As the racing season continues to heat up, there’s plenty of action to be had this weekend. For example, SRO America will be at Circuit of the Americas. However, the biggest shows out there will be in Alabama, so let’s check out the NASCAR TV schedule this weekend.
NASCAR Talladega TV Schedule
- NASCAR Xfinity Series Qualifying: 5:30 p.m. ET Friday on The CW App
- NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying: 10:30 a.m. ET Saturday on Amazon Prime Video
- ARCA Menards Series General Tire 200: 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday on FS1
- NASCAR Xfinity Series Ag-Pro 300: 4 p.m. ET Saturday on The CW
- NASCAR Cup Series Jack Link’s 500: 3 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX
This weekend, NASCAR returns to Talladega for their first visit of the year. Remember that there will be no practice this week for the NASCAR Cup Series or the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
For the Cup teams, qualifying is scheduled to be held Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. ET with live coverage on Amazon Prime Video. Also note that Talladega is in the Central Time Zone, so everything on the schedule on Jayski is one hour behind Eastern time.
Coverage of the Jack Link’s 500 will start with NASCAR RaceDay at 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday afternoon on FS1. The show will move to FOX at 2 p.m. ET. Race coverage will begin at 3 p.m. ET with the green flag at 3:15 p.m. ET. Note that this is the final network TV broadcast for the Cup Series until Daytona in August.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series will be on track for qualifying Friday afternoon at 5:30 p.m. ET. Coverage will be on The CW App and The CW’s website, but check your local listings as some CW affiliates may choose to air the session.
Coverage of the Ag-Pro 300 will begin with NASCAR Countdown Live at 3 p.m. ET on The CW. Race coverage will begin at 4 p.m. ET with the green flag around 4:10 p.m. ET.
Finally, the ARCA Menards Series returns to action with its first race for the national series since Phoenix in early March. There will be a practice session in groups at 4 p.m. ET Friday prior to Xfinity qualifying. It will also serve as qualifying as there will be no formal qualifying session, and the session will not be televised.
Coverage of the General Tire 200 is scheduled to air live on FS1 starting at 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday. There is no official pre-race show, but the green will likely fly around 12:45 p.m. ET.
What’s the Weather Looking Like?
Central Alabama is starting to get into a summer weather pattern. What does that mean? It means warm to hot weather, a fair amount of humidity and the potential for precipitation.
Of the three days, Friday seems to be the most likely to be interrupted by rain. The forecast is for variable levels of cloudiness with a high of 83°. AccuWeather indicates an 84% chance of rain, but the local TV outlets have that chance closer to 30%.
The humidity actually drops as the weekend continues on. Saturday will be partly cloudy with a high of 84° with a 25% chance of rain.
Sunday will be the coolest of the three days with a little more cloudiness. The high will be 81° with a 25% chance of rain. For now, there is essentially no risk of thunderstorms, which is great knowing the kinds of issues that this race weekend has seen in the past.
Given the size of Talladega Superspeedway, if it rains at all during the weekend, it will wreak havoc on the track’s schedule. If you’re going, bring the rain gear just in case. You don’t want to be caught out there without the means to keep yourself dry.
TV Ratings Update — Rockingham
Saturday’s broadcast of the NASCAR Xfinity Series North Carolina Education Lottery 250 earned a .58 rating with 1.053 million viewers on The CW. There is no official viewership comparison due to the fact that the series hadn’t raced at Rockingham since 2004.
That said, the series was at Dover last year on that weekend. That race earned a .53 rating with 883,000 viewers on FS1.
Ratings for Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Black’s Tire 200 are not currently available.
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.