NASCAR Preview: Nashville Race Weekend
- DIVEBOMB Motorsport
- May 30
- 8 min read
Written by Gabriel Tsui, Ashleigh McGregor & Krystal Diane
From a historic track to a contemporary one, all three series head to the Nashville Superspeedway in Tennessee.
Having opened in 2001, Nashville boasts a unique layout as a 1.33-mile (2.14-kilometre) concrete oval. It has banking of 14 degrees in the corners, nine degrees on the frontstretch and six degrees on the backstretch.
Below are the start times for each race plus lap count:
Trucks: Friday, 30 May, 20:00 local (01:00 UK) – 150 laps
Xfinity: Saturday, 31 May, 19:30 local (00:30 UK) – 188 laps
Cup: Sunday, 1 June, 19:00 local (00:00 UK) – 300 laps
Below are the defending winners for each race:
Trucks: No. 19 - Christian Eckes (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing)
Xfinity: No. 20 - John Hunter Nemechek (Joe Gibbs Racing)
Cup: No. 22 - Joey Logano (Team Penske)
Cup Series: Cracker Barrel 400 Preview
Written by Gabriel Tsui
Following one of the greatest comeback performances in NASCAR history, we will head west to Nashville, Tennessee for the 15th race of the season. With eight drivers now qualified for the playoffs, will we see a ninth driver qualified to the playoffs or will we find one of the playoff drivers adding another to the win column?
The drivers will be driving around the 1.33-mile-long track for 300 laps, with 90 laps in stage one, 95 laps in stage two, and 115 laps to close out the race, totalling a distance of 400 miles (640 kilometres) run around the track.
The weather report indicates there could be precipitation in the area as we enter the weekend, so weather delays may occur during the race. The race will commence on the Sunday of June 1st, at 19:00 Eastern (16:00 Pacific, 00:00 British).
Race Predictions
In the return to regular racing at Charlotte, we have seen bounce back moments for certain drivers such as Brad Keselowski, breakout performances for veterans like Ross Chastain and AJ Allmendinger, while some drivers such as Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson had a bad day at the office.
It was another huge blow for Blaney, who has five top-five finishes and finished all of his racing within the top-20, but also a series-leading five DNFs and those DNFs are holding him back mightily. Despite all the struggles he had, he still sits within the top-ten of the championship standings.
The 31-year-old is due for a bounce back, and the second half of the regular season is where he performs best, with the bulk of his regular season wins coming after the thirteen-race mark. His record in Nashville isn’t necessarily the best in the field, but his intermediate track performances this season ranks among the best of all drivers.
That is why our pick for the weekend is the No.12 pilot. There is a lot of belief for the Penske star to turn the ship around, and at a track where he has had past success will be the perfect opportunity to build a strong run.
Three things to look out for
A.J. Allmendinger’s bounce back
After closing out the regular season with a three race skid where he only collected 20 points during said time frame, AJ Allmendinger kicked off the second half with a bang. He scored a season high 49 points, with a fifth in stage one, sixth in stages two and three, then completing the race in fourth place.
This is obviously a huge win for the 43-year-old and Kaulig, who are exceeding all expectations with their start to the season. The question now is if they can maintain said performance, and with Allmendinger’s past record at Nashville, it projects to be yet another great weekend for the No.16 team.
William Byron’s near-perfect weekend ended with heartbreak
Wiliam Byron’s weekend started with an announcement where he signed a four-year-deal to stay with Hendrick Motorsports until the end of the 2029 season, then he went on to dominate the Xfinity race by sweeping the stages, get moved to the back of the field for exiting the pits too fast, then coming all the way back from 28th place for the win.
In the main race, Byron started the race behind Kyle Larson and Chase Briscoe, until Larson spun on his own coming out of turn 4. The 27-year-old locked down the lead for the rest of the race, relinquishing the lead only when he had to come into the pits. However, a charging Denny Hamlin who was determined to unlap himself created an opening for Ross Chastain, who overtook Byron for the win.
It was a heartbreaking end for the Charlotte native, but he will have the consolation prize of 65 points and the championship lead back in his hands coming out of the weekend.
More struggles for Spire Motorsport
In the Charlotte weekend, the Spire drivers all found quite a bit of pace, with Carson Hocevar running near the top-five in stages two and three. Hocevar was challenging for the lead at one point, but his engine blew up on the final stage restart and he unfortunately had to retire.
Justin Haley, the pilot of the No.7, retired from the race after failing to avoid a sideways Daniel Suarez, while Michael McDowell finished the race in seventh place, although only able to bring home 31 points. The verdict on their season can still be changed, but time is running out for the trio to truly make a difference.
Xfinity Series: Tennessee Lottery 250 Preview
Written by Ashleigh McGregor
The last race for Xfinity was in the home of stock car racing in America: Charlotte, North Carolina. William Byron, NASCAR Cup driver, came and dominated the Xfinity race. He had a clean sweep of the stages and, similar to Kyle Larson earlier in the season, showed these drivers there is room to improve.
Connor Zilisch returned to the track after taking a race off to recover from his lower back injury at the Talladega race. At only 18 years old, he came back in full force competing in the Xfinity race as well as the Cup race. His return for his home town race with the Xfinity series was almost perfect as he walked away with a second place finish right behind Byron.
This week we move to Tennessee at the Nashville Superspeedway for a night race.
Race weekend guide
Normally you would be keeping an eye on the championship leader, Justin Allgaier, but lately his strong start to the season has lost a bit of momentum. Austin Hill, second in the championship, will be looking to take advantage of this and try and take some points out of Allgaier.
Rookie superstar, Zilisch is a good driver to watch this weekend. His last two races for the Xfinity Series were super strong and it seems he is on the brink of getting another win this year. He will be racing for the first time on this track and will need to adapt quickly to it.
Katherine Legge is set to race again as part of her seven-race contract for Xfinity. Her races so far this year have been suboptimal with multiple DNF’s. This will be another opportunity for her to improve.
Sam Mayer currently stands third in the championship and is 21 points behind Austin Hill. However, Mayer is the only driver in the top six to still not secure a win this season. Mayer has been consistent and scored good points which has earned him his current spot.
This weekend could be a chance for someone like Mayer to get a win, only if they can get ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series drivers. Ross Chastain, who just won the Cup race in Charlotte, and Aric Almirola, who won the Xfinity race in Phoenix, are both entered to race for the Nashville race. Previously, when the Cup drivers enter to race in Xfinity it is hard to take the win away from them.
Track Insights
Saturday morning will host both practice at 2:05 pm EST followed by qualifying at 3:10 pm EST. The race will start later that evening at 7:30pm EST.
Drivers will be covering 250.04 miles over 188 laps which will be broken up into 45 laps for Stage 1 and Stage 2. The final stage will have 98 laps for drivers to race hard to the end with.
Truck Series: Rackley Roofing 200 Preview
Written by Krystal Diane
Nashville’s next, and the Trucks are back on the concrete. No room for hesitation, no time for second guesses. Just 150 laps where grip fades fast, patience fades faster and every restart feels like a dare. You either get aggressive or get eaten. They call it a superspeedway, but Nashville’s got short-track energy. It’s tight. It’s fast. And if you don’t show up with nerve, someone’s gonna take your space—and your points—with it.
Last year, Christian Eckes put on a clinic at Nashville. He led every lap, took the win, and made it look effortless. It was one of the sharpest drives of the whole season. With Eckes having moved on to Xfinity this year, the door’s wide open. This time around, the field knows what dominance looks like here. And someone’s bound to be eyeing the same kind of takeover.
Race Predictions
Corey Heim walked into Charlotte and shut the whole thing down. Swept both stages, led the final run like he was on cruise control, and left no room for anyone to even sniff the lead. That was win number four this season, and it wasn’t even close. At this point, he’s not just the favorite, he’s the standard. If he rolls into Nashville with the same pace, it’s his race to lose.
If you want something more calculated, Ross Chastain’s your guy. He ran up front all night in Charlotte, brought the fight to Heim early and still finished runner-up. Nashville’s a place where tire management and short-track aggression blend. And that’s Chastain’s entire playbook.
Feeling risky? Try Kaden Honeycutt. He looked sharp in Charlotte: won the race off pit road twice, held the lead in stage three and fought toe-to-toe with some heavy names. He didn’t get the finish, but the speed was real. Nashville could be the breakout.
Then there’s Matt Mills. Seventh at Charlotte, no flash, just results. If this race turns into another strategy-heavy shuffle or a restart brawl, Mills has already shown he knows how to stay in the fight.
A lot of drivers left Charlotte with confidence, but confidence doesn’t guarantee control. Heim’s been nearly untouchable, but Nashville’s a different animal. It's less about domination, more about decisions. You can have the fastest truck in the field and still lose it on a mistimed pit call or one bad restart. Because Nashville doesn’t just test your truck, it tests your timing. And if that timing’s off by even half a beat, someone else could take what could’ve been yours.
Two storylines to look out for
Kaden Honeycutt’s strong pace
At Charlotte, Kaden Honeycutt came to play, won the race off pit road twice, ran up front all night, and led a pack that just couldn’t quite crack Corey Heim. Honeycutt’s been bubbling under the surface all year, but Charlotte felt like a shift. He didn’t just survive up there, he belonged. If Nashville turns into a restart-heavy, elbows-out kind of race, don’t be surprised if the No. 45 finally finishes what he started.
Chandler Smith: Reset or relapse?
Charlotte was a mess. Chandler Smith was hooked off Turn 4 by Gio Ruggiero, collected Ty Majeski and walked away 34th. Smith’s been a top-tier contender all season, and one race doesn’t erase that. But Nashville will say a lot. Is this just a bad night, or does the pressure start to creep in? He’s still second in the standings, but another shaky run and the narrative shifts. Friday’s a test of bounce-back energy and who’s willing to race with a chip.
Comments