Make sure you have plenty of coffee and energy drinks this weekend, as Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 is the season’s longest race on the NASCAR Cup circuit.
The 400-lap, 600-mile race begins just before dusk and continues late into the evening on the 1.5-mile oval at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Martin Truex Jr. won last year’s 600 in record-setting, dominating form, leading 392 of the scheduled 400 laps.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has never won a 600 – let alone never won a Cup race – at CMS, is looking to win in what will be his second-to-last Cup race at his home track before he retires at season’s end.
Charlotte has been a tough track for Earnhardt. In 33 previous starts, he has zero wins, just six top-5 and 12 top-10 finishes. His best finishes to date have been a pair of third-place showings (fall 2004 and spring 2015).
Kyle Larson comes into the race still atop the points lead and is looking for his first win at Charlotte. So, too, are guys like Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney and others.
Here’s the complete weekend schedule (all times are Eastern):
Thursday, May 25
11:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. – Cup garage open
1:30 p.m. – 9 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
2 p.m. – 3:25 p.m. – First Cup practice (Fox Sports 1)
4 p.m. – 4:55 p.m. – First Xfinity practice (FS1)
6 p.m. – 6:55 p.m. – Final Xfinity practice (FS1)
7:15 p.m. – Cup qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (FS1, Performance Racing Network)
Friday, May 27
Track and garages are closed
Saturday, May 27
6:30 a.m. – Xfinity garage open
7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. – Cup garage open
9 – 9:55 a.m. – Second Cup practice (FS1)
10:05 a.m. – Xfinity qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (FS1)
11:15 a.m. – Xfinity driver/crew chief meeting
11:30 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. – Cup final practice (FS1)
12:30 p.m. – Xfinity driver introductions
1 p.m. – Xfinity Hisense 4K TV 300 (200 laps, 300 miles) (FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday, May 28
12:30 p.m. – Cup garage open
4 p.m. – Driver/crew chief meeting
5:20 p.m. – Driver introductions
6 p.m. – Coca-Cola 600 (400 laps, 600 miles) (FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)