NASCAR Preview: Charlotte Roval Race Weekend
- DIVEBOMB Motorsport
- 6 hours ago
- 5 min read
Written by Gabriel Tsui, Ashleigh McGregor & Sean McKean
For the first time ever, all three national series travel to the Charlotte Roval for equally important playoff races.
Since 2018, the Cup and Xfinity Series' have raced on the road course configuration of Charlotte Motor Speedway. The "Roval" is 2.32 miles (3.73 kilometres) with 17 distinct turns.
Below are the start times for each race plus lap count:
Trucks: Friday, 3 October, 15:30 local (20:30 UK) - 67 laps
Xfinity: Saturday, 4 October, 17:00 local (22:00 UK) - 67 laps
Cup: Sunday, 5 October, 15:00 local (20:00 UK) - 109 laps
Below are the defending winners of each race:
Trucks: never held
Xfinity: No. 1 - Sam Mayer (JR Motorsports)
Cup: No. 5 - Kyle Larson (Hendrick Motorsports)
Cup Series: Bank of America Roval 400 Preview
Written by Gabriel Tsui
Following one of the best finishes of the season in Kansas, where Chase Elliott stormed his way through the field for the victory and punched his ticket to the Round of 8, we now head to the Charlotte Roval to conclude the second round of the playoffs. With the cut-line mostly set in stone, drivers under the line are in a win-or-bust situation. Will we see the sun shine upon one of these drivers, or would we find the usual Shane van Gisbergen winning in a road course?
The drivers will be driving around the road course for 109 laps, with 25 laps each in the initial stages, and 59 laps of grinding through the unpredictable road course to close out the race, totalling a distance of 252.9 miles (407 kilometres) run around the track.
The weather report indicates that there will be sunny skies and relatively warm temperatures in Concord, North Carolina, around 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit) approaching the evening. The race will commence on the Sunday of October 5th, at 15:00 Eastern (12:00 Pacific, 20:00 British).
Race Prediction
A road course race, for the most part, serves as an SVG versus everyone else situation. However, as it is the Roval, and it still is the NASCAR playoffs, the circumstances are quite different. SVG’s fellow teammate Ross Chastain, who is still powering through the playoffs, in search of a return to the championship round.
Chastain, alongside 23XI duo Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick, still have an opportunity to claw their way out of the hole they are in with a dominant and consistent performance throughout the weekend. These drivers are no pushovers around road courses either, especially for Reddick, who is a regular top-ten finisher in road course races.
It is incredibly tempting to take the easy pick and the easy way out, but it’s playoff Roval, so let’s bust out the hot takes. We predict that Tyler Reddick will come out on top at the end of the weekend, sneaking past the cutline and into the Round of 8.
Three things to look out for
23XI in danger
Heading into the final race weekend of the Round of 12, 23XI has both of their drivers under the cutline, and it isn’t looking ideal for them. Although they have improved road course performances throughout the year, the dominance of SVG still looms over their heads as they enter a win-or-nothing situation.
The drivers above the cutline, Joey Logano and Chase Briscoe, will not be an easy knockout at Roval, so the 23XI team has their work cut out for them.
Joey Logano a dark horse at Roval?
For the most part, Joey Logano is a relatively successful racer in Charlotte Roval. Apart from an 18th place finish during his 2022 championship run, he has secured top-ten finishes in every race at the Roval.
Despite being only 13 points above the cut line, Logano is mostly expected to pass through to the Round of 12 unless one of the four drivers below the cut-line somehow finds a win at Roval ahead of SVG.
Too late for Austin Cindric?
Austin Cindric has had a howler of a Round of 12, collecting only 27 points through New Hampshire and Kansas. He is 48 points below the cut-line, and all hope is lost for him apart from the slim opportunity of a win at Roval, a track where he has had a mixed bag, although his Xfinity results says otherwise.
Nonetheless, the time is now for Cindric, and his window to progress is closing fast.
Xfinity Series: Blue Cross NC 250 Preview
Written by Ashleigh McGregor
Last weekend, Brandon Jones took his second win of the season amidst pressure from Connor Zilisch to secure his way into the Round of 8 in Kansas. He dominated proceedings.
Now, the Xfinity Series travels to the Charlotte Roval to conclude the Round of 12.
Race Weekend Guide
On Saturday, 4 October, practice will begin at 11:30 local (16:30 UK) followed by qualifying at 12:40 (17:40 UK). The race will then kick off at 17:00 local (22:00 UK).
Drivers will race 152.8 miles over 67 laps. The first two stages are 20 laps followed by a 27-lap final sprint to the finish.
Playoff picture
This race will conclude the Round of 12, with Connor Zilisch and Brandon Jones winning their ways into the next round. Justin Allgaier also clinched his spot on points following Kansas.
Sam Mayer sits at best of the rest, 43 points above the cut-line. He is followed by Taylor Gray (16 points), Sheldon Creed (12 points), Carson Kvapil (nine points) and Jesse Love (five points).
Below the cut-line, Nick Sanchez is the first one out at five points below. Following behind is Austin Hill (seven points), Harrison Burton (eight points) and Sammy Smith (17 points).
Truck Series: Ecosave 250 Preview
Written by Sean McKean
In a season characterized by new tracks and drivers, the Truck Series tackles another new road course in the Charlotte Roval this Friday afternoon.
Last week out in New Hampshire, Corey Heim led the majority of the race, won both stages and took his ninth victory of the season. Despite a valiant effort from second-placed Chandler Smith, he was officially eliminated from the playoffs alongside Jake Garcia.
Race Predictions
Unlike most other weeks, the Charlotte Roval's entry list contains a lot of depth. With drivers such as Brent Crews and Connor Zilisch, this race won't nearly be as cut-and-dry as previous. However, the last time the Truck Series traveled to a new road course, Corey Heim led nearly every lap en route to a dominant win. Therefore, we anticipate Heim to take a record-breaking tenth win of the season.
Two storylines to look out for
The playoff picture
Below is the playoff picture heading into the first race of the Round of 8:
No. 11 - Corey Heim: +69
No. 34 - Layne Riggs: +22
No. 19 - Daniel Hemric: +1
No. 98 - Ty Majeski: +0
PLAYOFF CUT-LINE
No. 18 - Tyler Ankrum: -0
No. 9 - Grant Enfinger: -3
No. 71 - Rajah Caruth: -5
No. 52 - Kaden Honeycutt: -7
Notable entrants
This debut event sees two notable entrants.
The first is Connor Zilisch. Zilisch is amidst a Heim-esque season in his rookie Xfinity Series campaign, currently sitting at nine wins highlighted by 16 consecutive top-fives. He will be in the No. 7 Spire truck.
The second is Brent Crews. The Toyota development driver has made seven starts this season, with a best finish of eighth at the debut event in Lime Rock Park. He also partakes in a partial ARCA Menards Series campaign with Joe Gibbs Racing and Nitro Motorsports, having taken three wins thus far. He will pilot the No. 1 TRICON truck.
