Drivers to watch in NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington

The NASCAR Throwback Weekend is here again at Darlington Raceway.

Joe Gibbs Racing swept the track’s two races in 2021, highlighted by Denny Hamlin‘s dramatic win in the Southern 500 in September. But does that make JGR the team to beat Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1)?

Here’s who could be in the mix this weekend in Darlington:

Truex has been a steady contender for wins at Darlington. A two-time victor at the track “Too Tough to Tame,” Truex has four top 10s in his last five Darlington starts, including a win in this race one year ago.

The 2017 Cup champion earned a Southern 500 victory in September 2016 and led 248 of 293 laps in last spring’s event en route to the win. With only three finishes outside the top 10 in his last 10 Darlington starts, Truex is a must-watch driver this weekend

Kyle Larson has yet to win at Darlington Raceway, but he has been as close as he can get without visiting victory lane. Larson has finished runner-up in each of his last three starts at the 1.366-mile track, a streak which dates back to 2019 since he missed the three 2020 events.

Larson had a last-lap, last-ditch effort in Turn 4 trying to chase down Hamlin last September but came up just short. With seven top 10s in eight Darlington starts, maybe this weekend is finally Larson’s time to take the checkered flag first.

Kevin Harvick isn’t lighting the world on fire this year, but maybe that’s set to change at Darlington Raceway. Harvick is the active leader in top fives (12), top 10s (17) and laps led (812) at “The Lady in Black.” And what he’s done lately has been remarkable.

Harvick has scored 12 consecutive top-nine finishes at Darlington and won three of the track’s last 11 races. He’s also scored 10 top fives in the last 12 races and has