NASCAR’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway: What you need to know – Charlotte Observer

Race: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Bank of America 500

Distance: 334 laps, or 501 miles.

Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile, asphalt quad oval in Concord.

When: 2 p.m. Sunday.

TV: NBCSN.

Radio: PRN.

Last year’s winner: Jimmie Johnson.

Also this week: Drive for the Cure 300 Presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, Xfinity Series, Charlotte Motor Speedway, 3 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7, NBCSN.

Worth mentioning: This is the first race of the second round of the playoffs. Four drivers – Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, and Austin Dillon – were eliminated last week at Dover.

Who’s Hot/ Who’s Not

HOT

Kyle Busch: He’s won back-to-back races and risen to second place in the standings.

Brad Keselowski: He won a stage point at Dover, and he’s up to fourth in the standings.

NOT

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: Stenhouse Jr. survived to the second round of the playoffs, but just barely. He’ll need to improve significantly if he hopes to make it another round.

Denny Hamlin: He finished 35th at Dover, and while he’s still seventh in the standings, he’ll need better finishes this round to keep from slipping down the leaderboard.

Brendan Marks