DARLINGTON, S.C. – Old met new at Darlington Raceway on Wednesday when David Pearson and Carl Edwards turned several laps around the newly-paved surface at the track “Too Tough to Tame.”
Also on-hand for the event was legendary car owner Leonard Wood. Wood was responsible for all of the restoration work that was done to get the legendary 1971 Wood Brothers’ No. 21 Purolator Mercury ready to turn laps at Darlington Raceway.
The event started with Edwards, Pearson and Wood fielding questions from media outlets and then moved outside and onto pit road.
Pearson strapped into the 1971 Wood Brothers’ No. 21 Purolator Mercury he made famous in the seventies while Edwards settled into his No. 99 Claritin Ford Fusion.
One of NASCAR’s most successful drivers, Pearson posted 105 career victories in a 27 year career including a record 10 victories at Darlington Raceway.
As the engines were fired and the cars came to life they were led off pit road by a Darlington Raceway pace truck outfitted with Dodge Challenger 500 logos.
The green-flag waived and the cars zipped around the 1.366-mile egg-shaped and just like old times, Pearson was leading the way.
After several laps the checkered flag waived on a finish reminiscent to the 2003 finish between Kurt Busch and Ricky Craven. The drivers returned to pit-road, both eager to see who would be declared the winner.
It was Pearson, by a nose, over Carl Edwards.
“It was great to get back out on the track at Darlington Raceway and get my 11th win here,” joked Pearson. “I have been looking forward to this day for a long time and I am honored to have been invited to this event.”
“Darlington is definitely my favorite track,” said Edwards. “A win at Darlington would be so cool because of all of the history at this track.
“This is a driver’s race track, you have to be on top of your game to run well here, not to mention win,” said Edwards.
Don’t miss your chance to see another incredible finish at Darlington Raceway when the stars of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series take on the track “Too Tough to Tame” in the Dodge Challenger 500 on May.
