The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series teams and stars are once again heading down to the city where it all began: Daytona Beach Florida. The teams will have to take on the challenging Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero 400.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
One of the main storylines heading into the weekend is Dale Earnhardt Jr and what could be his final Daytona race. The 13-time NASCAR most popular driver winner announced back in April that the 2017 season would be his last full-time season in the Monster Energy Series. Earnhardt, a two-time Coke Zero 400 winner, is still searching for his first win of the 2017 season and is hoping Saturday night’s race will be the night he captures the win -- and secures a spot in NASCAR’s playoffs.
It was only a few months ago that Kurt Busch won the 2017 Daytona 500. Since the win, the 41 team has gone through some struggles. The team has only managed one top 5 finish and seven top 10’s in the last 15 races. Busch and the team now head back to Daytona hoping that they can do something only five drivers have ever done in NASCAR long history -- win both Daytona races in the same year.
One other important note for those who will not be able to attend the race on Saturday night is: NBC will take over as the broadcast provider for the rest of the 2017 Monster Energy races. The event is scheduled for Saturday night, 7:30 EST on NBC.
Reed looking to sweep the season at Daytona
Last week, the stars of the NASCAR Xfinity series raced on a 7/8 mile track called Iowa Speedway.
This week, they are racing on a 2.5-mile super speedway known as Daytona International Speedway.
The series will also head on down to Daytona Beach for the Coca-Cola Firecracker 250. One of the drivers to keep an eye on this weekend will be Ryan Reed. Reed has two career Xfinity series wins, with both happening at Daytona. Using the skills and knowledge he has acquired, Reed hopes he will be the one visiting victory lane again, and that he will sweep the season by winning both races.
Another driver to keep an eye on this weekend is William Byron (who scored his first career Xfinity win last week in Iowa) who has a ton of momentum heading into the weekend. After finishing ninth earlier in the year, Byron hopes he can improve by eight positions and grab his second win of the season.
Like the Monster Energy series, NBC will now also broadcast the remainder of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity season. The race is scheduled for this Friday night, 7:30 EST on NBCSN.
