Royal Purple 200

Royal Purple 200

Venue	Darlington Raceway
Sponsor	Royal Purple
First race	1982
Distance	200.802 miles (323.159 km)
Laps	147
Previous names	TranSouth 200 (1982) Dixie Cup 200 (1984-1986) Country Squire 200 (1987-1989) Pontiac 200 (1990-1991) Mark III Vans 200 (1992-1995) Dura Lube 200 (1996) SunCom 200 (2000-2001) darlingtonraceway.com 200 (2002-2003) Diamond Hill Plywood 200 (1997-1999, 2004-2009)

The Royal Purple 200 is a NASCAR Nationwide Series race that takes place at Darlington Raceway.

The race's longtime sponsor Diamond Hill Plywood is based in Darlington, and is owned and operated by identical twins John and Jim Ramsey.^[1] Their grandfather Sherman Ramsey, who founded Diamond Hill Plywood, sold the land Darlington Raceway was built on to Harold Brasington, and is said to have requested one end (currently Turn 4) of Brasington's new track be built narrower to protect a minnow pond on his property.^[2] Synthetic oil manufacturer Royal Purple recently signed a multi-year deal to be the primary sponsor of this race beginning in 2010.^{[citation needed]}

The race was not held in 1983.

Past winners

Year	Date	Driver	Manufacturer	Race Distance		Race Time	Average Speed (mph)
				Laps	Miles (km)
1982	April 3	Geoff Bodine	Pontiac	147	200.802 (323.159)		129.018
1984	April 14	Ron Bouchard	Pontiac	147	200.802 (323.159)	2:04:55	97.992
1985	April 13	Jack Ingram	Oldsmobile	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:51:05	108.46
1986	April 12	Darrell Waltrip	Pontiac	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:37:37	123.423
1987	March 28	Dale Earnhardt	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:27:24	137.85
1988	March 26	Geoff Bodine	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:44:18	115.514
1989	April 1	Geoff Bodine	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:41:31	118.681
1990	March 31	Harry Gant	Buick	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:32:54	129.689
1991	April 6	Dale Jarrett	Pontiac	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:44:16	115.551
1992	March 28	Robert Pressley	Oldsmobile	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:31:59	130.982
1993	March 27	Robert Pressley	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:50:20	109.197
1994	March 26	Mark Martin	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:42:08	117.965
1995	March 25	Larry Pearson	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:51:28	108.087
1996	March 23	Mark Martin	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:39:46	120.763
1997	March 22	Randy LaJoie	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:44:15	115.569
1998	March 21	Bobby Labonte	Pontiac	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:59:57	100.443
1999	March 20	Matt Kenseth	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:38:48	121.945
2000	March 18	Mark Martin	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:46:08	113.519
2001	March 17	Jeff Green	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:33:35	128.742
2002	March 16	Jeff Burton*	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:37:03	124.143
2003	March 17*	Todd Bodine	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:36:44	124.55
2004	March 20	Greg Biffle	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:40:17	120.141
2005	May 6	Matt Kenseth	Ford	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:43:39	116.238
2006	May 12	Denny Hamlin	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:52:36	106.999
2007	May 11	Denny Hamlin	Chevrolet	147	200.802 (323.159)	2:10:26	92.37
2008	May 9	Tony Stewart	Toyota	*149	203.534 (327.556)	1:53:59	107.139
2009	May 8	Matt Kenseth	Ford	*153	208.998 (336.349)	1:47:33	116.596
2010	May 7	Denny Hamlin	Toyota	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:56:50	103.122
2011	May 6	Kyle Busch	Toyota	147	200.802 (323.159)	1:40:56	119.364

• 2002: Jeff Burton leads all 147 laps from the pole to win.
• 2003: Race postponed from Saturday to Monday due to rain.
• 2008 & 2009: Race extended due to a Green-white-checker finish.

• Racing-Reference.info - Darlington Raceway Race Results

1. ^ About Diamond Hill Plywood
2. ^ Fleischman, Bill; Al Pearce (1999). The Unauthorized NASCAR Fan Guide (1998-99). Visible Ink Press. pp. 7.