CONCORD, N.C. – The final race of the Challenger Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup is approaching.
Teams have one last chance to earn a top-12 standing in points before the Chase grid narrows after this Sunday’s race at Dover International Speedway.
Hendrick Motorsports’ driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. currently ranks 12th in the 2015 Chase after last weekend’s race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Going into the final event, Earnhardt has a single-point lead on Kyle Busch, who sits 13th, the cutoff for advancing to the Contender Round.
Tune in to this weekend’s race to see which 12 drivers make the Contender Round cut. But before you do, here is your read-up on everything you should know:
BROADCAST INFORMATION: Sunday's race will air live on NBCSN at 2:30 p.m. ET. Can’t make it to a television? Tune into MRN or SiriusXM to catch the Dover radio coverage. This weekend’s qualifying session will take place Friday afternoon on NBC Sports Network. Tune in to this weekend’s practice sessions this Friday and Saturday. Here is the full broadcast schedule:
Friday, October 2:
11 a.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Practice, NBC Sports Network
3:45 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, NBC Sports Network
Saturday, October 3:
11 a.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Practice, CNBC
2 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Final Practice, NBC Sports Network
Sunday, October 4:
2:30 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Race, NBCSN/ MRN/ SiriusXM (2:45 p.m. ET green flag)
THIS WEEK’S PAINT SCHEMES: Kasey Kahne will return to the No. 5 HendrickRideAlong.com Chevrolet SS this weekend in Dover International Speedway. Jeff Gordon will drive the No. 24 AARP Member Advantages Chevrolet SS, while teammates Jimmie Johnson and Earnhardt compete in the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS and No. 88 Nationwide Plenti Chevrolet SS, respectively.
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT DOVER: At Dover International Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports has 18 wins, nine pole positions, 56 top-five finishes and 91 top-10 finishes. Johnson most recently visited Victory Lane for the organization at the track earlier this season.
KAHNE AT DOVER: Kahne tied his career-best finish of fourth at Dover in May after starting from the 25th position. Kahne has started inside the top 10 eight times at the one-mile oval. According to NASCAR loop data in the last 20 races at Dover, Kahne ranks fifth in green-flag passes (908) and seventh in fastest laps run (350).
NEARING 25K: Gordon is 128 shy of 25,000 career laps led.
GORDON AT DOVER: On Sept. 28, 2014, the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion led 94 laps on the one-mile track en route to his 92nd career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory.
DECAL FOR 500TH START: A special decal will be placed on the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevy SS this weekend to commemorate Johnson’s 500th start. The decal reads “Jimmie Johnson 500th start. One Driver. One Team. One Sponsor.”
JOHNSON AT DOVER: Johnson has led 2,999 laps around Dover International Speedway in his career -- the most all-time of any driver. Since 2005, Johnson has led a series-high 2,604 laps – 1,586 more than second during that span. He has an average finish of 5.9 and average running position of 6.4 at the track in the same time period.
EARNHARDT AT DOVER: Earnhardt has one win at the “Monster Mile,” which came in the 2001 fall race, when he led the final 39 laps en route to victory. He’s earned four top-five finishes and eight top-10 finishes at the concrete oval since his trip to Victory Lane in 2001, and had a notably good weekend in the fall of 2013, starting from the pole and finishing second.