From sweet home Alabama to the land Down Under, fans will be coming from far and wide to witness some of auto racing’s best drivers battle at 200 mph around Talladega Superspeedway during the venue’s doubleheader NASCAR Playoff this weekend.
Talladega’s race weekend is set to be an international affair, considering 73 percent of fans will be journeying to the 2.66-mile superspeedway from outside the Yellowhammer state and from all over the world, including:
–All 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
–20 countries including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Switzerland, France, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Mexico and New Zealand.
–Four continents (North America, South America, Europe and Australia). Australia is the farthest country that will be represented — more than 9,300 miles and more than 8,000 nautical miles away.
Fans will create one of the biggest cities in the state during a race weekend that will feature the 1000Bulbs.com 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race on Sunday and Fr8Auctions 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) event on Saturday. Both have playoff implications in their respective series.
Race weekends at Talladega Superspeedway attract such a diverse group of fans because the tri-oval is not only home to some of the most memorable moments in NASCAR history, but it’s also famed for the parties it throws. This weekend’s activities will be headlined by Friday’s “Big One on the Blvd.” and the Saturday Night Infield Concert presented by Wind Creek Casino and Hotel (free for 1000Bulbs.com 500 ticket holders), which will star Chris Janson and will feature Chris Shrader and DJ Mark AD.
The event kicks off Friday with NCWTS qualifying for the Fr8Auctions 250. Saturday’s slate includes the Fr8Auctions 250, at which the field of eight championship-eligible drivers will be trimmed to six, starting at noon. The race will be followed by MENCS Foodland/Food Giant Qualifying. Sunday’s main event, the 1000Bulbs.com 500, will serve as the second race of three in the Round of 12, and cars are scheduled to take the green flag at 1 p.m.
(Courtesy of Alabama NewsCenter)