He has a stout record at Darlington Raceway, and Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series practice was no different.
LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’s Erik Jones paced the session with a time of 29.542 seconds (166.461mph). Denny Hamlin, a manufacturer teammate from Joe Gibbs Racing, was in second-place. Despite an early-session crash, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. was third fastest in the session, with Ross Chastain and William Byron completing the top-five.
Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, John Hunter Nemechek, Carson Hocevar, and Kyle Larson rounded out the top-10.
NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 Practice Results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Group | Laps | Lap time | Diff | Speed | Best Lap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 43 | Erik Jones | LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Dollar Tree Toyota | A | 22 | 29.542 | 166.461 | 1 | |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing SportsClips Haircuts Toyota | A | 30 | 29.598 | 0.056 | 166.146 | 2 |
| 3 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing Kroger / Drumstick Chevrolet | A | 8 | 29.603 | 0.061 | 166.118 | 1 |
| 4 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing Busch Retro Chevrolet | A | 24 | 29.626 | 0.084 | 165.989 | 1 |
| 5 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports Liberty University Chevrolet | A | 28 | 29.667 | 0.125 | 165.759 | 2 |
| 6 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing US Air Force Toyota | A | 32 | 29.734 | 0.192 | 165.386 | 1 |
| 7 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing Upper Deck Toyota | A | 23 | 29.746 | 0.204 | 165.319 | 1 |
| 8 | 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Mobil 1 Toyota | A | 28 | 29.798 | 0.256 | 165.031 | 1 |
| 9 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports Bon Secours / Greenville Swamp Rabbits Chevrolet | B | 22 | 29.829 | 0.287 | 164.859 | 1 |
| 10 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports HendrickCars.com Chevrolet | A | 26 | 29.834 | 0.292 | 164.832 | 2 |
| 11 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing Solomon Plumbing Ford | A | 32 | 29.856 | 0.314 | 164.710 | 2 |
| 12 | 21 | Harrison Burton | Wood Brothers Racing Motorcraft / Quick Lane Ford | A | 26 | 29.857 | 0.315 | 164.705 | 2 |
| 13 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing Rheem Toyota | B | 36 | 29.872 | 0.33 | 164.622 | 1 |
| 14 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet | A | 32 | 29.923 | 0.381 | 164.341 | 1 |
| 15 | 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing BuildSubmarines.com Ford | A | 30 | 29.941 | 0.399 | 164.243 | 2 |
| 16 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports Ally Financial Chevrolet | B | 28 | 29.942 | 0.4 | 164.237 | 2 |
| 17 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Joe Gibbs Racing Monster Energy Toyota | B | 36 | 29.954 | 0.412 | 164.171 | 1 |
| 18 | 4 | Josh Berry | Stewart-Haas Racing Overstock.com Ford | B | 28 | 30 | 0.458 | 163.920 | 2 |
| 19 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports Chili's Catch-a-Rita Chevrolet | B | 21 | 30.009 | 0.467 | 163.870 | 1 |
| 20 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing Toys for Tots Chevrolet | A | 23 | 30.024 | 0.482 | 163.788 | 2 |
| 21 | 19 | Martin Truex, Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing Bass Pro Shops Toyota | B | 26 | 30.04 | 0.498 | 163.701 | 1 |
| 22 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Trackhouse Racing Freeway Insurance Chevrolet | A | 28 | 30.05 | 0.508 | 163.647 | 3 |
| 23 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports Long John Silver's Ford | B | 34 | 30.055 | 0.513 | 163.620 | 2 |
| 24 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports Colortech Ford | B | 24 | 30.113 | 0.571 | 163.304 | 1 |
| 25 | 71 | Zane Smith | Spire Motorsports Focused Health Chevrolet | A | 31 | 30.129 | 0.587 | 163.218 | 1 |
| 26 | 51 | Justin Haley | Rick Ware Racing NC Fraternal Order of Police Ford | B | 24 | 30.134 | 0.592 | 163.191 | 2 |
| 27 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet | B | 28 | 30.159 | 0.617 | 163.055 | 1 |
| 28 | 10 | Noah Gragson | Stewart-Haas Racing Bass Pro Shops Winchester Ford | B | 36 | 30.174 | 0.632 | 162.974 | 1 |
| 29 | 41 | Ryan Preece | Stewart-Haas Racing HaasTooling.com Ford | A | 25 | 30.176 | 0.634 | 162.963 | 2 |
| 30 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske Shell Pennzoil Ford | B | 37 | 30.217 | 0.675 | 162.742 | 1 |
| 31 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske Discount Tire Ford | B | 36 | 30.27 | 0.728 | 162.457 | 3 |
| 32 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Stewart-Haas Racing HighPoint.com Ford | B | 31 | 30.279 | 0.737 | 162.409 | 2 |
| 33 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske Menards / Richmond Water Heaters Ford | B | 29 | 30.337 | 0.795 | 162.099 | 3 |
| 34 | 31 | Daniel Hemric | Kaulig Racing Cirkul Chevrolet | B | 31 | 30.38 | 0.838 | 161.869 | 2 |
| 35 | 15 | Kaz Grala | Rick Ware Racing Meat N' Bone Ford | B | 32 | 30.75 | 1.208 | 159.921 | 3 |
| 36 | 16 | Shane Van Gisbergen | Kaulig Racing Acceptance Insurance Chevrolet | A | 21 | 30.787 | 1.245 | 159.729 | 2 |
| 37 | 66 | Timmy Hill | MBM Motorsports W Ford | B | 20 | 32.106 | 2.564 | 153.167 | 4 |
