Saturday update: Click Here to view final practice speeds and best 10 consecutive lap averages
Thursday night update: Kyle Busch won the pole for the Coca-Cola 600 – Story and Lineup…Kevin Harvick will start from the rear of the field after his car failed inspection three times. His car chief, Robert Smith, has been ejected for the rest of the race weekend and Harvick will serve a 30 minute practice hold on Saturday…The top-11 starters have never won the Coca-Cola 600.
Driver Averages | Laps Led Leaders | Driver Ratings | Past Winners
Detailed driver notes and statistics to help set your fantasy racing lineup for Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Who’s HOT at Charlotte
- Martin Truex Jr. has posted two wins, a 4.2 average finish and 716 laps led in the last five races.
- Kevin Harvick has finished in the top 10 in nine of the last 10 races, including two wins.
- Kurt Busch has finished in the top 10 in five of the last six races.
- Kyle Busch finished second in this event last year for his 15th top 10 in his last 21 starts.
- Denny Hamlin has finished in the top 10 in six of the last seven races.
- Jimmie Johnson (has yet to lead a lap in 2018) leads all drivers with eight wins and laps led (1,930).
Keep an Eye On at Charlotte
- Joey Logano has finished in the top 10 in all four races at 1.5-mile tracks this season.
- Erik Jones (7.5), Clint Bowyer (11.2), Kyle Larson (13.0), Brad Keselowski (13.8) and Ryan Blaney (14.8) each rank in the top 10 in average finish in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks this season. Harvick (3) and Kyle Busch (1) have won at 1.5-mile tracks this season.
- Defending race winner Austin Dillon, Jamie McMurray and Daniel Suarez each posted a respective average finish of 8.5 in both races at Charlotte last season.
- Matt Kenseth, who will make his second points-paying start with Roush Fenway Racing in 2018, posted a 6.0 average finish in his previous four Charlotte starts with Joe Gibbs Racing.
- Ryan Newman has finished in the top 10 in three of the last four races at Charlotte. He’s still looking for his first top 10 at a 1.5-mile track this season.
- Chase Elliott, who ranks ninth in stage points earned at Charlotte in 2017, has two top 10s in his last four starts at CMS. The two other races he was involved in a crash. Elliott has finished 12th or better in three of the four races at 1.5-mile tracks in 2018.
Notes: The last six Coca-Cola 600s have been won by six different drivers…Hendrick Motorsports leads all teams with 11 wins in the 600…The last three 600s have had a final green flag stretch of 56 laps or more…Austin Dillon stretched his fuel load for final 70 laps last season to win this race…Matt Kenseth (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Kurt Busch were the only two drivers to earn stage points in all five stages at Charlotte (spring and fall race) last season.
First Practice Speeds | Charlotte Schedule
*Best Average Finish at Charlotte
| Last # of Races | Driver | Average Finish |
| Two Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 2.0 |
| Four Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 4.5 |
| Six Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 4.3 |
| Eight Races | Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. | 8.1 |
| Ten Races | Kevin Harvick | 7.2 |
* – The best average finish is based off a driver entered in the race who has competed in EVERY race during that time span.
Laps Led Leaders at Charlotte
| Last # of Races | Driver | Laps Led |
| Two Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 324 |
| Four Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 716 |
| Six Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 847 |
| Eight Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 847 |
| Ten Races | Martin Truex Jr. | 847 |
Click Here to view all laps led leaders at Charlotte over the past 10 races.
Charlotte Loop Data Stat Leaders (2005-2017, 26 Races)
| Average Running Pos. | Laps in Top 15 |
| 1. Jimmie Johnson – 8.0 | 1. Jimmie Johnson – 8,153 |
| 2. Kyle Busch – 10.1 | 2. Kyle Busch – 7,262 |
| 3. Denny Hamlin – 11.2 | 3. Denny Hamlin – 6,931 |
| 4. Matt Kenseth – 13.1 | 4. Matt Kenseth – 6,492 |
| 5. Martin Truex Jr. – 13.8 | 5. Kevin Harvick – 6,197 |
| Fastest Laps Run | Driver Rating |
| 1. Jimmie Johnson – 875 | 1. Jimmie Johnson – 109.8 |
| 2. Kasey Kahne – 713 | 2. Kyle Busch – 104.9 |
| 3. Kyle Busch – 621 | 3. Denny Hamlin – 96.4 |
| 4. Matt Kenseth – 482 | 4. Matt Kenseth – 96.1 |
| 5. Kevin Harvick – 426 | 5. Kasey Kahne – 93.3 |
Top 10 Stage Points Earned Among Active Drivers at Charlotte
Spring and Fall Race
| Driver | Points Earned |
| Matt Kenseth | 34 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 33 |
| Kyle Busch | 32 |
| Kevin Harvick | 32 |
| Kurt Busch | 22 |
| Denny Hamlin | 21 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 20 |
| Kyle Larson | 18 |
| Chase Elliott | 18 |
| Jamie McMurray | 15 |
2017 Coca-Cola 600 Stage Finishes
| Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 |
| 1. Kyle Busch | 1. Martin Truex Jr. | 1. Denny Hamlin |
| 2. Martin Truex Jr. | 2. Jimmie Johnson | 2. Kyle Busch |
| 3. Kevin Harvick | 3. Matt Kenseth | 3. Matt Kenseth |
| 4. Jimmie Johnson | 4. Kyle Busch | 4. Martin Truex Jr. |
| 5. Matt Kenseth | 5. Kurt Busch | 5. Erik Jones |
| 6. Kyle Larson | 6. Jamie McMurray | 6. Kurt Busch |
| 7. Ryan Blaney | 7. Austin Dillon | 7. Kevin Harvick |
| 8. Clint Bowyer | 8. Erik Jones | 8. Daniel Suarez |
| 9. Kurt Busch | 9. Kyle Larson | 9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
| 10. Jamie McMurray | 10. Denny Hamlin | 10. Austin Dillon |
Note: For NASCAR Fantasy Live only Stage 1 & 2 will be scored for driver stage points. The garage driver will lock at the end of Stage 3.
Rookie Report
Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates William Byron and Darrell Wallace Jr. each will be making their first points-paying Monster Energy Cup Series start at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday. Both have competed in the Camping World Truck and Xfinity Series at the 1.5-mile track with Wallace posting the best finish (fifth in the 2015 spring Xfinity race). Both Wallace and Byron have similar stats in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks this season, each with one top 10, and respective average finishes of 21.0 and 22.0.
MRN.com Staff Picks
Jeff Wackerlin: Kevin Harvick
Pete Pistone: Joey Logano
Tyler Burnett: Ryan Blaney
Driver Notes – Ordered by Average Finish (Top 15) in the Last Five Races at Charlotte
Martin Truex Jr. has won two of the last four races at Charlotte, including a dominating performance in the 2016 Coca-Cola 600. He combined to lead 716 laps in that span. This season, Truex has posted three top fives in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks, but has only led 20 laps.
Daniel Suarez is coming off his best finish at Charlotte (sixth) and has an 8.5 average finish in his two starts. This season, Suarez has yet to finish in the top 10 at a 1.5-mile track. His best finish – and only inside the top 25 – came at Atlanta Motor Speedway, 15th.
Kurt Busch has finished in the top 10 in five of his last six starts at Charlotte, including a sixth-place finish in the last two Coca-Cola 600s. This season, Busch has posted one pole and three top 10s in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks. He combined to lead 92 laps at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway to place him fourth in laps led in the four races.
Denny Hamlin finished in the top five in both races last season at Charlotte. He’s combined to lead 107 laps in the last three races and has finished in the top 10 in 13 of the last 15 races. This year, Hamlin ranks 11th among all drivers in average finish (15.0) in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks. He finished fifth at the last 1.5-mile track – Kansas Speedway.
Kevin Harvick has finished in the in the top 10 in nine of the last 10 races at Charlotte, including two wins – one in the 2013 Coca-Cola 600. He won the pole for this event last year and combined to lead 194 laps in his first two track starts driving a Ford last season. Harvick, who won the All-Star race last weekend with a different rules package, has dominated the 1.5-mile tracks this season with three wins and 561 laps led.
Jamie McMurray has finished in the top 20 in the last 11 races at Charlotte, including four top 10s. McMurray, who scored the last of his two wins in the fall race in 2010, has only one top 10 finish at a 1.5-mile track in 2018 – third at Texas Motor Speedway. Crashes have taken him out of two of the four races.
Erik Jones finished seventh in this event last year in his first Monster Energy Cup Series start at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This year, Jones ranks fourth among all drivers in average finish (7.5) in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks. His best finish, fourth, in those races came at Texas Motor Speedway after leading 64 laps.
Matt Kenseth finished 11th or better in the last four races at Charlotte with Joe Gibbs Racing, including a fourth-place run in this event last year. Kenseth returns with Roush Fenway Racing this weekend, making his first points-paying start at the track with the team since 2012. Kenseth won the 2000 Coca-Cola 600 with Roush.
Jimmie Johnson scored his eighth win at Charlotte in the 2016 fall race. He’s finished seventh or better in three of the last four races. Johnson has yet to record a top 10 at a 1.5-mile track with the new Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. His last top 10 at a 1.5-mile track came at Charlotte last fall, seventh.
Austin Dillon won this race last season after going the final 70 laps on a tank of fuel. The win was his second top 10 in eight starts. This season, Dillon has yet to finish in the top 10 in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks.
Brad Keselowski finished outside the top 10 in both races last season at Charlotte, snapping a streak of four consecutive top 10s at the track. This season, Keselowski has posted two top 10s and an average finish of 13.8 in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has yet to finish in the top 10 in 12 starts at Charlotte. He finished 15th and 13th, respectively, last season to put his average finish at 19.7. Stenhouse is coming off his best finish in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks this season – 11th at Kansas Speedway.
Ryan Newman finished ninth in this event last year for his fifth top 10 in the last seven races at Charlotte. Accidents at Texas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway have raised Newman’s average finish in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks to 22.5. His best finish at a 1.5-mile track this year came at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – 11th.
Kyle Larson has finished in the top 10 in two of his last three starts at Charlotte. His best finish in the 600 came in 2016 – 13th. Larson has been the best Chevrolet driver at 1.5-mile tracks this season based on top 10s (3) and average finish (13.0).
Kyle Busch finished second in this event last year after leading 63 laps for his 11th top five in 28 starts at Charlotte. This season, Busch has posted the second-best average finish (5.0) in the four races at 1.5-mile tracks. He won at Texas Motor Speedway last month after leading 116 laps.
