The first Southern 500 was held on September 4, 1950, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, as part of the NASCAR Grand National Series. The 400‑lap, 500‑mile race on the newly built egg‑shaped track drew a large field of 75 starters in one of stock car racing’s earliest major spectacles. Johnny Mantz claimed the victory driving his Plymouth, holding off his competitors by over nine laps after managing tire wear better than most of the field. The other top five finishers were Fireball Roberts (2nd), Red Byron (3rd), Bill Rexford (4th), and Chuck Mahoney (5th). Mantz’s dominant performance in NASCAR’s first 500‑mile event helped establish the Southern 500 as a premier test of endurance and strategy in stock car racing.
