2026 Buckle Up South Carolina 200 Recap — Heim Wins at Darlington After Honeycutt Dominates
Friday, March 20, 2026
The Short Version
Corey Heim won the Buckle Up South Carolina 200 at Darlington by 0.145 seconds over Ross Chastain in the final laps, diving under Chastain entering turn 3 on the last lap. Kaden Honeycutt led 60 laps and finished fourth — the dominant truck in the field that didn’t win. Ben Rhodes finished 36th after a mechanical issue sent him behind the wall on lap 2.
What Happened
Kaden Honeycutt led from the front. He won Stage 2 with a 3.1-second lead over the field on lap 84. He led 60 laps total and was the fastest truck in the field on fresh tires. Christian Eckes won Stage 1 after getting by Honeycutt and Heim in turn 1 on lap 42 when both got loose.
Ben Rhodes was collected in a lap 3 caution — cut a left front tire and hit the wall between turns 1 and 2 running 17th — and went behind the wall. He completed 2 laps and finished 36th.
Carson Hocevar ran invitational and posted the fastest lap in the field (166.141 mph on lap 129) before brushing the turn 1 wall on lap 144 and spinning. He fell from the lead to outside the top 20 and finished 22nd.
Christopher Bell ran invitational in the No. 62 and finished 6th.
The final caution came on lap 150 — first overtime. Tyler Ankrum slowed from near 4th entering turn 1 and hit the wall. Ankrum, Corey LaJoie, Stewart Friesen, Jake Garcia, Daniel Hemric, and Justin Haley all received damage. Ross Chastain led from inside, Honeycutt outside. Chastain cleared for the lead in turn 1.
Second overtime: Chastain out front, Honeycutt pushing. Corey Heim was in position. On the final lap, Heim moved to second in turn 1, then dove under Chastain entering turn 3 — surged to the lead and held it. He won by 0.145 seconds.
The Defining Moment
Turn 3 on the final lap. Heim had worked his way to Chastain’s bumper through turn 1, then committed to the bottom entering turn 3. Chastain had no answer. Heim cleared and won.
The One That Got Away
Kaden Honeycutt. He led 60 laps and had the fastest truck in the field on race pace. The overtime restarts gave Chastain the lane advantage and reshuffled the final run. Honeycutt crossed fourth. The performance was there — the result didn’t match it.
Numbers That Matter
- Winner: Corey Heim — No. 5 Toyota
- Margin of Victory: 0.145 seconds
- Cautions: 9 for 47 laps
- Lead Changes: 14 among 8 leaders
- Stage 1: Christian Eckes | Stage 2: Kaden Honeycutt
- Laps led: Honeycutt — 60 | Chastain (i) — 35 | Heim — 28
- Fastest lap: Carson Hocevar (invitational) — 166.141 mph, lap 129
Take
Darlington is an attrition race. It collects trucks throughout the night — Ben Rhodes on lap 2, Ty Majeski on lap 123 after contact with Layne Riggs, Hocevar after touching the wall on lap 144. By the time the field runs out of laps, the trucks that survive and have fresh tires are the ones fighting for the win.
Heim’s win follows that formula. He didn’t dominate. He was fifth in laps led (28), behind Honeycutt (60), Chastain (35), and Conner Jones (3). He was in position at the end with tires and a clean truck, and he made the move when it mattered.
Honeycutt’s day is the harder result to process. He was clearly the best truck in the field for most of the race. The overtime restarts put him in a lane he couldn’t win from — outside on the first restart, third on the second. He finished fourth. The performance and the finish don’t tell the same story.
Notes
- Ross Chastain ran invitational (No. 45 Chevrolet) — led 35 laps, finished 2nd
- Christopher Bell ran invitational (No. 62 Toyota) — finished 6th
- William Sawalich ran invitational (No. 1 Toyota) — finished 10th
- AJ Allmendinger ran invitational (No. 10 RAM) — finished 11th
- Corey LaJoie ran invitational (No. 25 RAM) — finished 21st, damaged in overtime
- Carson Hocevar ran invitational (No. 77 Chevrolet) — fastest lap, spun lap 144, finished 22nd
- Ben Rhodes: mechanical, lap 2, finished 36th
- Ty Majeski: contact with Riggs, lap 121, finished 31st
- Lap 150 overtime incident: Ankrum, LaJoie, Friesen, Garcia, Hemric, Haley all received damage