Coca-Cola 600 Preview Preview and Best Bet
NASCAR Cup Series: Coca-Cola 600
Sunday, May 30, 2021 at 6 p.m. ET (FOX) at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina
Race Info
NASCAR’s Cup Series will continue this upcoming Sunday when the Coca-Cola 600 takes place at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Drivers must complete a total of 400 laps for this racing event.
This event is unique in that, for the first time this season, it is composed of four instead of the usual three stages.
Each stage consists in 100 laps. So Stage 1 consists in 100 laps. Stage 2 concludes with the 200th lap.
Stage 3 finishes after 300 laps and Stage 4 ends with the 400th lap.
Just like in previous weeks, an entry list has been published for this race.
So barring any unforeseen circumstances, we already know which teams and drivers will compete in this race.
As for the starting lineup, starting position had usually been established by a predetermined formula which took the place of qualifying.
But for this event, there will be qualifying in order to determine the starting lineup.
In addition to qualifying, drivers will get the benefit of one practice session.
This one practice session will take place on Friday evening at 7 p.m. ET. Then, qualifying will ensue on the following morning beginning at 11:35 a.m. ET.
Track Info
Practice and qualifying are special (special, that is, in the current COVID era) features of the Coca-Cola 600, a relatively well-known and prestigious NASCAR event.
The Charlotte Motor Speedway, the race track that hosts this event, is 1.5-miles long.
So in completing 400 laps, drivers will have accumulated 600 miles.
This is a quad oval track, meaning that, unlike in a road course, turns lead in one single direction.
There are four turns in the course that NASCAR’s Cup Series will use.
Relative to other NASCAR tracks, there is a relatively high level of banking in the turns.
Each turn is banked at 24 degrees. More banking allows for more speed because drivers use the banking on the turns in order to corral more momentum for themselves.
The straightaways on this course are also banked decently, compared with straights in other tracks. The straights at Charlotte are banked at five degrees.
As for the surface, teams/drivers will prepare their cars to run on asphalt.
Drivers To Avoid
One driver to avoid is Chase Elliott. He won both his last NASCAR race overall and the last race at Charlotte.
It is statistically unlikely for him to win a second consecutive time at Charlotte. The last time that a driver accomplished this feat — winning twice in a row at the Charlotte Motor Speedway — was in 2006.
Also avoid Brad Keselowski, despite recent success that he’s enjoyed at Charlotte.
Overall, his racing form has been awful. In his last three NASCAR Cup Series races, he finished 24th — despite starting in first place — 16th, and 19th.
There are other drivers out there who have stronger histories to boast of in Charlotte and can simultaneously demonstrate positive current racing form.
Also avoid Denny Hamlin, who is experiencing a stark regression relative to what he did last year.
Last week, he finished outside the top 10 for the third time in his last five races. His recent driver rating at Charlotte is also rather poor partly because he’s suffered some awful performances there.
My Guy
I want to avoid investing in the most heavily favored driver. Favorites so far have had a rough go of it.
There is more value out there in heavier underdogs.
While he doesn’t have close to the best driver history at this track, I like Ryan Blaney
Blaney's driving history at Charlotte is marred by earlier efforts, thus giving him the mere appearance of a driver who is a bad choice to invest in.
But a deeper look into his history reveals that he is clearly figuring things out at Charlotte.
In each of his last two attempts at this track, he finished third.
While his last two races overall weren’t great, they don’t really reflect his form because they took place at a road track and at Dover. He doesn’t normally do well on road courses or at Dover, anyways.
Before those two races, he performed much stronger than usual at Darlington.
Given his recent history at Charlotte, Sunday presents a great opportunity for him to resume his strong form.
Best Bet: Ryan Blaney To Win (Odds TBA)
NASCAR Cup Series: Coca-Cola 600
Sunday, May 30, 2021 at 6 p.m. ET (FOX) at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina
Race Info
NASCAR’s Cup Series will continue this upcoming Sunday when the Coca-Cola 600 takes place at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Drivers must complete a total of 400 laps for this racing event.
This event is unique in that, for the first time this season, it is composed of four instead of the usual three stages.
Each stage consists in 100 laps. So Stage 1 consists in 100 laps. Stage 2 concludes with the 200th lap.
Stage 3 finishes after 300 laps and Stage 4 ends with the 400th lap.
Just like in previous weeks, an entry list has been published for this race.
So barring any unforeseen circumstances, we already know which teams and drivers will compete in this race.
As for the starting lineup, starting position had usually been established by a predetermined formula which took the place of qualifying.
But for this event, there will be qualifying in order to determine the starting lineup.
In addition to qualifying, drivers will get the benefit of one practice session.
This one practice session will take place on Friday evening at 7 p.m. ET. Then, qualifying will ensue on the following morning beginning at 11:35 a.m. ET.
Track Info
Practice and qualifying are special (special, that is, in the current COVID era) features of the Coca-Cola 600, a relatively well-known and prestigious NASCAR event.
The Charlotte Motor Speedway, the race track that hosts this event, is 1.5-miles long.
So in completing 400 laps, drivers will have accumulated 600 miles.
This is a quad oval track, meaning that, unlike in a road course, turns lead in one single direction.
There are four turns in the course that NASCAR’s Cup Series will use.
Relative to other NASCAR tracks, there is a relatively high level of banking in the turns.
Each turn is banked at 24 degrees. More banking allows for more speed because drivers use the banking on the turns in order to corral more momentum for themselves.
The straightaways on this course are also banked decently, compared with straights in other tracks. The straights at Charlotte are banked at five degrees.
As for the surface, teams/drivers will prepare their cars to run on asphalt.
Drivers To Avoid
One driver to avoid is Chase Elliott. He won both his last NASCAR race overall and the last race at Charlotte.
It is statistically unlikely for him to win a second consecutive time at Charlotte. The last time that a driver accomplished this feat — winning twice in a row at the Charlotte Motor Speedway — was in 2006.
Also avoid Brad Keselowski, despite recent success that he’s enjoyed at Charlotte.
Overall, his racing form has been awful. In his last three NASCAR Cup Series races, he finished 24th — despite starting in first place — 16th, and 19th.
There are other drivers out there who have stronger histories to boast of in Charlotte and can simultaneously demonstrate positive current racing form.
Also avoid Denny Hamlin, who is experiencing a stark regression relative to what he did last year.
Last week, he finished outside the top 10 for the third time in his last five races. His recent driver rating at Charlotte is also rather poor partly because he’s suffered some awful performances there.
My Guy
I want to avoid investing in the most heavily favored driver. Favorites so far have had a rough go of it.
There is more value out there in heavier underdogs.
While he doesn’t have close to the best driver history at this track, I like Ryan Blaney
Blaney's driving history at Charlotte is marred by earlier efforts, thus giving him the mere appearance of a driver who is a bad choice to invest in.
But a deeper look into his history reveals that he is clearly figuring things out at Charlotte.
In each of his last two attempts at this track, he finished third.
While his last two races overall weren’t great, they don’t really reflect his form because they took place at a road track and at Dover. He doesn’t normally do well on road courses or at Dover, anyways.
Before those two races, he performed much stronger than usual at Darlington.
Given his recent history at Charlotte, Sunday presents a great opportunity for him to resume his strong form.
Best Bet: Ryan Blaney To Win (Odds TBA)
