2017 Bojangles' Southern 500

The 2017 Bojangles' Southern 500, the 68th running of the event, was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on September 3, 2017 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested over 367 laps on the 1.366-mile (2.198 km) egg-shaped oval, it was the 25th race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

2017 Bojangles' Southern 500
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 25 of 36 in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
The 2017 Bojangles' Southern 500 program cover, featuring NASCAR legends Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt Sr., Bill Elliott, and drivers who were racing in 2017, Chase Elliott, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Ryan Blaney.
The 2017 Bojangles' Southern 500 program cover, featuring NASCAR legends Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt Sr., Bill Elliott, and drivers who were racing in 2017, Chase Elliott, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Ryan Blaney.
Date September 3, 2017 (2017-09-03)
Location Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1.366 mi (2.198 km)
Distance 367 laps, 501.322 mi (806.666 km)
Average speed 132.761 miles per hour (213.658 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Stewart-Haas Racing
Time 27.669
Most laps led
Driver Kyle Larson
Denny Hamlin
Chip Ganassi Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 124
Winner
No. 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network NBCSN
Announcers Rick Allen, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte
Ken Squier, Ned Jarrett, and Dale Jarrett
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN
Booth Announcers Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers Dave Moody (1 & 2) and Mike Bagley (3 & 4)

Report

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Background

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Layout of Darlington Raceway, the track where the race is held

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.

Entry list

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No. Driver Team Manufacturer Sponsor or throwback
1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet McDonald's David Pearson's 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 winning car[10]
2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford Miller Genuine Draft Rusty Wallace's 1991–1995 car[10]
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet American Ethanol Dale Earnhardt's 1987 Southern 500 winning car[10]
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1980s Busch Beer design, based on the “Head for the Mountains” commercials[10]
5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Great Clips Geoff Bodine's 1985 car[10]
6 Trevor Bayne Roush Fenway Racing Ford AdvoCare Mark Martin's Winston Cup Series car in 1988 and 1989[10]
10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Ford Credit Dale Jarrett's 1999 championship-winning car[10]
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Sport Clips Ray Hendrick-inspired car[10]
13 Ty Dillon (R) Germain Racing Chevrolet GEICO Smokey Yunick's car that was driven by Johnny Rutherford in 1963[10]
14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mark Martin's Busch Series car between 1988 and 1991[10]
15 Reed Sorenson Premium Motorsports Toyota Brett Bodine's 1989 car[10]
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford Fifth Third Bank Darrell Waltrip's 1997 car[10]
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota M&M's Caramel
19 Daniel Suárez (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Arris
20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Retro-inspired Circle K car[10]
21 Ryan Blaney Wood Brothers Racing Ford Ford Motorcraft Kyle Petty's 1987 Coca-Cola 600 winning car[10]
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford Shell/Pennzoil - Jimmy Vasser's 2002 IndyCar scheme[10]
23 Corey LaJoie (R) BK Racing Toyota Dr. Pepper Davey Allison's 1984 car[10]
24 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet NAPA Auto Parts Father Bill Elliott's 1976 Rockingham car, when Elliott made his first Winston Cup Series start[10]
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Retro-inspired Dutch Boy Paint car[10]
31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt's 1987 Southern 500 winning car[10]
32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford Bobby Allison's 1988 Daytona 500 winning car[10]
33 Jeffrey Earnhardt Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt's 1989 Busch Series car[10]
34 Landon Cassill Front Row Motorsports Ford Inspired by the first Love's Travel Stop opened in 1981[10]
37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Patty Moise's 1988 Busch Series car[10]
38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford Camping World/Good Sam Club 1960s Good Sam Club design[10]
41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Monster Energy/Haas Automation
42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Credit One Bank Kyle Petty's 1995 car[10]
43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford STP Richard Petty's 1984 car when he won his record-setting 200th race[10]
47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Terry Labonte's 1986 car[10]
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Lowe's based on the delivery trucks from 1986[10]
51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet Kyle Petty's 1991–1994 and Days of Thunder protagonist Cole Trickle's Mello Yello/Pray for Texas paint schemes[10]
55 Derrike Cope Premium Motorsports Toyota Mane 'n Tail Shampoo and Conditioner based on Cope's 1994 car[10]
66 Carl Long (i) MBM Motorsports Chevrolet CrashClaimsR.US
72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet Grandfather Jim Whitt's 1972–73 car, known as the “Lime Green Machine”, when he won the Cajon Speedway Track Championship[10]
77 Erik Jones (R) Furniture Row Racing Toyota 5-Hour Energy Special paint scheme that pays tribute to the Cup Rookie of the Year award winners from 1984 to 1989[10]
78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota Bass Pro Shops 40th Anniversary[10]
83 Gray Gaulding (R) BK Racing Toyota Champion Machinery
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Nationwide Insurance Based on Dale Jr's 1998–1999 Busch Series car[10]
95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet Alan Kulwicki's 1986 car from his rookie season[10]
Official entry list

Practice

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First practice

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Kyle Larson was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 28.415 seconds and a speed of 173.064 mph (278.520 km/h).[11]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 28.415 173.064
2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.484 172.644
3 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 28.494 172.584
Official first practice results

Final practice

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Kyle Busch was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 28.373 seconds and a speed of 173.320 mph (278.932 km/h).[12]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.373 173.320
2 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 28.414 173.070
3 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 28.427 172.990
Official final practice results

Qualifying

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Kevin Harvick scored the pole position.

Kevin Harvick scored the pole for the race with a time of 27.669 and a speed of 177.730 mph (286.029 km/h).[13]

Qualifying results

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Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2 R3
1 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 27.598 27.703 27.669
2 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 27.806 27.875 27.771
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 27.884 27.796 27.833
4 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 27.920 27.780 27.851
5 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 27.794 27.769 27.874
6 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 27.932 27.811 27.924
7 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 27.767 27.856 27.935
8 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 27.874 27.892 27.940
9 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 27.985 27.824 27.954
10 77 Erik Jones (R) Furniture Row Racing Toyota 27.868 27.758 28.036
11 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 27.753 27.952 28.041
12 21 Ryan Blaney Wood Brothers Racing Ford 27.972 27.918 28.097
13 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 27.816 27.968
14 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 27.852 28.038
15 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 27.989 28.048
16 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 28.032 28.054
17 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 27.958 28.091
18 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 27.996 28.097
19 19 Daniel Suárez (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.041 28.109
20 24 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 27.911 28.115
21 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.017 28.155
22 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.054 28.162
23 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.000 28.261
24 6 Trevor Bayne Roush Fenway Racing Ford 28.112 28.309
25 13 Ty Dillon (R) Germain Racing Chevrolet 28.132
26 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 28.146
27 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 28.172
28 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 28.184
29 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 28.301
30 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 28.310
31 34 Landon Cassill Front Row Motorsports Ford 28.429
32 15 Reed Sorenson Premium Motorsports Toyota 28.620
33 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 28.631
34 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 28.681
35 23 Corey LaJoie (R) BK Racing Toyota 28.684
36 83 Gray Gaulding (R) BK Racing Toyota 28.765
37 33 Jeffrey Earnhardt Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group Chevrolet 28.876
38 55 Derrike Cope Premium Motorsports Toyota 29.372
39 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 29.566
40 66 Carl Long (i) MBM Motorsports Chevrolet 29.697
Official qualifying results

Race

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Denny Hamlin won the race.

Race results

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Stage results

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Stage 1 Laps: 100

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 10
2 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 9
3 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 8
4 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 7
5 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 6
6 77 Erik Jones (R) Furniture Row Racing Toyota 5
7 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 4
8 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 3
9 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 2
10 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1
Official stage one results

Stage 2 Laps: 100

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 10
2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 9
3 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 8
4 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 7
5 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 6
6 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 5
7 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 4
8 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 3
9 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 2
10 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1
Official stage two results

Final stage results

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Stage 3 Laps: 167

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 9 11 Denny Hamlin† Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 367 32
2 3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 367 43
3 7 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 367 38
4 13 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 367 36
5 10 77 Erik Jones (R) Furniture Row Racing Toyota 367 37
6 11 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 367 32
7 17 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 367 30
8 2 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 367 49
9 1 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 366 43
10 5 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 366 34
11 20 24 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 366 26
12 18 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 366 25
13 25 13 Ty Dillon (R) Germain Racing Chevrolet 366 24
14 4 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 366 39
15 6 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 366 33
16 21 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 366 21
17 27 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 366 20
18 8 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 366 22
19 30 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 365 18
20 15 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 365 17
21 31 34 Landon Cassill Front Row Motorsports Ford 365 16
22 22 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 365 15
23 34 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 364 14
24 23 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 364 13
25 26 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 363 12
26 33 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 363 11
27 28 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 362 10
28 35 23 Corey LaJoie (R) BK Racing Toyota 360 9
29 14 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 358 8
30 37 33 Jeffrey Earnhardt Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group Chevrolet 356 7
31 12 21 Ryan Blaney Wood Brothers Racing Ford 356 6
32 38 55 Derrike Cope Premium Motorsports Toyota 351 5
33 40 66 Carl Long (i) MBM Motorsports Chevrolet 350 0
34 29 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 340 3
35 24 6 Trevor Bayne Roush Fenway Racing Ford 336 2
36 36 83 Gray Gaulding (R) BK Racing Toyota 202 1
37 39 51 Cody Ware Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 144 1
38 19 19 Daniel Suárez (R) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 125 1
39 32 15 Reed Sorenson Premium Motorsports Toyota 104 1
40 16 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 18 1
Official race results

† Denny Hamlin was penalized 25 points and the win is encumbered due to a rear suspension infraction post-race.[14]

Race statistics

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  • Lead changes: 8 among different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 8 for 38
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 3 hours, 46 minutes and 34 seconds
  • Average speed: 132.761 miles per hour (213.658 km/h)

Media

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Television

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NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, two–time Darlington winner Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte had the call in the booth for the race. As part of the throwback weekend, Ken Squier, Ned Jarrett and Dale Jarrett also called a portion of the race. Dave Burns, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.

NBCSN
Booth announcers Pit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen and Ken Squier
Color-commentator: Jeff Burton and Ned Jarrett
Color-commentator: Steve Letarte and Dale Jarrett
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Kelli Stavast

Radio

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The Motor Racing Network had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Dave Moody called the race from a billboard outside of turn when the field raced through turns 1 and 2, and Mike Bagley had the call of the race atop of the Darlington Raceway Club outside of turn 3 when the field raced through turns 3 and 4.

MRN
Booth announcers Turn announcers Pit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Announcer: Rusty Wallace
Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody
Turns 3 & 4: Mike Bagley
Alex Hayden
Winston Kelley
Steve Post

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ "2017 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2016. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  2. ^ "Darlington Raceway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 30, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  3. ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. August 29, 2017. Archived from the original on August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. September 1, 2017. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  5. ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. September 1, 2017. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  6. ^ "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. September 2, 2017. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  7. ^ "Bojangles' Southern 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. September 3, 2017. Archived from the original on September 4, 2017. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  8. ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 5, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  9. ^ "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 5, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai McFadin, Daniel (August 31, 2017). "Retro Rundown 2017: Southern 500 throwback paint schemes". NASCARTalk.com. NBC Sports. Archived from the original on September 1, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  11. ^ Spencer, Lee (September 1, 2017). "Kyle Larson leads opening Southern 500 practice at Darlington". Motorsport.com. Darlington, South Carolina: Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  12. ^ Spencer, Lee (September 1, 2017). "Kyle Busch spins, goes quickest in final practice at Darlington". Motorsport.com. Darlington, South Carolina: Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  13. ^ Iacobelli, Pete (September 2, 2017). "Kevin Harvick takes pole for Southern 500 at Darlington". Associated Press. Darlington, South Carolina: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  14. ^ Crandall, Kelly (6 September 2017). "Hamlin's Darlington wins encumbered; Ives suspended". racer.com. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.


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