Darlington Raceway has set a date for the return of its Speed & Feed BBQ Festival & Car Show: Saturday, March 13, 2027. The event pairs a Kansas City Barbeque Society-sanctioned cookoff with a classic car show, craft vendors and family activities at the South Carolina track.
According to the track's official event page, the barbecue competition will offer a $12,000 prize purse and one-of-a-kind trophies, with professional cook teams competing in chicken, pork ribs, pork and beef brisket categories. As Darlington Raceway's event page puts it, attendees will get to taste the competition barbecue themselves. Competitors accumulate points toward the Speed & Feed Grand Champion title, and the winner earns a chance to represent Darlington Raceway at the American Royal World Championship in Kansas City in fall 2027, according to the Post and Courier.
This year's reigning champ, McAdoo Heights, took home the 2026 Speed & Feed BBQ title and went on to represent Darlington Raceway and the festival at the 2026 American Royal World Championship in Kansas City, which ran Sept. 30 through Oct. 4 at Kansas Speedway, per the Post and Courier's reporting. The team was also honored during pre-race activities before the Cook Out Southern 500 on Labor Day weekend, the outlet reported.
What's New for Festival-Goers
Beyond the cookoff, the Post and Courier reports the festival will feature a People's Choice Tasting that lets festival-goers sample the professional teams' barbecue and vote for a favorite. Tasting requires at least 10 BBQ Bucks to receive a ballot, with the bucks costing $10 for 10. Darlington Raceway also plans to offer premium infield parking options, though details on that have not yet been announced, according to the outlet.
The festival will again feature an open-field car show with awards for vehicle entries. On the official event page, Darlington Raceway notes car-show participants must register or pay by Friday, Feb. 19, 2027, with a $35 day-of-event price listed. The page also describes attendees watching VIP cars head out around the track's 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval after the car show wraps up.
A NASCAR Racing Experience and a Returning Tradition
A NASCAR Racing Experience will also be on-site during the festival, giving guests the chance to drive or take a ride-along with a professional driver, per the Post and Courier. Teams and car-show entrants can find competition entry and registration details on Darlington Raceway's website.
The festival's return follows a gap of several years. A local report from scnow.com noted the event revved back up in 2026 for the first time since 2018. That 2026 edition took place May 16, and the car show featured judging and awards.
Part of a Bigger Race Weekend
The 2027 Speed & Feed Festival arrives roughly three weeks ahead of Darlington Raceway's NASCAR race weekend, a triple-header scheduled for April 2-4, 2027. That weekend includes the NASCAR FedEx Freight Truck Series on Friday, April 2, the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series on Saturday, April 3, and the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 on Sunday, April 4, per the Post and Courier's reporting.
Speed & Feed BBQ Festival and Car Show brings together barbecue teams from across the country, car enthusiasts, families and fans for a full day of food, competition and activities, the outlet reports. Josh Harris said he is excited for the 2027 festival and expects it to bring barbecue, competition, classic cars and family activities together, according to the Post and Courier.
