2026 NASCAR Cup Darlington Cook Out Southern 500 Race Results
September 7, 2026
Christopher Bell finally silenced months of heartbreak by claiming victory in Sunday night’s NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
Bell powered his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota across the finish line 1.038 seconds clear of his teammate Ty Gibbs to mark his first victory of the season, while Tyler Reddick completed an all-Toyota podium in third for 23XI Racing.
Ryan Blaney finished fourth in the No. 12 Penske Ford with Kyle Larson taking fifth after leading a race-high 99 laps. Chase Briscoe, Josh Berry, Bubba Wallace, Joey Logano and Ryan Preece rounded out the top 10.
The 367-lap marathon under the lights saw 29 lead changes among 12 drivers, six cautions for 44 laps and an average speed of 123.741 mph.
Full 2026 NASCAR Cup Darlington Cook Out Southern 500 Race Results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Gap | Laps led | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | 46 | 73 | |
| 2 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Joe Gibbs Racing | +1.038 | 0 | 36 |
| 3 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | +2.533 | 74 | 46 |
| 4 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | +3.367 | 1 | 44 |
| 5 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | +3.932 | 99 | 41 |
| 6 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Joe Gibbs Racing | +4.310 | 30 | 43 |
| 7 | 21 | Josh Berry | Wood Brothers Racing | +5.240 | 0 | 34 |
| 8 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | +7.787 | 38 | 44 |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | +8.548 | 0 | 28 |
| 10 | 60 | Ryan Preece | RFK Racing | +9.201 | 0 | 31 |
| 11 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports | +9.591 | 2 | 26 |
| 12 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | +10.008 | 0 | 25 |
| 13 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | +12.509 | 0 | 28 |
| 14 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | +13.123 | 1 | 23 |
| 15 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | +13.830 | 0 | 22 |
| 16 | 34 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | +14.954 | 5 | 21 |
| 17 | 71 | Michael McDowell | Spire Motorsports | +15.714 | 0 | 20 |
| 18 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | +15.897 | 68 | 35 |
| 19 | 67 | Corey Heim (i) | 23XI Racing | +16.355 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing | +16.714 | 0 | 17 |
| 21 | 7 | Daniel Suárez | Spire Motorsports | +16.765 | 2 | 16 |
| 22 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | +17.502 | 0 | 15 |
| 23 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | +18.617 | 0 | 14 |
| 24 | 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | Legacy Motor Club | +19.017 | 0 | 13 |
| 25 | 38 | Zane Smith | Front Row Motorsports | +21.305 | 0 | 12 |
| 26 | 97 | Shane van Gisbergen | Trackhouse Racing | +1 Lap | 1 | 11 |
| 27 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | +1 Lap | 0 | 10 |
| 28 | 33 | Austin Hill (i) | Richard Childress Racing | +1 Lap | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | +1 Lap | 0 | 8 |
| 30 | 35 | Riley Herbst | 23XI Racing | +1 Lap | 0 | 7 |
| 31 | 10 | Ty Dillon | Kaulig Racing | +1 Lap | 0 | 6 |
| 32 | 4 | Noah Gragson | Front Row Motorsports | +1 Lap | 0 | 5 |
| 33 | 41 | Cole Custer | Haas Factory Team | +1 Lap | 0 | 4 |
| 34 | 88 | Connor Zilisch | Trackhouse Racing | +2 Laps | 0 | 3 |
| 35 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | HYAK Motorsports | +4 Laps | 0 | 2 |
| 36 | 51 | Cody Ware | Rick Ware Racing | +4 Laps | 0 | 1 |
| 37 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | +48 Laps | 0 | 6 |
| 38 | 66 | Chad Finchum (i) | Garage 66 | +124 Laps | 0 | 0 |
Ryan Preece seals first NASCAR Cup win, makes the Chase after Daytona overtime chaos
