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 280 1732 35 78 B. J. McLeod Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet 226 533 19 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 200 434 6 99 Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet 199 335 18 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 196 236 36 15 Brennan Poole (i) Rick Ware Racing Ford 39 0Official race results
Race statistics Lead changes: 19 among 8 different drivers Cautions/Laps: 8 for 47 laps Red flags: 0 Time of race: 3 hours, 23 minutes, and 23 seconds Average speed:
Media
Television