CLEVELAND, Ohio — NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 caps the traditional Memorial Day weekend of auto racing and could be a defining race for the series at a defining point in its history.
The race is Sunday at 6 p.m. and will be televised by FOX. Practice begins today (FS1) at 2 p.m. with qualifying at 7:15, both on FS1. You can get live scoring and updates all weekend at NASCAR’s Race Center and live streaming is available at FOX Sports GO.
Where NASCAR once dominated the auto racing scene with its plethora of stars and familiar names, that is fast evaporating.
Exhibit A is Dale Earnhardt Jr., the biggest name in the sport, who has announced his retirement at the end of the season, but has yet to be among the leaders this season.
Casual fans are discovering a new playoff system designed to make the sport more appealing, and starting next season a revised season schedule with popular events moved off of traditional dates, and a road course event put into the stretch run for a series title.
Indeed, these are changing times at NASCAR, and they know it, pointing to a near desperate need to put on a great show Sunday night, following the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix and the noon running of the Indianapolis 500.
Here is the weekend NASCAR schedule (all times Eastern):
MONSTER CUP
COCA-COLA 600
Site: Concord, North Carolina.
Schedule: Thursday, practice, 2 p.m. (FS1), qualifying, 7:15 p.m. (FS1); Saturday, practice, 9 a.m. (FS1), practice, 11:30 a.m. (FS1); Sunday, race, 6 p.m., FOX.
Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 600 miles, 400 laps
Last year: Martin Truex Jr. won from the pole.
Last race: Kyle Busch won in Charlotte for the first time in a Cup car during the All-Star race.
Fast facts: NASCAR announced its 2018 schedule on Tuesday. Richmond will host a playoff race next year, and the regular-season finale will be in Indianapolis. Las Vegas’s second date will also mark the start of the playoffs. … Kyle Larson leads the series with 475 points. Larson’s average finish is 6.9. … Truex led all but just eight laps in winning at Charlotte in 2016.
Next race: AAA 400 Drive for Autism, June 4, Dover International Speedway, Dover, Delaware.
XFINITY
HISENSE 4K TV 300
Site: Concord, North Carolina
Schedule: Thursday, practice, 4 p.m. (FS1), practice, 6 p.m. (FS1); Saturday, qualifying, 10:05 a.m. (FS1), race, 1 p.m., FS1.
Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.
Last year: Denny Hamlin led 76 laps in winning in Charlotte.
Last race: Aric Almirola won in Talladega from the 23rd spot on the grid, by far the lowest of any series winner this year.
Fast facts: Next season, the playoffs will be held in Richmond, Charlotte and Dover — with the title race in Miami. … Elliott Sadler is in first place heading to Charlotte. But Justin Allgaier has a series-best seven playoff points, while Ryan Reed has five.
Next race: OneMain Financial 200, June 3, Dover International Speedway.
NASCAR
CAMPING WORLD TRUCK
Last week: Kyle Busch won his second race in a row at Charlotte.
Next race: Bay Harbor 200, June 2, Dover International Speedway, Dover, Delaware.
(The Associated Press contributed)
