NASCAR Xfinity Series favorites at the Charlotte roval

The NASCAR Xfinity Series will race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval for the second time. Who are the favorites to win the Drive for the Cure 250?

The NASCAR Xfinity Series is scheduled to race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval for the second time on Saturday, September 28. This season, the race has been extended by 50 kilometers, as it is the Drive for the Cure 250 instead of the Drive for the Cure 200 like it was last year.

The Drive for the Cure 250 will consist of 67 laps around the 17-turn, 2.28-mile (3.669-kilometer) course, with the first stage ending at lap 20 and the second stage ending at lap 40.

Now that the series has raced at the track once, drivers have experience on the course. A total of 38 drivers are entered in this Saturday afternoon’s race, but only one will take home the trophy. So, with one race worth of data, who are the favorites to win the Drive for the Cure 250?

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At the top of the list have to be the “Big 3” of Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer and Christopher Bell. Combined, they have won 18 of the 27 (66.7%) of the Xfinity Series races this season. All three of those drivers scored stage points and finished inside the top 10 in the race at the track last season.

Of those three drivers, Bell is the only one who has won at a road course before, as he won the race at Road America in August. In seven starts at road courses, Reddick has three top five finishes and four top 10 finishes. Custer has eight top 10 finishes in 10 road course starts.

Outside of the “Big 3,” Chase Briscoe has to be at the top of the list of favorites. He is the defending race winner, he led the most laps and he will have a fast #98 Ford. Expect the Stewart-Haas Racing duo of Briscoe and Custer to have fast cars. In particular, Briscoe is ready to defend his race win.

Let’s try to be the first two time winner at the Roval. 👍🏼 pic.twitter.com/AaNjAZdhDn
— Chase Briscoe (@ChaseBriscoe_14) September 23, 2019

A.J. Allmendinger will make his last start this season in the #10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. He is very good at road courses, and he has experience at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval. Last season, he competed in the Cup Series race at the track. He started the race in second place and ultimately finished in seventh place. He would like to end his 2019 season on a victorious note.

Austin Cindric has won two of the three road course races this season. He has dominated at the road courses this season, with an average starting position of 2.00 and an average finishing position of 1.33. Last season, he took the pole position at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval and led the first 13 laps, so he will be a threat to win the Drive for the Cure 250.

Who else is a threat to go to victory lane? Despite finishing in 15th place at the track last season, Justin Allgaier finished the first stage in ninth place, and he regularly contends at road courses. In 27 career Xfinity Series starts at road courses, he has three wins, eight top five finishes, and 18 top 10 finishes. He has not yet won a race this season.

Last year, 30 drivers finished on the lead lap in the race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval, and 16 drivers earned stage points in the race. So could an underdog break through and snatch a win? If so, who? Alex Labbe could be the biggest surprise in this race. Last season, he started this race in fifth place and finished in 12th.

The car Labbe will drive in the Drive for the Cure 250, the #90 DGM Racing Chevrolet, finished sixth in the second stage in the Xfinity Series race last season with Andy Lally driving before he crashed. Labbe has competed full-time in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series this year, but the Xfinity Series race at the Charlotte roval could be the highlight of his year.

The Drive for the Cure 250 is the second race of the three-race Xfinity Series round of 12. Only Christopher Bell has clinched his berth in the round of 8, so the other playoff drivers will be racing hard for stage points, positions and the win as they seek to gain points to advance, so the second Xfinity Series at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval should be an exciting one to watch.

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Who do you think will win the Drive for the Cure 250? The NASCAR Xfinity Series playoff race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval is scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 28 beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET with TV coverage provided by NBC Sports Network.

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