Darlington Raceway is home of The Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR
WELCOME TO YOUR HOME OF ALL THE 2019 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES THROWBACK PAINT SCHEMES
On September 1st, fans packed the stands at Darlington Raceway to watch the best of the best in NASCAR take on the track that is famously known as Too Tough To Tame during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500.
Darlington Raceway's award-winning throwback campaign is the Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR, and this year Darlington is celebrated the 1990-94 era for its Bojangles' Southern 500.
Throughout the year, drivers and their teams unveiled the special paint schemes that they drove during the Bojangles' Southern 500.
20 MENCS paint schemes had been released leading up to the Bojangles' Southern 500 - each unique and inspiring, all paying tribute to the history of NASCAR. Below you will find all 20.
No. 2 Brad Keselowski
Defending Bojangles' Southern 500 champion, Brad Keselowski, released his 2019 throwback paint scheme on August 19. The Team Penske driver will honor Rusty Wallace's 1996 paint scheme, featuring the iconic black-and-yellow colors with a splash of red and blue on the sides. Wallace raced the car to five victories during the 1996 season - Martinsville, Sonoma, Michigan, Pocono and Bristol - finishing seventh in the points standings.
No. 20 Erik Jones
On August 8, Joe Gibbs Racing and Erik Jones released a video that included Denny Hamlin and Jones comparing their paint schemes. For the 2019 Bojangles' Southern 500, Jones will be throwing back with a paint scheme that mimics the design from his rookie season in Late Model competition.
No. 43 Bubba Wallace
On August 6, at Darlington Raceway, Bubba Wallace, Richard Petty Motorsports and Victory Junction unveiled the No. 43 Chevy paint scheme that Bubba will run during Labor Day weekend. The throwback design honors the late Adam Petty, son of Kyle and grandson of Richard.
Wallace's No. 43 Chevy will feature a Victory Junction throwback paint scheme honoring Petty as a tribute to Adam's ARCA Racing Series victory at Charlotte on Sept. 20, 1998 - it was his only career win in the series. Adam passed away in a practice crash at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2000.
"To be here, to have Bubba drive the car and for it to be my dad's car and with Victory Junction to be on the car, it's our 15th anniversary, mean's a lot. To have this car here, to have it at Darlington and for everything that Darlington means to our family, what it means to this sport, it was just the perfect time." - Kyle Petty
No. 21 Paul Menard
On July 18, Paul Menard and Wood Brothers Racing announced that the No. 21 Ford Mustang will represent a throwback design that honors the late founder of Wood Brothers Racing, Glenn Wood, and his 1957 Ford Sunliner.
"You want to honor your dad the best way you can and for racers, the throwback weekend at Darlington provides the perfect opportunity to do that." - Eddie Wood
No. 32 Corey Lajoie
On July 9, Go Fas Racing and Keen Parts/CorvetteParts.net announced that Corey LaJoie will be tributing NASCAR Hall of Famer and NBC Sports commentator, Dale Jarrett, and his No. 32 Nestle Crunch car that Jarrett ran in 1991 at Darlington during the spring NASCAR Busch Grand National Series (now Xfinity Series).
"This car looks great and I've always been a fan of Dale, so to carry this scheme around Darlington is awesome. I think we did a great job keeping the scheme as close to the original as possible while incorporating the CorvetteParts.net logos onto it. I can't thank Tom and TJ enough for allowing us to run this design - it's one of my favorite schemes." - Corey LaJoie
no. 38 david ragan
On June 26, at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Front Row Motorsports, Shriners Hospitals for Children and David Ragan unveiled the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang that Ragan will run on Labor Day.
The throwback design honors fellow Shriner David Pearson, as it replicates the livery of the Holman-Moody Racing Ford Torino Cobra that Pearson raced to his third and final NASCAR Cup Series Championship in 1969.
"When you remember or read about David Pearson, it's all about the success he had on the track, and his legendary and Hall of Fame career. On the 50th anniversary of his last championship, and in one of the most iconic cars in our sport, we wanted to honor David Pearson and keep his memory alive." - David Ragan
No. 11 Denny Hamlin
On June 21, at Sonoma Raceway, Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing and FedEx unveiled the No. 11 Toyota throwback paint scheme that tributes Darrell Waltrip, the three-time champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer who retired from the FOX broadcast booth on June 23, after calling his last race at Sonoma.
Hamlin's longtime sponsor FedEx gave him the opportunity to design his own throwback paint scheme for the Bojangles' Southern 500 - the design he will run at Darlington was the winner of an employee vote at Joe Gibbs Racing.
"This has been a process; this has been a couple months that I emailed FedEx and said 'here's the ideas that I have. I have two that I really, really like and can bring to the shop to vote' and this could be a great way to honor someone who's been a big influence for myself and a lot of people who've been in NASCAR. He's devoted 40 years of his life to NASCAR and I can't say thank you enough. This is just a small way for us to do that." - Denny Hamlin
No. 9 Chase Elliott
On June 12, Hendrick Motorsports and Chase Elliott announced that Elliott will be honoring his father, Bill Elliott, and his 1981 Mell-Gear car that Bill drove in 13 premier series races in 1981, recording seven top-10 finishes.
His first-ever Cup Series Busch Pole Award came in 1981 at Darlington.
No. 88 Alex Bowman
Alex Bowman and Hendrick Motorsports unveiled the Tim Richmond-inspired paint scheme that Bowman will race at Darlington - making the announcement on June 7, which would have been Richmond's 64th birthday.
The scheme pays tribute to Richmond's No. 25 scheme he competed in 37 races for Hendrick Motorsports from 1986-87.
"If I was a NASCAR fan in that era, that's who I would have cheered for. I think just the excitement, his personality and how good he was in a race car. He was pretty unbelievable." - Alex Bowman
No. 6 Ryan Newman
For a special unveil, Ryan Newman, Roush Fenway Racing and Oscar Mayer traveled to Darlington Raceway to announce that Newman's No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford Mustang will emulate Mark Martin's 1993 paint scheme that was made famous by Jack Roush's first Bojangles' Southern 500 win that same year.
"I think the scheme looks great. Darlington is my favorite track on the circuit and the Southern 500 is one of the best events on our schedule. I can't wait to come back here in September and see if we can put this No. 6 back in Gatorade Victory Lane." - Ryan Newman
No. 10 Aric Almirola
On May 24, Stewart-Haas Racing announced three unique paint schemes that will run at Darlington to honor recent NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee, Tony Stewart.
Aric Almirola will get the opportunity to throwback to Stewart's paint scheme that he drove to secure the 2002 NASCAR Cup championship.
No. 19 Martin Truex Jr.
On May 15, Martin Truex Jr. and Joe Gibbs Racing announced on the "Dale Jr. Download" that he will be throwing back to his first season of racing full time at the national series level; the black and yellow scheme pays tribute to Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Bass Pro Shops founder and CEO Johnny Morris.
"So many things had to happen to get to where I'm at right now and this car was the first, first real, sponsored car I had. So for Johnny (Morris), for Dale (Earnhardt Jr.), all the guys who made that deal happen, we're throwing back to 2004." - Martin Truex Jr.
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