Kevin Harvick earned his eighth win of the season and 57th of his career, capturing Sunday’s Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in the Cup playoff opener.
Austin Dillon finished second and was followed by Joey Logano, Erik Jones and William Byron.
“Anytime you can win the Southern 500 is a good day,” Harvick said. “This is one of the most prestigious races in our sport and this is one the most prestigious racetracks in our sport, so anytime you can win at Darlington it’s a big deal, but, man, Southern 500!”
Aric Almirola holds the final transfer spot after Sunday’s race at Darlington Raceway. He’s tied with Clint Bowyer for the last transfer spot but owns the tiebreaker based on a better finish in the first round.
Cole Custer is three points behind Almirola and Bowyer. Matt DiBenedetto and Ryan Blaney each are 17 points back. Blaney is last in the 16-driver playoff field.