Memorial Day weekend means a homecoming for the NASCAR Cup Series and the highest mileage race on the calendar. The series moves to Charlotte Motor Speedway in suburban Queen City, where each team’s headquarters are located, for the Coca-Cola 600.
Hendrick Motorsports, located literally down the street from the speedway, looks like the team to beat, having won five of 13 races so far this season, plus last weekend’s All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro.
Here’s everything you need to know before the Coca-Cola 600:
Coca-Cola 600 TV/streaming/radio schedule
all eastern times
Saturday, May 27
7-9 p.m.: Practice and qualifying (FS1, Fox Sports app, PRN)
Sunday, May 28
17:30-18:00: Pre-race show (Fox, Fox Sports app, PRN)
6-10 p.m.: Coca-Cola 600 (Fox, Fox Sports app, PRN)
Coke 600 details
Clue: Charlotte Motor Speedway (1.5-mile dogleg oval), Concord, North Carolina
Length: 400 laps for 600 miles
Banking: 5 degrees on straights, 24 degrees on turns
Last year’s winner: Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing
The best drivers and the best bets for the Coca-Cola 600
Hendrick Motorsports has been dominant on tracks 1.5 miles or shorter and that is reflected in the BetMGM odds ahead of the weekend. Kyle Larson (+400) dominated the NASCAR All-Star Race last weekend at North Wilkesboro and has won at two short tracks so far, while William Byron (+700) has won three of the four races at intermediate tracks this season. .
The best odds of winning
Kyle Larson +400
William Byron +700
Denny Hamlin +750
Martin Truex Jr. +900
Chase Elliot +900
We wrote more in depth about the odds earlier in the week and recommend finding good midlevel value in Tyler Reddick (+1600), who has an average finish of 9.3 in four starts at Charlotte, and Kevin Harvick (+1700), who has won there three times. Ty Gibbs (+6000), making his first Cup race at Charlotte, is a tempting longshot, as he’s won and finished second in two Xfinity races.
List of Coca-Cola 600 entries
Ross Chastain (1), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Austin Cindric (2), Team Penske Ford |
Austin Dillon (3), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Kevin Harvick (4), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Kyle Larson (5), Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
Brad Keselowski (6), RFK Racing Ford
Corey LaJoie (7), Spire Motorsport Chevrolet
Kyle Busch (8), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Chase Elliott (9), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Aric Almirola (10), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Denny Hamlin (11), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Blaney (12), Team Penske Ford
Chase Briscoe (14), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
JJ Yeley (15), Rick Ware Racing Ford
AJ Allmendinger (16), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Chris Buescher (17), RFK Racing Ford
Martin Truex Jr. (19), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Christopher Bell (20), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Harrison Burton (21), Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Joey Logano (22), Team Penske Ford
Bubba Wallace (23), 23rd XI Racing Toyota
William Byron (24), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Justin Haley (31), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Michael McDowell (34), Ford of Front Row Motorsports
Zane Smith (38), Ford of Front Row Motorsports
Ryan Preece (41), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Noah Gragson (42), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Erik Jones (43), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Tyler Reddick (45), 23XI Racing Toyota
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47), JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
Alex Bowman (48), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Todd Gilliland (51), Rick Ware Racing Ford
Ty Gibbs (54), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ty Dillon (77), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
BJ McLeod (78), Live Fast Motorsports Ford
Jimmie Johnson (84), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez (99), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
The climate of Coca-Cola 600
The forecast calls for cool temperatures and rain throughout the weekend, which will have the programmers at the racetrack rubbing their temples. In addition to the Cup cars, there will be practice, qualifying and racing for ARCA Menards, Craftsman Truck and Xfinity Series at the track. Since Monday is a federal holiday, NASCAR may be more inclined to delay the Cup race more quickly rather than wait for the weather to clear until Sunday night.
