NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway: How to watch, story lines

Six hundred miles.

Four hundred laps.

Coming soon.

The biggest race in the state of North Carolina will see — and the longest race on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule — is back at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, with a start time slated for just after 6 p.m. barring inclement weather.

Fans can catch the race on FOX and can follow it on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

Here are six big story lines to consider heading into Sunday.

1. Alex Bowman is back. The driver of the 48 car will be back behind the wheel this weekend after missing the last four race weekends due to a fractured vertebra. The news was announced on Wednesday, during a service event put on by Hendrick Motorsports and the USO. Bowman ran 170 laps at North Wilkesboro Speedway earlier this week to ensure he felt good enough to run in the car — and he did. He told The Charlotte Observer on Wednesday that he was pleasantly surprised with his place in the points standings (and thus his playoff outlook) despite missing so many races: “I think that just speaks to the season we were having before I got hurt, how strong we were. I’m confident we can (point) our way in, but for me, we gotta go win some races.”

2. Josh Berry inching closer to having a new home. If you have been following Bowman’s injured absence, then you know of Josh Berry. The Xfinity Series driver for JR Motorsports has made waves in the Cup Series this year, subbing in for Chase Elliott when he was injured and most recently subbing in for Bowman the past four weeks. In eight races, he’s notched an impressive three Top 10s — one of which was a second-place finish at Richmond. The Athletic reported on Thursday that he and Stewart-Haas Racing are in talks to have him succeed Kevin Harvick in the 4 car once Harvick retires at the end of this season.

3. NASCAR makes another safety adjustment to cars. A remarkably big hit at Talladega earlier this year left the right door of Kyle Larson’s car shattered. Larson left the car unharmed, but a shiver was sent down the proverbial spine of NASCAR. The sanctioning body has since worked on finding a solution for this potential safety issue, and the top series will see those changes go into effect beginning this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Among those changes: adding six right-side bar gussets and removing the front clip V-brace from assembly.

4. Could this be the Kyle Larson show again? The driver of the 5 car has begun the year on a hot streak — and that’s even with a few instances of bad luck and being entangled in late-race controversy. The latest showing of his dominance came at the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway last weekend. Could Sunday be another Larson show? Maybe so. Larson, after all, dominated the Coke 600 in 2021 and persevered through a comedy of struggles to be in winning contention at the end of the historically long 2022 race.

5. Who will win the Coke 600? A total of 10 of the 54 NASCAR Cup Series drivers who’ve won on Charlotte Motor Speedway’s oval are active Sunday. Among those guys include Jimmie Johnson (yes, the retired driver is back this weekend) with eight; Martin Truex Jr. with three; Kevin Harvick with three; and Brad Keselowski with two. Denny Hamlin won last year’s race. The Coke 600 has been the first Cup win for a driver seven times, most recently for Austin Dillon in 2017.

As far as betting odds go: Larson opened as the heavy favorite at 9-2 odds. His teammate, William Byron, is right behind him at 11-2 odds, followed by Hamlin at 13-2 odds.

How to watch NASCAR’s Coke 600

• Race: Coca-Cola 600

• Place: Charlotte Motor Speedway

• Date: Sunday, May 28

• Time: 6 p.m. ET

• Purse: $9,421,275

• TV: FOX, 5:30 p.m. ET

• Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

• Distance: 600 miles (400 laps)

• Stages: Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 100), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 200), Stage 3 (Ends on Lap 300), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 400)