The NASCAR Cup Series weekend at Darlington Raceway will continue without three car chiefs.
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NASCAR has penalized three teams at the South Carolina track due to too many failures in pre-race inspection. This includes the No. 9 of Hendrick Motorsports, the No. 17 of RFK Racing, and the No. 66 of Garage 66. All three entries passed on their third attempt.
Hendrick Motorsports will lose car chief Matt Barndt for the remainder of the weekend. RFK Racing will lose car chief Josh Sisco. Garage 66 will lose car chief Dylan Roberts. All three teams will lose pit stall selection, but they will keep their starting spots after qualifying.
The important thing for all three of these teams is that they passed inspection ahead of Saturday afternoon's practice session. Chase Elliott, Chris Buescher, and Timmy Hill were all able to go out and test the 750-horsepower, low-downforce package on the rough, old surface.
They only had 25 minutes on track, but this still provided some idea about what they will experience during Sunday afternoon's race. It helped them learn more about the amount of tire wear they would experience and how much they would have to work behind the wheel.
"Now, with the tire we're able to successfully run here for probably a year now or so and what Goodyear has done on that side of things has really helped improve the racing, and then to come here with more power and significantly less downforce, I just feel like we're going to be out of control," Buescher said ahead of practice.
"And I think you're going to be screaming and wanting tires way more than we'll physically be able put them on."
All three of these drivers are seeking their first Cup Series win at Darlington Raceway. Elliott's best finish is third in the 2023 spring race. Buescher's best finish is third in the 2023 fall race. Hill's best finish is 33rd in three different races.
