2011 Showtime Southern 500
# 2011 Showtime Southern 500

The 2011 Showtime Southern 500, the 55th running of the event , was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on May 7, 2011 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested over 370 laps, 3 laps over the advertised distance, it was the tenth race of the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season out of thirty-six. The pole position was won by Kasey Kahne of Red Bull Racing Team. The race was won by Regan Smith of Furniture Row Racing, the first win for both Smith and the team, with Carl Edwards in second and Brad Keselowski in third.

The race was the first ever start for T. J. Bell.

## Report

### Background

Darlington Raceway is the second oldest speedway on the NASCAR schedule next to Martinsville Speedway. From above, the track has been long described as being shaped similar to an egg. Consequently, the track's banking is also affected by its shape. The frontstretch and backstretch are banked at 3° and 2°, respectively. Turns 1 and 2, which have a wider radius, are banked at 25° and turns 3 and 4, which are much tighter than the first two, carry 23° of banking.

Prior to the race, Carl Edwards held the Drivers' Championship lead with 326 points. Defending champion Jimmie Johnson was in second place, 9 points back, followed by Richmond Kyle Busch in third, 21 points behind Johnson. Four points behind Busch was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in fourth with Kevin Harvick one point behind in fifth. Kurt Busch, with 289 points, was in sixth followed by Clint Bowyer who was 5 points behind Busch. Ryan Newman, Matt Kenseth, and Tony Stewart rounded out the top 10 in points, all 3 separated by 3 points. Defending race winner Denny Hamlin was 17th in points. A. J. Allmendinger and Jeff Gordon remained in the wild card positions.

In the owner points battle, Tommy Baldwin Racing moved into the top-35 in owners' points for the first time on the heels of a 13th-place finish at Richmond, leading to a 3-way tie for 35th between the #32 team of FAS Lane Racing, the #13 team of Germain Racing, and the #71 team of TRG Motorsports.

Entry list :

| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 00 | David Reutimann | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | Aaron's Outdoors |
| 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops, Tracker Boats |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | Miller Lite |
| 4 | Kasey Kahne | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | Red Bull |
| 5 | Mark Martin | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | GoDaddy |
| 6 | David Ragan | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | UPS "We Love Logistics" |
| 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | Fast Five, Speed Energy |
| 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | DeWalt, Stanley Tools |
| 09 | Landon Cassill | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | Thank A Teacher Today, Security Benefit |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Sport Clips Haircuts |
| 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Toyota | GEICO |
| 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | Office Depot, Mobil 1 |
| 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 3M |
| 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Wiley X Eyewear |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Doublemint |
| 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | The Home Depot |
| 22 | Kurt Busch | Penske Racing | Dodge | Shell, Pennzoil |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | AARP Drive to End Hunger |
| 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Menards, Turtle Wax |
| 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Budweiser |
| 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Chevrolet | EchoStor Technologies |
| 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Caterpillar |
| 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | U. S. Chrome, H&B Railroad |
| 33 | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | BB&T |
| 34 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | Taco Bell |
| 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | Golden Corral |
| 37 | Tony Raines | Max Q Motorsports | Ford | Front Row Motorsports |
| 38 | Travis Kvapil | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | Long John Silver's "We Speak Fish" |
| 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | Tornados |
| 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Target |
| 43 | A.J. Allmendinger | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | Best Buy |
| 46 | J.J. Yeley | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | Red Line Oil |
| 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | Lance Snacks, Tom's Snacks |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Lowe's, Kobalt Tools |
| 50 | T.J. Bell | LTD Powersports, LLC | Toyota | Bandit Chippers, Little Joe's Autos |
| 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | NAPA Auto Parts |
| 60 | Mike Skinner | Germain Racing | Toyota | Big Red |
| 66 | Michael McDowell | HP Racing | Toyota | K-Love |
| 71 | Andy Lally | TRG Motorsports | Ford | Interstate Moving Services |
| 75 | Derrike Cope* | Stratus Racing Group | Dodge | |
| 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | Furniture Row, Denver Mattress |
| 81 | Scott Riggs | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | Whitney Motorsports |
| 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | Red Bull |
| 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Toyota | NEMCO Motorsports |
| 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Amp Energy Sugar Free, National Guard |
| 92 | Brian Keselowski | K-Automotive Motorsports | Dodge | VoiceToday.org |
| 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Aflac |

*Withdrew.

### Qualifying

Kasey Kahne would win the pole with a 27.131. Meanwhile, Scott Riggs would blow an engine coming into his second lap of his qualifying run. While he had set a time, it was not enough to get Riggs into the race, as Joe Nemechek would beat his time.

Full qualifying results :

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 4 | Kasey Kahne | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 27.131 | 181.254 |
| 2 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 27.255 | 180.429 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.300 | 180.132 |
| 4 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 27.323 | 179.980 |
| 5 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.346 | 179.829 |
| 6 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 27.370 | 179.671 |
| 7 | 43 | A.J. Allmendinger | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 27.404 | 179.448 |
| 8 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 27.433 | 179.259 |
| 9 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 27.456 | 179.108 |
| 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | 27.460 | 179.082 |
| 11 | 6 | David Ragan | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 27.461 | 179.076 |
| 12 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 27.491 | 178.880 |
| 13 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.536 | 178.588 |
| 14 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.558 | 178.445 |
| 15 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | 27.568 | 178.381 |
| 16 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 27.586 | 178.264 |
| 17 | 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 27.602 | 178.161 |
| 18 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.611 | 178.103 |
| 19 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.621 | 178.038 |
| 20 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 27.628 | 177.993 |
| 21 | 38 | Travis Kvapil | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 27.629 | 177.987 |
| 22 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 27.634 | 177.955 |
| 23 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 27.647 | 177.871 |
| 24 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.654 | 177.826 |
| 25 | 22 | Kurt Busch | Penske Racing | Dodge | 27.665 | 177.755 |
| 26 | 33 | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 27.670 | 177.723 |
| 27 | 09 | Landon Cassill | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 27.678 | 177.672 |
| 28 | 5 | Mark Martin | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.687 | 177.614 |
| 29 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 27.770 | 177.083 |
| 30 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.827 | 176.720 |
| 31 | 46 | J.J. Yeley | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27.833 | 176.682 |
| 32 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Toyota | 27.879 | 176.391 |
| 33 | 50 | T.J. Bell | LTD Powersports, LLC | Toyota | 27.903 | 176.239 |
| 34 | 60 | Mike Skinner | Germain Racing | Toyota | 27.909 | 176.201 |
| 35 | 37 | Tony Raines | Max Q Motorsports | Ford | 27.911 | 176.189 |
| 36 | 00 | David Reutimann | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 27.921 | 176.125 |
| 37 | 34 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 28.025 | 175.472 |
| 38 | 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.035 | 175.409 |
| 39 | 66 | Michael McDowell | HP Racing | Toyota | 28.044 | 175.353 |
| 40 | 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | 28.054 | 175.291 |
| 41 | 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 28.225 | 174.229 |
| 42 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | 28.235 | 174.167 |
| Last to make it on time (car that is not locked in by owner's points) |||||||
| 43 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Toyota | 28.165 | 174.600 |
| Failed to qualify or withdrew |||||||
| 44 | 81 | Scott Riggs | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.247 | 174.093 |
| 45 | 71 | Andy Lally | TRG Motorsports | Ford | 28.613 | 171.866 |
| 46 | 92 | Brian Keselowski | K-Automotive Motorsports | Dodge | 28.776 | 170.892 |
| WD | 75 | Derrike Cope | Stratus Racing Group | Dodge | 0.000 | 0.000 |

Did not qualify: #81-Scott Riggs, #71-Andy Lally, #92-Brian Keselowski Withdrew: #75 Derrike Cope

### Race

Regan Smith pulled off an upset and won the Showtime Southern 500 after holding off Carl Edwards on a late restart. There were 11 caution flags, the wildest one happening with 4 laps to go. During a 3 wide situation, Harvick got into Kyle Busch, who in turn got into Bowyer, who slammed the inside wall. He was not injured. Kyle Busch then turned around Harvick in Turn 1. After the race finished Harvick wanted to get Kyle Busch out of the car. After that didn't happen, Harvick went to Busch's car and threw a punch inside Busch's driver window, but Busch then drove off and Busch's car pushed Harvick's #29 car into the pit road wall instead. Tempers flared, and the incident further inflamed the tensions between the two men. After the race Busch and Harvick were both fined $25,000 and placed on probation for 4 races including the All Star Race.

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 23 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 370 | 11 | running | 47 | $272,745 |
| 2 | 4 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 370 | 57 | running | 43 | $248,966 |
| 3 | 10 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | 370 | 0 | running | 41 | $178,358 |
| 4 | 1 | 4 | Kasey Kahne | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 370 | 124 | running | 42 | $164,648 |
| 5 | 2 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 370 | 28 | running | 40 | $165,025 |
| 6 | 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 370 | 0 | running | 38 | $152,000 |
| 7 | 9 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 370 | 6 | running | 38 | $141,758 |
| 8 | 22 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 370 | 0 | running | 36 | $117,350 |
| 9 | 12 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 370 | 13 | running | 36 | $128,614 |
| 10 | 29 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 370 | 1 | running | 35 | $100,550 |
| 11 | 14 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 370 | 78 | running | 34 | $134,991 |
| 12 | 5 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 370 | 0 | running | 32 | $126,836 |
| 13 | 6 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 370 | 0 | running | 31 | $120,066 |
| 14 | 30 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 370 | 0 | running | 30 | $96,100 |
| 15 | 19 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 370 | 0 | running | 29 | $137,761 |
| 16 | 36 | 00 | David Reutimann | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 370 | 0 | running | 28 | $114,408 |
| 17 | 13 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 370 | 47 | running | 28 | $141,111 |
| 18 | 15 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | 370 | 2 | running | 27 | $112,270 |
| 19 | 28 | 5 | Mark Martin | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 369 | 0 | running | 25 | $92,150 |
| 20 | 7 | 43 | A.J. Allmendinger | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 369 | 0 | running | 24 | $121,486 |
| 21 | 11 | 6 | David Ragan | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 369 | 0 | running | 23 | $91,125 |
| 22 | 18 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 369 | 0 | running | 22 | $89,850 |
| 23 | 16 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 368 | 0 | running | 21 | $119,758 |
| 24 | 41 | 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 367 | 0 | running | 20 | $99,258 |
| 25 | 20 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 366 | 0 | running | 19 | $117,486 |
| 26 | 21 | 38 | Travis Kvapil | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 365 | 0 | running | 0 | $90,633 |
| 27 | 25 | 22 | Kurt Busch | Penske Racing | Dodge | 364 | 0 | running | 17 | $119,775 |
| 28 | 40 | 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | 364 | 2 | running | 17 | $87,822 |
| 29 | 27 | 09 | Landon Cassill | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 364 | 0 | running | 0 | $77,075 |
| 30 | 32 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Toyota | 364 | 1 | running | 15 | $77,900 |
| 31 | 26 | 33 | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 363 | 0 | crash | 13 | $118,083 |
| 32 | 37 | 34 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 362 | 0 | running | 12 | $73,075 |
| 33 | 24 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 358 | 0 | engine | 11 | $82,525 |
| 34 | 8 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 332 | 0 | running | 10 | $100,664 |
| 35 | 17 | 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 318 | 0 | running | 9 | $81,200 |
| 36 | 35 | 37 | Tony Raines | Max Q Motorsports | Ford | 172 | 0 | brakes | 8 | $72,775 |
| 37 | 42 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | 87 | 0 | brakes | 7 | $72,585 |
| 38 | 33 | 50 | T.J. Bell | LTD Powersports, LLC | Toyota | 67 | 0 | transmission | 0 | $72,350 |
| 39 | 31 | 46 | J.J. Yeley | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | 34 | 0 | engine | 5 | $72,250 |
| 40 | 34 | 60 | Mike Skinner | Germain Racing | Toyota | 29 | 0 | brakes | 0 | $72,050 |
| 41 | 38 | 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Chevrolet | 27 | 0 | electrical | 3 | $71,875 |
| 42 | 43 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Toyota | 22 | 0 | electrical | 0 | $71,780 |
| 43 | 39 | 66 | Michael McDowell | HP Racing | Toyota | 7 | 0 | vibration | 1 | $72,139 |
| Failed to qualify or withdrew |||||||||||
| 44 | | 81 | Scott Riggs | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 45 | | 71 | Andy Lally | TRG Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| 46 | | 92 | Brian Keselowski | K-Automotive Motorsports | Dodge | | | | | |
| WD | | 75 | Derrike Cope | Stratus Racing Group | Dodge | | | | | |
