As the latest NASCAR Sprint Cup race gets underway early on a Saturday evening, Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson are leading the pack at Darlington for the Bojangles Southern 500. Carl Edwards, the surprise runner-up last year after being upset by Regan Smith, is currently running fourth and should be a threat of the rest of the race.
Edwards said before the race that he was anxious to get back to Darlington to try to take another stab at the top. "We've been waiting since that last restart a year ago to come back here," said Edwards. "Everyone talks about this being one of the biggest races and, for me, it really is for our whole team. We would really like to win this race.
"The track has aged, I think, really well. I think the pavement is a little more forgiving right now, so you can slide the car around a little bit more. It's more fun than it's been the last couple of years, in my opinion, so I think it's gonna be a heck of a race. It's just a cool place to come race and I'm glad we're here."
Here's the top 8 leaders through 50 laps:
1. Kasey Kahne
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Martin Truex Jr.
4. Carl Edwards
5. Jeff Gordon
6. Matt Kenseth
7. Greg Biffle
8. Joey Logano