Chase Briscoe’s win was the most dominant Southern 500 victory in 54 years

Darlington Raceway just hosted the 76th running of the Southern 500 — a coveted crown jewel that has been part of the NASCAR Cup schedule since 1950.

By winning it the way he did, Chase Briscoe guaranteed himself a place in the history books. He became just the eighth different driver to win back-to-back Southern 500s, and the first since Greg Biffle did it in 2005-2006. 

Briscoe is also the first driver to successfully defend his 500 win with two different teams since Cale Yarborough in 1973-1974. However, Yarborough was still driving the same car, while the ownership simply changed heads. Bobbby Allison is the only other driver to have accomplished the same feat.

But Briscoe didn’t just appear near the end and win Sunday’s race. He absolutely dominated (despite a very close finish), sweeping both stages from pole position and leading 309 of 367 laps. The Southern 500 hasn’t seen that level of dominance since 1971, when Allison led 329 of 367 laps en route to the victory. 

As for Darlington races in general, you’d have to go back to 1986, when Dale Earnhardt won the TranSouth 500 after leading 335 of 367 laps.

Bobby Allison celebrates victory in 1971 Southern 500 at Darlington, joined by country music artist and fellow racer Marty Robbins

Photo by: ISC Images via Getty Images

So, where exactly does Briscoe’s Southern 500 performance rank in the rich history of Darlington Raceway?

It’s certainly up there, and since he didn’t lose the race in the closing moments to a hard-charging Reddick, Kyle Larson still holds the unfortunate distinction of the most dominant Darlington performance that didn’t end in victory. In 2018, he led 284 of 367 laps in the Southern 500, only to lose the lead to Brad Keselowski during a late-race pit stop, and never get it back.

Where does Briscoe’s win fall on the list?

But as for the most dominant showings by Darlington race winners, Briscoe’s victory ranks seventh all-time by laps led, and eighth all-time by percentage of laps led at 84.2% of total laps run. 

The most dominant showing by laps led alone actually occurred in the very first race held at Darlington, when inaugural Southern 500 winner Johnny Mantz led 351 of 400 laps. He used durable truck tires that lasted far longer and didn’t really wear, while the competition was constantly on pit road seeking fresh rubber.

Richard Petty competing in the 1967 Southern 500 at Darlington

Photo by: Bob D’Olivo/The Enthusiast Network via Getty Images

By percentage of laps led, the honor goes to ‘The King’ himself, as Richard Petty led 96.6% of the laps en route to his victory in the 1966 Rebel 400. If we were looking exclusively at the Southern 500, it’s still Petty, who led 94.8% of the laps to win the 1967 Southern 500. 

Briscoe’s win isn’t quite at those levels, but in modern NASCAR, the level of dominance he showed incredibly rare to see in any race on the schedule. Larson holds the record there, leading 92.8% of laps (462 of 500) when he won the Bristol Night Race in 2024.