Driver Chassis Selections for Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington

Note: Not all teams post their chassis selections in their PR releases

Does Edwards winning Vegas car make him a contender?

1. Carl Edwards: 13.5 average finish, including two top fives, in the four races with the COT; Four top-10s and an average finish of 15.6 in seven overall starts; Led 33 laps in 2007; Finished 32nd and 15th in last two starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 732) that he won with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March.

2. Jimmie Johnson: Second among all drivers in average finish at 9.3; Coming off worst finish, in 36th, after a crash took him out contention; Finish was second outside the top 15 in 12 starts; 13.5 average finish in the four races with the COT; Won both races in 2004; Fourth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 659) in the Showtime Southern 500.

3. Kyle Busch: Won the 2008 race after leading 169 laps; 19.8 average finish in the four races with the COT; Finished seventh last season for third top 10 in six starts; Sixth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 277) that he led 153 laps with en route to the win at Bristol Motor Speedway in March.

4. Dale Earnhardt Jr: 16.3 average finish in three starts with Hendrick Motorsports; 14.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Best finish in 16 starts is a pair of fourth-place finishes with the last coming in 2008; Eighth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 657) in the Showtime Southern 500.

5. Kevin Harvick: Coming off best finish, and first top 10, in four starts with the COT in sixth; 19.1 average finish and 16 laps led in 14 starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 304) that he finished sixth with at Bristol Motor Speedway in March.

6. Kurt Busch: 12.4 average finish in five starts with Penske Racing; Coming off best finish, and first top 10, with the team in third; Scored four top-10s in previous nine starts with Roush Racing; One lap led in the four races with the COT.

7. Clint Bowyer: 23.2 average finish in five starts; Best finish, and only top 10, came in the 2007 race from the pole in ninth; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 315) in the Showtime Southern 500.

8. Ryan Newman: 6.5 average finish in two starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; 12.2 average finish in 12 overall starts; Ninth-place finish last year was fifth top 10 in the last six races; 297 laps led; Fifth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 506) that he last finishes eighth with at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2010.

9. Matt Kenseth: Third-best average finish (9.0) in the four races with the COT; has finished 13th or better in the past five races; Won the pole and finished 10th in 2009; 17.7 average finish, seven top-10s and 154 laps in 17 starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 707) that he finished fourth with at Auto Club Speedway.

10. Tony Stewart: 13.0 average finish in two starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; Best finish came in 2008 in third; Posted eight top-10s in previous 16 starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; 13.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 640) in the Showtime Southern 500.

11. AJ Allmendinger: 29.2 average finish in four starts; Best finish came in 2009 in 17th; Has yet to lead a lap; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 729) that he last finished 14th with at Martinsville Speedway.

12. Juan Pablo Montoya: Coming off first top 10 in four starts in fifth; Finish lowered his average finish to 17.8; Has yet to lead a lap; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1105) that he last finished 13th with at Texas Motor Speedway.

13. Mark Martin: Won the 2009 event in first track start with Hendrick Motorsports; Finished 16th in 2010; Seventh-best average finish (11.8) in the four races with the COT; 10th-best driver rating in the past six races; 26 top-10s in 44 starts; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 656) in the Showtime Southern 500.

14. Greg Biffle: Winner of this event in 2005 and 2006; Eighth-place finish in 2009 was fourth top 10 in 10 starts; Second in laps led in the four races with the COT with 212; Second-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 706) that he led 11 laps and finished 28th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

15. Paul Menard: 28.0 average finish in four starts; Best finish came in 2009 in 15th; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 328) that he finished 12th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

16. Jeff Gordon: Leads all drivers in wins (7) and laps led (1,720); Leads all drivers with a 3.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Last win came in 2007; Best driver rating in the past six races.

Hamlin won at Darlington last season

17. Denny Hamlin: Led 104 laps en route to the win last season; Second-best average finish (5.8) in the four races with the COT; First in laps led (298) with the COT; 6.6 average finish leads all drivers; Third-best driver rating in the past six races.

18. Kasey Kahne: Three-time pole winner; Has finished 20th or worse in his last five starts; Two top-five finishes in eight starts; Ninth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will make first track start with Team Red Bull.

19. David Ragan: 21.0 average finish in four starts; Best finish, and only top 10, came in 2008 in fifth; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 711) that he last finished 16th with at Bristol Motor Speedway.

20. Jeff Burton: 11.9 average finish in seven starts with Richard Childress Racing; Scored 16th top 10 in 28 overall starts last year in eighth; Fifth-best average finish (10.0) in the four races with the COT; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 355) in the Showtime Southern 500.

- compiled by Jeff Wackerlin, MotorRacingNetwork.com