Charlotte ROVAL One of 2018 NASCAR Schedule Changes

(CONCORD, NC – MAY 23, 2017 – RIS) NASCAR's national series schedules for 2018 have been released, ending months of speculation about the potential changes in the playoffs sites. Of course, the schedule starts at Daytona, with the usual Clash, qualifying, Duels and 500, then the racers move to Atlanta.
CMS, much like Daytona, Pocono, Michigan and other major oval tracks, has hosted road course races for a long time. This writer has attended numerous road races at Charlotte, as spectator, crew and track official since the mid-70s and my opinion is that this will be a race worth attending.

Here is the CMS press release:
Known across the world as a trailblazing innovator, Charlotte Motor Speedway ushered in a thrilling new era of excitement with NASCAR's historic Tuesday scheduling announcement that next year's Bank of America 500 will be contested on Charlotte's ROVAL on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. The road course oval announcement carries with it several groundbreaking connotations, including:

• The first road course NASCAR race in Charlotte Motor Speedway's 58-year existence;
• The final event in Round 1 of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs;
• The first road course race in the 14-year history of the Playoffs;
• The first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race in September at Charlotte Motor Speedway;
• The first new track on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule since Kentucky Speedway joined the circuit in 2011.

The Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL is a daunting, new 13-turn, 2.4-mile road course incorporating part of the infield and all but 400 feet of Charlotte's iconic 1.5-mile oval on which drivers will race 500 kilometers over 130 laps.

"Charlotte Motor Speedway has always been about innovation," said Marcus Smith, president and chief executive officer of Speedway Motorsports, Inc. "Hosting the first road course race in NASCAR's Playoffs, as well as the drama of closing out the Playoffs' first round, means that tension will be high and competition will be fierce as soon as the green flag drops.

"Fans are going to be in for a thrill, and drivers had better be ready for the most physically and mentally challenging race in the Playoffs. With a 35-foot elevation change between ROVAL Turn 4 and ROVAL Turn 10, drivers in next year's Bank of America 500 will truly experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows."

Accomplished drivers including Mario Andretti, Jeff Gordon, A.J. Allmendinger, Jeff Burton and Max Papis have driven the course and witnessed its considerable potential to entertain fans and challenge drivers and crews.

"Road courses are something I look forward to during the season," said Kyle Busch, last week's Monster Energy All-Star Race winner. "Road racing is like a vacation for me, because it's not something we do week-in and week-out so I just try to go out there and have fun with it.

"Now that we have the Charlotte ROVAL on the schedule, we have every type of track in our postseason. It will be interesting to see how it plays out with a completely new challenge for the drivers and teams during the Playoffs."

The ROVAL also drew praise from one of the world's most acclaimed road racers.

"It's very difficult sometimes to really create a road course where you can 'stretch your legs' inside an oval," said Andretti, who competed in the 1967 Bank of America 500 and is known as one of the most successful American drivers of all time.

"From that standpoint, I think they did a good job by giving it rhythm by putting some banking to the hairpin corners – which obviously invites some overtaking. It's wide enough that you can choose a line. You're not really trapped. … It's got a multiple-line (groove) that you can choose from, depending on the capability of the car."

In January, Allmendinger became the first active Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver to drive a stock car on the ROVAL.

"The track has definitely got potential," Allmendinger said. "I had a lot of fun driving it. It's a perfect mix for a race team to set up, whether you go for a full oval setup or somewhat of a road course setup. It'll definitely be a big challenge for the teams."

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR XFINITY Series will compete on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL Friday through Sunday, Sept. 28-30, 2018.

Here is NASCAR's release on the schedule change:
The 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule features a can't-miss new look with variations in dates and longtime venues — particularly in an exciting new playoff portion of the lineup.

Changes to the iconic Daytona 500 date — back on President's Day weekend, Feb. 18 in 2018 — start a slate of substantial change and high intrigue.

The three-quarter mile Richmond International Raceway short track will host one of the playoff races in the opening round of the postseason, and its spring date — April 21 — returns to a Saturday night feature.

The traditional regular-season finale will now shift from the Richmond short track to the famed 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sept. 9.

Chicagoland Speedway now is the site of NBC Sports' season debut on July 1 — just prior to the traditional Daytona International Speedway Coke Zero 400 stop a week later, a powerful one-two punch.

In another major playoff shakeup, Las Vegas Motor Speedway's brand new "second date" of the season will officially kick off NASCAR's playoffs on Sept. 16. Also significant: Charlotte Motor Speedway's playoff race will now be run on the venue's road course instead of its 1.5-mile oval.

That adds not only a road course to the postseason, but one that serves as the elimination event in the opening round on Sept. 30.

"I think a lot of it had to do with what we've heard from the fans over a period of time," Jim Cassidy, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Racing Operations, told NASCAR.com. "As the playoffs have continued to evolve and we've incorporated elimination into the playoffs, we've heard from our fans that they like to see some different variety in the places that we go during the playoffs.

"Most notably, the road course at Charlotte and the addition of the short track at Richmond are a couple of opportunities that presented themselves during the course of a lot of conversations with a lot of folks in the industry, and we were able to land in a good place."

In addition to the 60th anniversary of the Daytona 500 returning to its longtime President's Day weekend, Daytona Speedweeks has a refreshed look with both Daytona 500 pole qualifying and the always exciting Clash at Daytona preseason race held on the same day (Sunday, Feb. 11).

With the schedule changes, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series opening three-race playoff round is Las Vegas-Richmond-Charlotte. The next round starts at Dover, then heads to Talladega and concludes in Kansas. The Round of 8 again is Martinsville-Texas-Phoenix, with the championship finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 18.

The NASCAR XFINITY Series also will conclude at the Miami 1.5-miler after opening playoff rounds in Richmond, Charlotte and Dover. Subsequent races at Kansas, Texas and Phoenix will set up the South Florida finale.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will settle its title with a playoff opener on the Canadian Tire Motorsports Park road course, followed by races at Las Vegas and Talladega to set the Round of 8. Martinsville, Texas and Phoenix will decide the championship four vying for the big trophy at Homestead-Miami.

The Truck Series also joins the NASCAR Goes West initiative, heading to Las Vegas Motor Speedway (March 2) for a tripleheader weekend.

2018 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES SCHEDULE
Feb. 11: Daytona International Speedway (Clash / Daytona 500 Qualifying)
Feb. 15: Daytona International Speedway (Duel)
Feb. 18: Daytona 500
Feb. 25: Atlanta Motor Speedway
March 4: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
March 11: Phoenix Raceway
March 18: Auto Club Speedway
March 25: Martinsville Speedway
April 8: Texas Motor Speedway
April 15: Bristol Motor Speedway
April 21: Richmond International Raceway
April 29: Talladega Superspeedway
May 6: Dover International Speedway
May 12: Kansas Speedway
May 19: Charlotte Motor Speedway (Monster Energy All-Star Race)
May 27 : Charlotte Motor Speedway
June 3: Pocono Raceway
June 10: Michigan International Speedway
June 24: Sonoma Raceway
July 1: Chicagoland Speedway
July 7: Daytona International Speedway
July 14: Kentucky Speedway
July 22: New Hampshire Motor Speedway
July 29: Pocono Raceway
Aug. 5: Watkins Glen International
Aug. 12: Michigan International Speedway
Aug. 18: Bristol Motor Speedway
Sept. 2: Darlington Raceway
Sept. 9: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Sept. 16: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Sept. 22: Richmond International Raceway
Sept. 30: Charlotte Motor Speedway
Oct. 7: Dover International Speedway
Oct. 14: Talladega Superspeedway
Oct. 21: Kansas Speedway
Oct. 28: Martinsville Speedway
Nov. 4: Texas Motor Speedway
Nov. 11: Phoenix Raceway
Nov. 18: Homestead-Miami Speedway

2018 NASCAR XFINITY SERIES SCHEDULE
Feb. 17: Daytona
Feb. 24: Atlanta Motor Speedway
March 3: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
March 10: Phoenix Raceway
March 17: Auto Club Speedway
April 7: Texas Motor Speedway
April 14: Bristol Motor Speedway
April 20: Richmond International Raceway
April 28: Talladega Superspeedway
May 5: Dover International Speedway
May 26: Charlotte Motor Speedway
June 2: Pocono Raceway
June 9: Michigan International Speedway
June 17: Iowa Speedway
June 30: Chicagoland Speedway
July 6: Daytona International Speedway
July 13: Kentucky Speedway
July 21: New Hampshire Motor Speedway
July 28: Iowa Speedway
Aug. 4: Watkins Glen International
Aug. 11: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Aug. 17: Bristol Motor Speedway
Aug. 25: Road America
Sept. 1: Darlington Raceway
Sept. 8: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Sept. 15: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Sept. 21: Richmond International Raceway
Sept. 29: Charlotte Motor Speedway
Oct. 6: Dover International Speedway
Oct. 20: Kansas Speedway
Nov. 3: Texas Motor Speedway
Nov. 10: Phoenix Raceway
Nov. 17: Homestead-Miami Speedway

2018 NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES SCHEDULE
Feb. 16: Daytona International Speedway
Feb. 24: Atlanta Motor Speedway
March 2: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
March 24: Martinsville Speedway
May 4: Dover International Speedway
May 11: Kansas Speedway
May 18: Charlotte Motor Speedway
June 8: Texas Motor Speedway
June 16: Iowa Speedway
June 23: Gateway Motorsports Park
June 29: Chicagoland Speedway
July 12: Kentucky Speedway
July 18: Eldora Speedway
July 28: Pocono Raceway
Aug. 11: Michigan International Speedway
Aug. 15: Bristol Motor Speedway
Aug. 26: Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
Sept. 14: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Oct. 13: Talladega Superspeedway
Oct. 27: Martinsville Speedway
Nov. 2: Texas Motor Speedway
Nov. 9: Phoenix Raceway
Nov. 16: Homestead-Miami Speedway