NASCAR History Brought Alive as Footage of Cale Yarborough’s Iconic Darlington Narration Resurfaces

Time to run ‘The Track Too Tough to Tame.’ As the NASCAR Cup Series approaches its first playoff race at Darlington Raceway, a handful of active drivers lead the predictions. Kyle Larson is the betting favorite, but Denny Hamlin in 3rd place is the real threat. With five trophies clinched at the egg-shaped oval, he leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers with 14 top-five finishes and 19 top-10s at Darlington Raceway. But at the same time, the NASCAR legend with whom Hamlin shares the record five wins also comes to mind.

Cale Yarborough passed away in 2023 at 84, too young for many considering the trailblazing history of achievements he left in NASCAR. The fiery competitor totaled 83 Cup wins in his career in 31 years. However, five of them stand out ahead of the 2025 Cook Out Southern 500. With a piece of nostalgia resurfacing on social media, those wins are still alive.

An iconic practice run in NASCAR

Cale Yarborough grew up on the farm fields of the South Carolina Lowcountry. His home was near Timmonsville, not so far away from Darlington Raceway. Having had a humble background, Yarborough used to dream of making it to NASCAR and ‘The Lady in Black’ as a farm kid. And when he did achieve that dream, he was unstoppable. He would become one of the toughest of the tough, winning the Southern 500 five times — who else was a better match for ‘The Track Too Tough to Tame’? On the 1.366-mile tight speedway, cars slam into the old walls and go far faster than they should. There is never a fluke winner at the egg-shaped oval, thus peaking tensions for the top 2025 playoff drivers. But a sliver of the past might help them hone their skills.

NASCAR Classics recently shared the video of an iconic practice run at Darlington Raceway. Behind the wheel and behind the microphone is none other than Cale Yarborough himself. The sounds of the revving engine and Yarborough’s booming voice are enthralling, to say the least. Yarborough warns the audience of Darlington’s difficulty: “Going into Turn 3, you have to jump down…this is the real tricky part of the racetrack. At the end of Number 4, coming out of Number 4… Heading into Turn 1, going slow.” Seems like a live commentary a diehard fan would play over and over again, right? The energy in Yarborough’s voice seems as fresh as yesterday.

Cale Yarborough often talked about his first victory in the Southern 500, which came on September 2, 1968, when the track was a bit flatter and harder to drive. After his passing, his Darlington contributions received various tributes in 2024. The Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum displayed his No. 29 1988 Oldsmobile Cutlass, the last vehicle raced by Yarborough in his illustrious career. Then, Dale Jarrett, 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion, drove Yarborough’s 1978 Oldsmobile around Darlington for a few ceremonial laps. The car led the field, as Cale did for 1,647 laps.

With a euphoric reminiscence of Cale Yarborough’s Darlington victories, we head into the weekend with fresh energy. Two Craftsman Truck stars have already made use of that energy.

Paving the way for a solid weekend

For most of 2025, Layne Riggs has trailed his rival. Aside from Pocono and Indianapolis, Corey Heim has bested Riggs on several occasions, grabbing seven victories. That is why Riggs clenched his teeth to start the 2025 playoffs on a favorable note. The Bahama, North Carolina-native laid down an impressive lap in Friday’s qualifying session at Darlington Raceway. With a lap time of 29.323 seconds (167.705mph), Riggs could take the top spot in qualifying by eight one-thousandths of a second. He put his No. 34 CLEW Nicotine Pouches Ford F-150 on the pole, beating teammate Chandler Smith and the dominant truck of 2025, Corey Heim.

Securing the pole at one of the toughest tracks on the grid, the 23-year-old driver feels confident. Layne Riggs reflected on his achievement for Front Row Motorsports: “I think it just shows that we’re the fastest truck here this weekend. Practice, we were really fast to start. I feel like we fell off a little bit, but I think we know the exact adjustment we need to make. But I just love this racetrack. I’m kind of trembling right now. This place is, man, it’s a rush to qualify at. I mean, in the trucks, we are wide-open through [Turns] 1 and 2. I held it wide-open through [Turns] 3 and 4 coming to the green, and you’re only out of the gas a second. In practice, you’re like out of the gas for five seconds.” Being second in the championship standings, he is a solid threat to Corey Heim.

As Riggs and his compatriots look forward to a solid Darlington weekend, the past beckons to us. Cale Yarborough’s memories of the track will come alive again.