NASCAR arrived at Darlington Raceway for the 2026 Southern 500, and the first race of the Chase was exciting. Tyler Reddick won Stage 1 while Christopher Bell won Stage 2; however, only one driver was able to enter victory lane. Kyle Larson and Ty Gibbs tried their best, but a Joe Gibbs Racing driver ended up in the winner's circle.
At the end of the day, Bell won his first Cup Series race of 2026 at Darlington. After a brief overview of the notable moments, here are the NASCAR TV ratings following the 2026 Southern 500 at Darlington on Sunday night!
NASCAR and USA Sports earned 1.982 million average viewers for the Southern 500 on USA Network. This ranked as the most-watched NCS race on USA Network since 2025 Watkins Glen in August last year
(2.0 million). Overall, it was a great turnout for NASCAR and USA Sports on Sunday afternoon.
This article originally appeared on Motorsports Wire: NASCAR TV ratings for Cup Series race at Darlington in 2026 Chase
