You can always count on certain things when the Memorial Day Weekend rolls around. There will be a three-day weekend. There will be barbecues. There will be parades. NASCAR will run its longest race of the season, the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
It is a tradition for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series to salute the troops on Memorial Day Weekend. They do it with special patriotic paint themes on many of the cars. Many military service men and women are at the race. They even put names of the military on the cars. NASCAR teams, drivers and fans understand the sacrifices our military members make for our country and the freedoms we enjoy here in the United States of America as a result.
The job of the military is challenging and is one we should all honor day in and day out. What better way for NASCAR to honor the military than with one of the most challenging races of the year that is also considered a crown-jewel to win.
Here is the track and race data the drivers and teams will be dealing with this weekend.
Charlotte Motor Speedway Data
Track Size: 1.5-miles
Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 24 degrees
Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 24 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 1,980 feet
Backstretch Length: 1,500 feet
Coca-Cola 600 Data
Season Race #: 13 of 36 (05-26-19)
Race Length: 400 laps / 600 miles
Stage Length: 100 Laps each
Note: Due to the length of the race NASCAR runs this race in four stages. It is the only point paying race of the year that is more than three stages.
The ten active drivers that have performed the best over-all st Charlotte Motor Speedway during their careers are listed below.
Top 10 Driver Ratings at Charlotte
Jimmie Johnson…………………… 109.6
Kyle Busch…………………………. 106.5
Denny Hamlin……………………….. 97.3
Kevin Harvick………………………… 89.5
Martin Truex Jr………………………. 89.5
Kyle Larson………………………….. 88.5
Kurt Busch……………………………. 88.5
Joey Logano………………………… 88.2
Brad Keselowski……………………. 86.3
Chase Elliott…………………………. 85.3
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2018 races (27 total) among active drivers at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Only nine active drivers have won at Charlotte Motor Speedway in their careers and only three of those have done it more than once.
Active Drivers with Charlotte Cup Series Wins
Jimmie Johnson – 8 Wins
Kevin Harvick – 3 Wins
Martin Truex Jr. – 2 Wins
Austin Dillon – 1 Win
Brad Keselowski – 1 Win
Clint Bowyer – 1 Win
Joey Logano – 1 Win
Kurt Busch – 1 Win
Kyle Busch – 1 Win (This race last year)
Ryan Blaney did win at Charlotte last fall. However, that was on the ROVAL configuration which makes it a completely different track and therefore really has no correlation to this weekend’s race.
It will take 400 laps (600 miles) to find out which driver will claim the victory in the longest race of the Monster Energy Cup Series season. We will find out how it all unfolds Sunday, May 26th starting at 5 PM central time (6 PM eastern time) in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
By: Buck Stevens
