NASCAR: Length of Charlotte Motor Speedway roval race reduced
By Asher Fair
The inaugural race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval, the 2018 Bank of America 500, has had its length reduced from 500 kilometers to 400 kilometers.
The Bank of America 500, which is the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval and is scheduled to be held on Sunday, September 30, has had its original length reduced from 500 kilometers to 400 kilometers.
While no specific length for the race had been previously confirmed by NASCAR, Charlotte Motor Speedway had billed it as a 500-kilometer race. When the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway was previously held on the oval track, it was a 500-mile race.
In order for the race around the 17-turn, 2.28-mile (3.669-kilometer) Charlotte Motor Speedway roval in Concord, North Carolina, which includes a large portion of the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Charlotte Motor Speedway oval and a winding road on the inside of the oval, to be a 400-kilometer race, it will have to be a 109-lap race assuming that the track’s length does not change again. This would make it a 248.52-mile race.
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One of the two planned test days on the track this month is scheduled for next Tuesday, July 10. According to Motorsport.com NASCAR editor Jim Utter, an official announcement regarding the length of the race at the track is expected before that time.
Had the race, which is scheduled to be the third and final race of the round of 16 of this year’s Cup Series playoffs, stayed on the schedule as a 500-kilometer race, it would have been a 136-lap race, which would have made it a 310.08-mile race. This would have made it by far and away the longest road course race of the three road course races on the Cup Series schedule and even longer than several of the oval races on the schedule.
The other two road course races on the Cup Series schedule are held at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California and Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York. Those race tracks are 1.99 miles (3.203 kilometers) long and 2.454 miles (3.949 kilometers) long, respectively.
The race at Sonoma took place in late June, and it was a 110-lap race, meaning it lasted for 218.90 (352.33 kilometers). The race at Watkins Glen is scheduled to take place in early August, and it is scheduled to be a 90-lap race, meaning it is scheduled to last for 220.86 miles (355.41 kilometers).
As a result of this, the road course race at Charlotte will still likely be the longest road course race on this season’s schedule even if its length is reduced is reduced from 500 kilometers to 400 kilometers.
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Are you excited for the inaugural race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval? That race is scheduled to be broadcast live on NBC starting at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, September 30, and as the final race of the round of 16, the first round, of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, it is a crucial race, so be sure not to miss it.