NASCAR‘s three national series are back in action at Nashville Superspeedway on June 23-25. The packed schedule will feature two primetime races that finish under the lights.
The Craftsman Truck Series race will be the first primetime event. It will take place on Friday, June 23, at 8 p.m. ET (FS1). The Xfinity Series race on June 24 will take place in the afternoon at 3:30 p.m. ET (USA), but the Cup Series race on June 25 will begin at 7 p.m. ET (NBC).
This marks a change from the first two Cup Series events at Nashville Superspeedway that began in the afternoon. Though the 2022 race ended under the lights due to multiple weather-forced delays.
One potential reason for the Cup Series race moving to primetime is that it will help get the drivers and the fans away from the heat of the day. It will also kick off the NBC portion of the schedule with an intense battle under the lights.
The Truck Series Schedule Headlines June 23
The weekend begins on Friday, June 23, with all three series hitting the track. The Craftsman Truck Series drivers will practice at 4 p.m. ET (FS1) before qualifying at 4:30 p.m. ET (FS1).
The Xfinity Series drivers and Cup Series drivers will then practice at 5:30 p.m. ET and 6:30 p.m. ET, respectively, as USA Network provides coverage for the first time this season.
The Truck Series race will then cap off the opening day of the Nashville weekend with the Rackley Roofing 200. This event, the final in the Triple Truck Challenge series, will feature drivers battling for the win, a spot in the playoffs, and a $50,000 bonus.
One interesting aspect of this race is that it will be the first since the Truck Series returned to Nashville Superspeedway that will not end with Ryan Preece in Victory Lane.
The Connecticut native won the Truck Series races in 2021 and 2022, but he is not eligible to compete in the 2023 race since it is part of the Triple Truck Challenge. Full-time Cup and Xfinity drivers can not take on these bonus program races.
June 24’s Schedule Includes Multiple Series
The second day at Nashville Superspeedway will have multiple on-track sessions in Middle Tennessee. The schedule begins at 12 p.m. ET with Xfinity Series qualifying (USA) and then it continues at 1 p.m. ET with Cup Series qualifying (USA).
The main event on Saturday will be the Xfinity Series race at 3:30 p.m. ET (USA). The first two events have featured two different organizations winning — Joe Gibbs Racing in 2021 and JR Motorsports in 2022 — and there will be multiple in the field that will have an opportunity to join this list.
The Xfinity Series races were significantly different than those in the Truck Series and Cup Series. David Gilliland Racing — now Tricon Garage — took the events in 2021 and 2022 with Preece as the winning driver.
Hendrick Motorsports won the first two Cup Series races as Nashville Superspeedway. Kyle Larson took the first in 2021 while Chase Elliott won the second in 2022.
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