Showtime Southern 500

Showtime Southern 500

Venue	Darlington Raceway
Sponsor	Showtime
First race	1957
Distance	501.322 miles (806.799 km)
Laps	367
Previous names	Rebel 300 (1957-1965) Rebel 400 (1966-1972) Rebel 500 (1973, 1975-1978) Rebel 450 (1974) CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 (1979-1982) TranSouth 500 (1983-1993) TranSouth Financial 400 (1994-1999) Mall.com 400 (2000) Carolina Dodge Dealers 400 (2001-2004) Dodge Charger 500 (2005-2006) Dodge Avenger 500 (2007) Dodge Challenger 500 (2008)

This article is about the race known as the Rebel 500 held on Confederate Memorial Day since 1957. For more information about the Grand Slam race which had the same name from 1950 through 2004 and removed as part of the Ferko lawsuit, see Mountain Dew Southern 500.

The Showtime Southern 500 is the annual spring NASCAR Sprint Cup race held at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, USA, and is the second such event at Darlington to bear the name. It began in 1957 as a 300 miles (480 km) race in the Convertible Division, known as the Rebel 300. In 1966, the race was expanded to 400 miles (640 km), and in 1973 to 500 miles (800 km). In 1994, the race was returned to 400 miles. In 2005, as part of the settlement of the Ferko lawsuit and as part of a schedule realignment, the "Rebel" returned to its classic Confederate Memorial Day weekend date, and raised back to 500 miles.

Without a title sponsor for 2009, the race tentatively adopted the moniker of Southern 500, the traditional name of the fall race run from 1950-2004 on Labor Day weekend. A one-year deal with Go Daddy was signed. Some fans referred to the race exclusively as the GoDaddy.com 500 out of respect to what fans called the "real" Southern 500, a fall-race showdown. In 2010, Showtime signed a multi-year deal to sponsor the race, giving it the name Showtime Southern 500.

Memorable moments

• 1960-Johnny Allen goes up the race track and tears open the guardrail and then driving on the dirt banking on the outside of the track into a press grandstand. No one was seriously injured.
• April 8, 1979 - In a race that was seen on ABC's Wide World of Sports, Darrell Waltrip and Richard Petty hooked horns in a memorable duel. The lead changed four times between them on Lap 365 and three times on the final lap; Waltrip prevailed over Petty when he cleared Petty in Turn Three and Donnie Allison tried to shoot the gap, instead getting hung alongside Petty. During the race, David Pearson made a pit stop, and thought the Wood brothers were going to change only two tires. With the lug nuts loosened all the way around, Pearson sped out of the pits after two tires had been replaced. The loose inside wheels flew off near the pit road, ending Pearson's day. A week later, Pearson was released from the Wood Brothers ride, despite scoring 43 wins from 1972 to 1978 with the Virginia-based team.
• 1987 - Bill Elliott ran out of fuel on the final lap, and coasted out of turn 4, allowing Dale Earnhardt to sweep by and take the victory.
• 1988 - Lake Speed escaped a multicar wreck in the opening laps and breezed to one of the sport's most dramatic upset wins.
• 1990 - Dale Earnhardt took the win, but the story of the race was a massive accident between Ernie Irvan and Ken Schrader; Irvan was ten laps down yet racing nose-to-nose with Schrader as if for the lead, and lost control in Four; several cars collided in the ensuring melee and Sterling Marlin spun off the wall and hammered Neil Bonnett; Bonnett suffered severe memory loss and was lost for three seasons as a driver.
• March 16, 2003 - Before a national television audience, Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch fought a memorable duel that came down to the final turn, when Craven edged out Busch by 0.002 seconds (about 1-2 inches) in the joint closest finish in NASCAR history since NASCAR started using electronic transponders to determine scoring (along with the Aaron's 499 at Talledega in Spring 2011 where Jimmie Johnson edged out Clint Bowyer at the flag). The finish is thought to have saved the track from being eliminated from the Cup Series schedule.
• May 7, 2011 - Regan Smith stayed out on a late caution when the rest of the field pitted and sweated out a late crash involving Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch to edge Carl Edwards for his first NASCAR win. The win was overshadowed as Harvick and Busch collided on pit road when Harvick tried to throw a punch at Busch inside his cockpit; NASCAR fined the two drivers and put them on probation after the race.

See also: List of current NASCAR races and 2007 Dodge Avenger 500

Past winners

Year	Date	Driver	Car Make	Winner's Prize (USD)	Distance Laps/Miles(Km)	Average Speed (mph)	Race Time
Rebel 300
1957	May 12	Fireball Roberts	Ford	$4,200	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	107.941	2:47:23
1958	May 10	Curtis Turner	Ford	$5,600	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	109.624	2:44:08
1959	May 9	Fireball Roberts	Chevrolet	$6,550	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	115.817	2:36:00
1960	May 14	Joe Weatherly	Ford	$9,250	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	102.64	2:56:01
1961	May 6	Fred Lorenzen	Ford	$8,420	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	119.52	2:31:10
1962	May 12	Nelson Stacy	Ford	$7,900	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	117.429	2:33:17
1963	May 11	Joe Weatherly	Ford	$11,100	220 / 302.5 (486.826)	122.745	2:27:36
1964	May 9	Fred Lorenzen	Ford	$10,265	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	130.013	2:18:51
1965	May 8	Junior Johnson	Ford	$10,490	219 / 301.125 (484.613)	111.849	2:41:32
Rebel 400
1966	April 30	Richard Petty	Plymouth	$12,115	291 / 400.125 (643.938)	131.993	3:01:53
1967	May 13	Richard Petty	Plymouth	$14,090	291 / 400.125 (643.938)	125.738	3:10:56
1968	May 11	David Pearson	Ford	$13,700	291 / 400.125 (643.938)	132.699	3:00:54
1969	May 10	LeeRoy Yarbrough	Mercury	$14,700	291 / 400.125 (643.938)	131.572	3:02:28
1970	May 9	David Pearson	Ford	$15,650	291 / 400.125 (643.938)	129.688	3:05:07
1971	May 2	Buddy Baker	Dodge	$16,065	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	130.678	3:03:46
1972	April 16	David Pearson	Mercury	$16,850	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	124.406	3:13:00
Rebel 500
1973	April 15	David Pearson	Mercury	$16,335	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	122.655	4:04:14
Rebel 450
1974	April 7	David Pearson	Mercury	$16,575	330 / 450.78 (725.460)	117.543	3:50:06
Rebel 500
1975	April 13	Bobby Allison	Matador	$15,080	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	117.597	4:15:41
1976	April 11	David Pearson	Mercury	$17,570	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	122.973	4:04:36
1977	April 3	Darrell Waltrip	Chevrolet	$19,270	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	128.817	3:53:18
1978	April 9	Benny Parsons	Chevrolet	$21,700	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	127.544	3:55:50
1979	April 8	Darrell Waltrip	Chevrolet	$22,400	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	121.721	4:06:59
CRC Chemicals Rebel 500
1980	April 13	David Pearson	Chevrolet	$21,430	189 / 258.174 (415.490)	112.397	2:23:49
1981	April 12	Darrell Waltrip	Buick	$23,225	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	126.703	3:57:24
1982	April 4	Dale Earnhardt	Ford	$31,450	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	123.554	4:03:27
TranSouth 500
1983	April 10	Harry Gant	Buick	$30,050	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	130.406	3:50:05
1984	April 15	Darrell Waltrip	Chevrolet	$39,450	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	119.925	4:18:16
1985	April 14	Bill Elliott	Ford	$42,900	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	126.295	3:58:08
1986	April 13	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	$52,250	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	128.994	3:53:11
1987	March 29	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	$52,985	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	122.54	4:05:28
1988	March 27	Lake Speed	Oldsmobile	$49,435	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	131.284	3:49:07
1989	April 2	Harry Gant	Oldsmobile	$59,935	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	115.475	4:20:29
1990	April 1	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	$61,985	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	124.073	4:02:26
1991	April 7	Ricky Rudd	Chevrolet	$62,185	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	135.594	3:41:50
1992	March 29	Bill Elliott	Ford	$64,290	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	139.364	3:35:50
1993	March 28	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	$64,815	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	139.958	3:33:29
TranSouth Financial 400
1994	March 27	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	$70,190	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	132.432	3:01:20
1995	March 26	Sterling Marlin	Chevrolet	$86,185	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	111.392	3:35:35
1996	March 24	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	$97,310	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	124.792	3:12:26
1997	March 23	Dale Jarrett	Ford	$142,860	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	121.162	3:18:12
1998	March 22	Dale Jarrett	Ford	$110,035	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	127.962	3:07:40
1999	March 21	Jeff Burton	Ford	$161,900	164 / 224.024 (360.531)	121.294	1:50:49
Mall.com 400
2000	March 19	Ward Burton	Pontiac	$132,725	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	128.076	3:07:30
Carolina Dodge Dealers 400
2001	March 18	Dale Jarrett	Ford	$214,612	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	126.557	3:09:45
2002	March 17	Sterling Marlin	Dodge	$190,642	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	126.07	3:10:29
2003	March 16	Ricky Craven	Pontiac	$172,150	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	126.214	3:10:16
2004	March 21	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	$151,150	293 / 400.238 (644.120)	114.001	3:30:39
Dodge Charger 500
2005	May 7	Greg Biffle	Ford	$305,975	370 / 505.42 (813.394)	123.031	4:06:29
2006	May 13	Greg Biffle	Ford	$290,175	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	135.127	3:42:36
Dodge Avenger 500
2007	May 13	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	$317,486	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	124.372	4:01:50
Dodge Challenger 500
2008	May 10	Kyle Busch	Toyota	$313,700	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	140.350	3:34:19
Southern 500 Presented by GoDaddy.com
2009	May 9	Mark Martin	Chevrolet	$317,486	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	119.687	4:11:19
Showtime Southern 500
2010	May 8	Denny Hamlin	Toyota	$288,525	367 / 501.322 (806.799)	126.605	3:57:35
2011	May 7	Regan Smith	Chevrolet	$272,745	370 / 505.42 (813.394)	129.678	3:53:51

• 1982: Earnhardt's 1st of 9 Darlington wins came in Bud Moore's #15 Wrangler Ford T-Bird
• 1980 & 1999: Race shortened due to rain.
• 2005 & 2011: Race extended due to a Green-white-checker finish.
• 2007: Race postponed from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon due to rain.

Television broadcasters

Year	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2011	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2010	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2009	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2008	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2007	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2006	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2005	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2004	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2003	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2002	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2001	Fox	Mike Joy	Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
2000	ESPN	Jerry Punch	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1999	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1998	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1997	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1996	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1995	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1994	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1993	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1992	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1991	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1990	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett
1989	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
1988	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett
1987	ESPN	Larry Nuber	Jerry Punch
1986	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
1985	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
1984	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
1983	ABC	Keith Jackson	Jackie Stewart
1982	ABC	Al Michaels	Jackie Stewart and Chris Economaki (pitside)
1981	ABC	Al Michaels	Jackie Stewart
1980	ABC	Keith Jackson	Jackie Stewart
1979	ABC	Jim McKay	Jackie Stewart and Chris Economaki (pitside)
1978	ABC
1977	ABC
1976	ABC
1975
1974
1973
1972	ABC	Bill Flemming	Donnie Allison
1971	ABC	Keith Jackson	Chris Economaki
1970	ABC	Jim McKay	Ned Jarrett
1969	ABC		Chris Economaki
1968	ABC
1967	ABC	Chris Economaki	Fred Lorenzen
1966	ABC	Jim McKay
1965	ABC	Jim McKay

External links

• NASCAR Commentators Crews and Networks
• Ratings For NASCAR Southern 500 Since 2000
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