How Will Rain Affect the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Race at the Charlotte Roval?

Terming the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway as chaotic would be an understatement. The Cup Series field came through a taxing weekend, but the job does not get any easier for the playoff contenders.

The Charlotte Roval presents another big challenge because of its uncertainty. At the same time, Sunday’s race is a fight to stay alive as four drivers will see their playoff hopes end.

Just when the teams thought the challenge is already big enough, rain has been forecast for the race at Charlotte Roval. As per the predictions, there is a chance of over 60 percent that rain could play a role during the start of Sunday’s elimination race.

Saturday’s Xfinity Series playoff race is also expected to be run under rain.

Rain won’t stop the NASCAR Cup Series race at Charlotte Roval

When a race is scheduled on a rainy day, tire manufacturer Goodyear uses rain tires to enable drivers to race in wet conditions. However, that still does not mean that the race will be any less challenging.

Unless the condition is too bad or the course is filled with puddles, NASCAR will allow the race to happen.

NASCAR has used rain tires only on three occasions in the past. The first time was during a test at Watkins Glen International in 1995. An exhibition race in Japan in 1997 used rain tires for the practice and qualifying sessions. The latest instance was 20 years ago, again at Watkins Glen International for a practice session.

The regular-season race at Charlotte Motor Speedway was also affected by rain. The Alsco Uniforms 500 race saw a delay of over an hour in May.

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How does it affect the playoff battle?

If rain does affect proceedings at the Roval this Sunday, a chaotic race is certainly on the cards. But the bigger question is how it will affect the drivers in playoff contention – does it help the drivers below the transfer spot?

“I think for us at this point the more chaos the better,” Aric Almirola said. “It creates more opportunities and more chances for other people to have bad races and for us to capitalize on that.”

Almirola sits on the last stop among the 12 drivers currently in contention. While it seemed like nothing would top the chaos at Talladega, the conditions at Charlotte could very well prove that wrong.

Read more – Here’s What Happened in the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Race at the Charlotte Roval