Why Did NASCAR Change Darlington Race Start Time Today? Will it Be Delayed?

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Why did NASCAR change the Darlington race start time today? Here’s why the Southern 500 starts at 5 p.m. ET and whether weather could cause a delay.

Rain was in the forecast for Darlington Raceway long before the green flag, and NASCAR responded by adjusting its own clock. Officials moved Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 start up 10 minutes, setting the field in motion at 5 p.m. ET instead of the previously advertised 5:10 p.m., according to Fox Sports‘ Bob Pockrass. Pre-race coverage on USA Network still begins at 4:30 p.m. ET.

“NASCAR has moved the green flag time for Darlington to 10 minutes earlier to 5p ET with forecast for rain at some point tonight,” reported veteran racing journalist Bob Pockrass, who added that the weather at Darlington Sunday, “appears a little similar to yesterday as far as hit or miss.”

Cars began gridding at around 4 p.m., according to reporter Noah Lewis, who added “so far so good on weather…under an hour till the green flag at Darlington!”

Forecasters monitoring the Darlington weather appeared to believe that if rains hit and cause a delay it would come in the middle of the race, probably after the first stage, and that the 5 p.m. green flag would wave as scheduled.

“Storms are forming across the Carolinas this afternoon, some severe with damaging wind gusts and hail,” added meteorologist Brandon Lawson of Queen City News at 2:55 p.m. “We will have to see how storms develop upstream from the track over the coming hours. A few cells have formed near the track. I do not think 5 pm start will change much. Might give them a slightly higher chance to make it to halfway. Still going 50% chance of a delay at some point during the race… whether it be for lightning or actual rain.”

Another meteorologist, Stephen Durham, was also wary of the Darlington weather for the race.

“Showers/storms are likely to impact (Darlington Raceway) in a couple of hours, he wrote at 3:25 p.m. “Favorable environment as they track south. Plenty of energy to be tapped for more showers and storms to develop. Likely arrives at the track after green-flag. Likely around 6-8pm timeframe.”

And the RaceWeather social media account also gave a dodgy outlook, at 4:30 p.m..

“Green flag for the Cup race – 5 PM ET; Competition caution at/around Lap 35. Storms could develop this afternoon, continuing into evening. Watching a band of storms abt 90 miles NW of Darlington. Moderate certainty that it’ll hold together,”RaceWeather wrote.

The 10-minute adjustment buys a sliver of daylight against a forecast that only worsens through the evening. Whether NASCAR finishes all 367 laps before the sky opens up is the question hanging over Darlington.

“The Drivers Meeting will take place at 3:45 p.m. Driver intros will be at 4:10 p.m. Green flag will be at 5 p.m.” reported Motorsports senior editor Matt Weaver.

Saturday’s on-track schedule never got off the ground. Lightning and thunderstorms wiped out both practice and qualifying, forcing NASCAR to set the field by its performance metric, weighted 70 percent to previous finish and 30 percent to owner points, according to Jayski.com. Tyler Reddick starts from the pole as a result, according to Reuters. Daniel Suárez, Ryan Preece and Denny Hamlin round out the front two rows.

Darlington Raceway Weather Outlook and Delay Odds

The National Weather Service pegs Sunday afternoon at a 30 to 50 percent chance of showers and storms after 2 p.m., under partly sunny skies and a high near 91 to 92 degrees. Once the sun goes down, the odds worsen. Storms become likely overnight, mainly before midnight, with rainfall of a half-inch to three-quarters of an inch possible and lows near 70.

Hour-by-hour models put precipitation chances in the mid-to-high 40s around the new green flag, climbing toward 70 percent by 9 p.m., according to MySportsWeather.com. That points to a moderate chance of a delay, but a lower chance of a postponement to Monday. The storms are typical late-day pop-ups rather than an all-day washout, and if rain arrives mid-race, NASCAR’s likelier move is to wait it out or finish under caution rather than red-flag the event.

Wet-weather tires won’t factor in regardless. Goodyear’s treaded rain tires are approved only for road courses and short ovals of roughly a mile or less, tracks like Martinsville and Richmond. Darlington’s 1.366-mile egg shape sits well outside that window, so teams run the same dry slicks used here in March. Standing water or poor visibility means a red flag, not a tire change.

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Southern 500 Preview and Denny Hamlin’s Chase Math

Sunday’s 367-lap, 501.32-mile race opens the 10-race Chase, and Hamlin arrives as the favorite after clinching the regular-season title. Betting markets have him and Reddick bunched atop the board, with Chase Briscoe, the two-time defending Southern 500 winner, and Kyle Larson close behind, according to Covers.com. Several Chase qualifiers, including Chris Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Carson Hocevar, William Byron and Larson, start 20th or worse after a chaotic finish at Daytona.

The new Chase format resets points after the 26-race regular season, and Hamlin’s reward for the title is a 2,100-point head start with a 25-point cushion over second-seed Ryan Blaney, according to NASCAR.com. Every seed below drops five points down to 2,000 for 16th, and wins now pay 55 points instead of 40. There are no eliminations. Whoever leads after Homestead-Miami on Nov. 8 wins it all.

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