The upcoming weekend in Charlotte will be a complete NASCAR show with the top three tiers and the ARCA Menards Series scheduled to run races. The biggest and brightest of the stages will be the 14th Cup Series race of the 2024 season. The Coca-Cola 600 was the first race ever run on the Charlotte Motor Speedway back in 1960 and this weekend will hold the race’s 64th edition.
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The curtains for the Cup Series field will open May 25 (Saturday), with practice at 5:05 p.m. (All Eastern Times) and qualifying at 5:50 p.m. The main race will blow over to Sunday and kickstart at 6:00 p.m. 600 miles will be raced over 400 laps that are split into four stages of 100 laps each. The usual press conference will follow the race’s end.
Charlotte
ETFri
11:40-ARCA p&q
FS1
1:35-Truck p&q
3:55-Xfin p&q
5-NASCAR RaceHub
6-ARCA 100
8-NASCAR RaceDay
8:30-Truck 30-30-74Sat
12:30-FOX-NASCAR RaceDay
1-FOX-Xfin 45-45-110
5:05-FS1-Cup p&qSun
4:30-FS1-NASCAR RaceDay
5:30-FOX-NASCAR RaceDay
6-FOX-Cup 100-100-100-100— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 20, 2024
May 24 (Friday) will contain the most action on the weekend. The Xfinity Series will hold its practice and qualifying at 3:35 p.m. and 4:05 p.m. respectively. Its main race will scoot to Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The Truck Series will see the entirety of its duties ended on Friday with practice at 1:35 p.m., qualifying at 2:05 p.m., and the race scheduled at 8:30 p.m. The ARCA Menards Series follows suit.
Donald Trump is expected to attend the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday
Former President of the United States, Donald Trump, is expected to watch the upcoming Cup Series race at Charlotte. Track officials confirmed the news to WCNC Charlotte. Should he come, Trump will be the first president to attend a race at the venue. Notably, he served as the grand marshal for the 2020 Daytona 500 and gave drivers the command to start their engines.
On the flip side, his presence could negatively impact Kyle Larson’s attempt at the Double. The Hendrick driver qualified fifth for his debut Indy 500 and is hoping to fly into Concord in time for the Coca-Cola 600 after finishing the main race. This itinerary could take a hit with the Federal Aviation Administration restricting the airspace surrounding the regions where Trump is.
“No person may operate an aircraft over or in the vicinity of any area to be visited or traveled by the President, the Vice President, or other public figures contrary to the restrictions established by the FAA and published in a NOTAM,” the FAA website reads. The hope heading into the weekend is that Larson’s team sorts out this potential issue before it foils their plans to create history.
