Throwback weekend, the NASCAR paint scheme version of any gift-giving holiday, arrives early this year as the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Darlington Raceway for the Goodyear 400.
The celebration of liveries from NASCAR’s decades past moves from its September date to the spring, but the race does not: the egg-shaped oval and famed “Lady in Black” is back to a two-date slate on the Cup schedule.
A total of 37 cars populate this week’s entry list, which means all drivers will compete in the 400-mile race unless any last-minute changes to the entry list are made. Many teams have already announced throwbacks or revealed them the Monday (May 3) prior to the race.
James Davison returns to Rick Ware Racing for his seventh race of 2021 and for the first time since Richmond; Joey Gase ran the No. 15 at Talladega and Kansas. J.J. Yeley will compete in his fourth event of the year, this time driving the No. 53 for Ware. Yeley ran at Bristol, Martinsville and Talladega for the team.
For the May race at Darlington, Kevin Harvick is basically the defending winner despite the track not having a scheduled spring event since 2014. Cup competition in 2020 was placed on hold for more than two months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, returning to action with back-to-back races at Darlington in early May to keep travel at a minimum. Almost exactly one year later, Cup returns for a scheduled race there this time: Harvick and Denny Hamlin won the first two races in the return to racing in 2020, respectively, and Harvick followed that up with a win in the September throwback race.
Goodyear 400 Entry List
The Goodyear 400 is set for Sunday, May 9 at 3:30 p.m. ET with coverage on FS1.
About the author
Adam Cheek joined Frontstretch as a contributing writer in January 2019. A 2020 graduate of VCU, he covered sports there and later spent a year and a half as a sports host on 910 the Fan in Richmond, VA. He's freelanced for Richmond Magazine and the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and also hosts the "Adam Cheek's Sports Week" podcast. Adam has followed racing since the age of three, inheriting the passion from his grandfather, who raced in amateur events up and down the East Coast in the 1950s.
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