This weekend, the charge towards the playoffs continues with a tripleheader weekend at Michigan International Speedway. There will be high speeds and something of an unknown for the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Where to Watch NASCAR This Week
The NASCAR Cup Series will headline three days of racing at Michigan International Speedway. Friday will not have any on-track activity for Cup teams, but it will be a busy day of work in the garage.
Practice will begin at 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday afternoon with live coverage on USA Network. Qualifying will follow shortly afterwards.
Coverage of the FireKeepers Casino 400 will begin with Countdown to Green at 2 p.m. ET Sunday on USA Network. Race coverage is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. ET, but don’t be surprised if it starts earlier than that.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series will serve as primary support. They will have a one-day show Saturday in Michigan.
Practice is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET Friday afternoon. The session will be streamed live on NBCSports.com and/or the NBC Sports App. Qualifying will follow shortly afterwards.
Coverage of the Cabo Wabo 250 will begin with Countdown to Green at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network, right after the Victory Lane Review of Sunday’s Cup race from Richmond. Race coverage is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. ET with a green flag at 3:40 p.m. ET.
Note that the race will be run with the same rules package that was used at Indianapolis last month. Drafting will be critical.
The ARCA Menards Series has one of their quirkiest weekends of the season. It starts in Michigan, where teams will have their traditional 200-mile race on the two-mile oval Friday.
On-track activity is scheduled to begin with practice at 1:30 p.m. ET, followed by qualifying at 2:15 p.m. ET. Neither session will be televised.
Coverage of the Henry Ford Health 200 will air live on FOX Sports 1 starting at 6 p.m. ET. The race will also be simulcast on FLORacing.
Unfortunately, the weather forecast is not particularly great this weekend. Rain is in the forecast for all three days. If events are postponed, we will keep you updated here at Frontstretch and on our social media platforms.
This could be very problematic for the ARCA Menards Series since Friday night is not their only scheduled race of the weekend.
On Sunday, the series is supposed to be at The Springfield Mile, part of the Illinois State Fairgrounds, for the Springfield ARCA 100. Practice is scheduled to be held at 11 a.m. ET, while qualifying is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. ET. Neither session is scheduled to be televised.
Coverage of the Springfield ARCA 100 is scheduled to air live on FS1 at 2 p.m. ET Sunday. Like Friday, Sunday’s 100-mile race will be simulcast on FLORacing.
TV Ratings Check — Richmond
Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway earned a 1.2 rating with 2.22 million viewers. The ratings are down 14% from last year, but the situation in which the race aired differs from last year.
The Cook Out 400 ran two weeks later this year and aired up against the Closing Ceremony of the Summer Olympics on NBC. Last year’s race was also a 3 p.m. ET start as opposed to 6 p.m. ET.
Ratings are not currently available for Saturday night’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series CleanHarbors 250 from Richmond.
Phil Allaway has three primary roles at Frontstretch. He's the manager of the site's FREE e-mail newsletter that publishes Monday-Friday and occasionally on weekends. He keeps TV broadcasters honest with weekly editions of Couch Potato Tuesday and serves as the site's Sports Car racing editor.
Outside of Frontstretch, Phil is the press officer for Lebanon Valley Speedway in West Lebanon, N.Y. He covers all the action on the high-banked dirt track from regular DIRTcar Modified racing to occasional visits from touring series such as the Super DIRTcar Series.