Heads up: Talladega weekend – Nascar

Here are the hot topics, trending news and key story lines to get you ready for this weekend’s races at Talladega Superspeedway.

WEATHER

Can you say “Chamber of Commerce weather?” That’s what you’ll get at Talladega. It’ll be sunny all weekend, with a high of 70 on Friday and a high of 68 on Saturday, with the temperature nosing up to 77 degrees on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. Beautiful outlook for a pair of elimination races.

KEY TIMES



Sprint Cup Series: The biggest change this weekend is Coors Light Qualifying. Rather than qualifying on Friday, the Sprint Cup Series will do so on Saturday afternoon after the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. The single-car spectacle is set for 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The race is Sunday at 2 p.m. ET, also on NBCSN.

Camping World Truck Series: The Camping World Truck Series has a pair of Friday practices (beginning at 1 p.m. ET and 3 p.m. ET, both on FS1). The race is Saturday at 1 p.m. ET on FOX with Keystone Light Pole Qualifying just before at 10:30 a.m. ET (FS1).

CATCH DRIVERS LIVE



We’ll stream every driver press conference in the Talladega media center at NASCAR.com/presspass. Among the notables Friday: Chase Elliott (12:30 p.m. ET), Joey Logano (12:45 p.m. ET) and Martin Truex Jr. (3:30 p.m. ET). Click here for a full schedule.

LAST TIME

Joey Logano swept the Round of 12 last year, beating Alabama’s favorite son Dale Earnhardt Jr. — and eliminating him from the Chase — in the process. The Team Penske driver led 20 laps to Earnhardt Jr.’s 61, and he held off Junior on an abbreviated green-white-checkered finish. Logano was first and Earnhardt Jr. second as the field’s only attempt at a GWC conclusion went green. A wreck just past the start/finish line brought out the caution, ending the race just as Logano and Earnhardt Jr. were racing for the lead. Logano was in the lead at the time and declared the winner. Eventually, NASCAR tweaked its green-white-checkered rule in the offseason, leading to the addition of the overtime line.

YOU SHOULD KNOW


• With Dale Jr. sidelined for the rest of the season, Brad Keselowski may hold the mantle as the best restrictor-plate racer in NASCAR. The driver of the No. 2 Ford has three top-five finishes in the past four Talladega races, including two wins — to bring his total ‘Dega wins to four. He also won at Daytona in July. And following a wreck at Kansas last week, Keselowski likely has to win to advance in the postseason.

• It’s not just Keselowski who is in win-or-else mode. Chase Elliott essentially is facing a “must-win” scenario to advance into the next round. The rookie is 25 points behind the cutoff line.

• Keep an eye on Joey Logano and Austin Dillon. They are tied for the final transfer spot, with Logano currently owning the tiebreaker thanks to his third-place finish at Kansas. Their stories are quite different. Logano won all three Round of 12 races last year, but his performances and speed slipped this year; Dillon is in his first postseason and one race away from making the Round of 8 after being seeded 15th out of 16 drivers at the start of the Chase.

• This is the first elimination race in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Chase, with two drivers getting knocked out of the postseason. Daniel Hemric and John Hunter Nemechek are both 15 points below the cutoff line and will need to make up some serious ground.