NASCAR Forget To Pay Power Bill At Darlington? Playoff Race Delayed Because Inside Lights Wouldn't Come On

We were bound to see some type of will racing Sunday night in Darlington, but a light delay wasn't part of the plan. Did NASCAR forget to pay the light bill? No, but it made for some interesting racing for 20 laps.

It all went down in South Carolina, as NASCAR made a stop at Darlington Speedway for its first playoff race of the season. While we usually worry about a crazy crash or some type of pit-road moment, I don't think most drivers thought they'd be stopped because of a light problem.

As Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his colleagues sat in the booth trying to buy some time on the broadcast, track officials were scrambling to find the solution. I don't think this was as easy as the movie Christmas Vacation would depict, just flipping a switch. But they finally figured out the problem in Turns 3 and 4 after a number of drivers were complaining about the darkness.

As you can see, heading into Turn 3, it got a lot darker for the drivers. It wasn't the outside lights they were worried about, but the inside lights that brighten the track on the lower level.

After about 10 minutes of driving without the lights, then a red flag to stop all on-track action, NASCAR finally figured out the problem.

Also, there was an incident on pit road with driver Chris Buscher, who was getting his tires changed, when the fuel can sparked a fire. Luckily for the rear-tire changer, there were no injuries, but he definitely showed how tough these guys are.

Lets hope nothing else goes wrong at Darlington, besides some wild racing to see who comes away from the first playoff race with a win.