NASCAR kicks off the final 20 races of the 2017 NASCAR Cup season with this weekend’s racing action at Daytona International Speedway.
It also marks the return of NASCAR to NBC Sports and NBCSN for that 20-race stretch, which includes the 10 races leading up to the playoffs and the playoffs.
The main event this weekend is Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400. Brad Keselowski is the defending race winner. It will also be Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s final Cup start.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series also will be at Daytona with the Coca-Cola Firecracker 400 on Friday. Aric Almirola won last year’s race. Almirola will not defend that win because he continues to heal from injuries sustained in a wreck during the May 13 Cup race at Kansas.
Here’s the full race weekend schedule at Daytona (all times Eastern):
Thursday, June 29
8 a.m. – 5 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
9:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. – Cup garage open
2 – 2:55 p.m. – Xfinity first practice (NBCSN)
3 – 3:55 p.m. – Cup first practice (NBCSN, Motor Racing Network)
4 – 4:55 p.m. – Xfinity final practice (NBCSN)
5 – 5:55 p.m. – Cup final practice (NBCSN, MRN)
Friday, June 30
9:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. – Cup garage open
12 p.m. – Xfinity garage opens
2:10 p.m. – Xfinity qualifying (single vehicle/two rounds) (NBCSN)
3:45 p.m. – Xfinity driver/crew chief meeting
4:10 p.m. – Cup qualifying impound (single vehicle/two rounds) (NBCSN, MRN)
7 p.m. – Xfinity driver introductions
7:30 p.m. – Xfinity Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 race (100 laps, 250 miles) (NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday, July 1
3 p.m. – Cup garage opens
5:45 p.m. – Cup driver/crew chief meeting
6:50 p.m. – Cup driver introductions
7:30 p.m. – NASCAR Cup Coke Zero 400 race (160 laps, 400 miles) (NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
