2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule
- Texas race times pushed back two hours: Texas Motor Speedway received approval from NASCAR to move the start times of its two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races for the upcoming season to be consistent with the Western Region start times. The Samsung Mobile 500 on April 18 and the Lone Star 500 on Nov. 7 will now have 2:00 pm Central Time starts, moving both races ahead two hours from their originally announced 12 noon CT times. The move was a result of Texas Motor Speedway petitioning NASCAR on behalf of its fans requesting a later start time as well as potential logistical issues posed by the earlier start. “On behalf of our fans, we greatly appreciate NASCAR, along with television broadcast partners FOX (Samsung Mobile 500) and ESPN (Lone Star 500), hearing their collective voice and making the time changes to better suit their wishes and needs,” Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage said. “NASCAR has made it clear that they are going to a ‘back to basics’ approach, and accommodating their promoters on behalf of their fans as well as avoid some potential logistical issues defines that new approach.”
The time change for both races will complement NASCAR’s move to uniform start times for all its races this season. NASCAR is just shifting Texas Motor Speedway from an “Eastern/Central Region” designation to a “Western Region” one, where it joins Infineon Raceway (California), Las Vegas Motor Speedway (Nevada), Auto Club Speedway (California) and Phoenix International Raceway (Arizona) for standardized 3:00pm/et (2:00pm/ct) starts. The remaining Sprint Cup races in the “Eastern/Central Region” (with the exception of night races) will begin at 1:00pm/et (12Noon/ct).(TMS)(2-4-2010) - Nine of Ten Chase races on ESPN: Nine of the 10 races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and 14 total races in all will air on ESPN next season, the network announced Wednesday. ABC, which aired 11 races last year, will air three NASCAR races in 2010 — all on Saturday nights. ESPN will handle the other 14 races to end the season, starting with the Brickyard 400 on July 25 and concluding with the final race of the season Nov. 21 at Miami-Homestead. All of the East Coast races will begin at 1:00pm/et. West Coast races will begin at 3:00pm/et (other than the Sept. 5 race at Atlanta, which is a 7:30pm/et start). The three Saturday night races on ABC will be at Bristol (Aug. 21); Richmond (Sept. 11); and Charlotte (Oct. 16), with the Charlotte race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. All are scheduled to begin at 7:30pm/et. “Last year’s performance showed us that ESPN provides the best home for NASCAR,” said John Skipper, ESPN executive vice president, content, in a statement.
“This is exciting news for NASCAR and our fans,” said NASCAR Media Group President Paul Brooks, in a statement. “The ESPN subscriber base is larger than ever at nearly 100 million, and the network has the proven ability to attract younger viewers. As the premier network during the most competitive time of the year for sports, having more NASCAR races on ESPN will create more exposure.” Starting on Aug. 28, ABC will show 16 straight weeks of sports on Saturday nights, including the Little League World Series, three NASCAR races and 12 college football games.(ESPN)(1-13-2010) - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Events Moving To Earlier, Uniform Start Times For 2010 Season:
NASCAR and its television broadcast partners today announced earlier, uniform start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in 2010. NASCAR worked closely with FOX, Turner, ESPN/ABC and the tracks on this project for the fans. The race start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup races in 2010 in the Eastern and Central regions of the country will begin at 1:00pm/et, West Coast events will begin at 3:00pm/et, and night races will begin at 7:30pm/et. (The one exception is NASCAR’s longest night race, the Coca-Cola 600, which will have the same 5:45pm/et start time.) Following the invocation and national anthem, the green flag will drop at approximately 15-20 minutes past the hour after each listed race start time. A total of 28 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in 2010 will be held at an earlier time compared to 2009, with 20 races moved to 1:00pm/et, including the Daytona 500. Moving up the start of “The Great American Race” two-and-a-half hours will produce the earliest start time for the Daytona 500 since 2003, when the race was also scheduled for 1:00pm/et. Five races move earlier to a 3:00pm/et start and three races start earlier at 7:30pm/et. In making the decision for earlier, more uniform start times, NASCAR consulted its Fan Council, comprised of 12,000 avid fans who serve as a sounding board on important topics. Half of NASCAR avid fans said they are often unclear about what time NASCAR races actually start. When given the chance to choose a start time, more than two-thirds of avid NASCAR fans preferred early Sunday afternoon.(NASCAR)(10-7-2009) - 2010 Sprint Cup Schedule Announced:
NASCAR announced today the 2010 schedules for its three national series, which will open their seasons at Daytona International Speedway on the weekend of Feb. 12-14, and conclude at Homestead-Miami Speedway on the weekend of Nov. 19-21. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will again have a 36-race schedule starting with the Daytona 500 on Feb. 14, plus two “non-point” events – the Feb. 6 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona and the May 22 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
Other key dates for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series include:
June 27 and Sept. 19 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the respective openers in the “Race to the Chase” and the “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup”; the Coca-Cola 600 on May 30 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway; the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 25; and the annual “Chase cut-off race” at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 11.
The NASCAR Nationwide Series will again race 35 times, while the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will again have 25 events, including one of the most intriguing additions to the schedule in the series’ 15-year history: a new event at Pocono Raceway’s 2.5-mile triangle-shaped track on July 31, as a companion to one of the two traditional NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekends there. The Pocono truck race will be the only new event on any of the three series’ schedules. It replaces the truck series’ previous February event at Auto Club Speedway. - There will be some significant “shuffling” of events in 2010, compared to the current season’s schedules:
- In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series:
* Qualifying for the Daytona 500 will be held on Saturday, Feb. 6, the same day as the Budweiser Shootout. Previously, qualifying was held the day after the shootout.
* The season’s first Dover International Speedway race will be on May 16, before the all-star race and the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Dover traditionally has followed that consecutive two-week stop in Charlotte.
* Phoenix International Raceway’s first race will be April 10, with Texas Motor Speedway’s first event April 18. Previously, Texas went first in April.
* Also, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will have four “off” weeks including the traditional Easter holiday on April 4. - In the NASCAR Nationwide Series:
* A Nashville-Phoenix-Texas run on April 3, April 9 and April 17 will replace a Texas-Nashville-Phoenix spring lineup.
* The first Dover race will be run earlier than usual, on May 15, in companion to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. - In the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series:
* The Kansas Speedway race will be May 2, one week later.
* The series’ race at Dover, as in the other two national series, will be held two weeks earlier, on May 14, kicking off a national series tripleheader weekend.
* The Iowa Speedway and Gateway International Raceway events will be two months earlier, on July 11 and 16.
* Nashville Superspeedway’s date moves a week later, to Aug. 7.
* Kentucky Speedway’s date moves from July to Sept. 3.
CLICK on the track location to go to that track’s past news and links page.
CLICK on the race name to go to the ‘next race’ page for each race (when available).
The ‘next race’ pages are added the week or so before the race
and cover the weekend schedule, TV, Qualifying, news etc
| Race# | Scheduled Race Date |
Track Location (click for track info) |
Race (click name for race info if available) 2009 / 2010 Winner |
Laps | Track Size Miles |
Race Length Miles |
Television Radio Coverage |
Race Start TV Start Time |
Qualifying Time/TV |
Happy Hour Final Prac Time/TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| * | 2/6 Sat |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona, FL |
Budweiser Shootout* 2010: #29-Kevin Harvick |
75 | 2.5 | 187.5 | FOX MRN |
8:10 | 2/4 draw SPEED | 2/4 6:30 SPEED |
| * | 2/11 Thur |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona, FL |
Gatorade Duel 150’s* 2010: 1) #48-Jimmie Johnson 2) #9-Kasey Kahne |
60 | 2.5 | 150 | SPEED MRN |
2:00 | 2/6 1:05 FOX |
2/10 2:00 SPEED |
| 1 | 2/14 Sun |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona, FL |
Daytona 500 2010: #1-Jamie McMurray |
200 | 2.5 | 500 | FOX MRN |
~1:19 1:00 |
2/6 1:05 FOX |
2/13 10:30a SPEED |
| 2 | 2/21 Sun |
Auto Club Speedway Fontana, CA |
Auto Club 500 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson |
250 | 2.0 | 500 | FOX MRN |
~3:19 3:00 |
2/19 6:30 SPEED |
2/20 3:30 SPEED |
| 3 | 2/28 Sun |
Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas, NV |
Shelby American 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson |
267 | 1.5 | 400.5 | FOX PRN |
~3:16 3:00 |
2/26 6:30 SPEED |
2/27 2:30 SPEED |
| 4 | 3/7 Sun |
Atlanta Motor Speedway Hampton, GA |
Kobalt Tools 500 2010: #2-Kurt Busch |
325 | 1.54 | 500.5 | FOX PRN |
~1:16 1:00 |
3/5 6:10 SPEED |
3/6 12:20 SPEED |
| 3/14 | OFF | off weekend #1 | ||||||||
| 5 | 3/21 Sun |
Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol, TN |
Food City 500 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson (Last race to use 2009 Owners Points) |
500 | 0.533 | 266.5 | FOX PRN |
~1:13 1:00 |
3/19 3:40 SPEED |
3/20 12:20 SPEED |
| 6 | 3/28 Sun |
Martinsville Speedway Martinsville, VA |
Goody’s Fast Relief 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (2010 Owners Points in effect) |
500 | 0.526 | 263 | FOX MRN |
~1:13 1:00 |
3/26 3:10 SPEED |
3/27 11:50a SPEED |
| 4/4 Sun |
Easter – OFF | Easter Bunny 500 | ||||||||
| 7 | 4/10 Sat night |
Phoenix International Raceway Avondale, AZ |
Subway Fresh Fit 600 (k) 2010: #39-Ryan Newman |
375 | 1.00 | 375 | FOX MRN |
~7:46 7:30 |
4/9 7:10 SPEED |
4/9 3:35 SPEED |
| 8 | 4/18 Sun |
Texas Motor Speedway Fort Worth, TX |
Samsung Mobile 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin |
334 | 1.5 | 500.5 | FOX PRN |
~3:16 3:00 |
4/16 4:40 SPEED |
4/17 1:50 SPEED |
| 9 | 4/25 Sun |
Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, AL |
Aaron’s 499 2010: #29-Kevin Harvick |
188 | 2.66 | 500.08 | FOX MRN |
~1:19 1:00 |
4/24 11:40a SPEED |
4/23 3:30 SPEED |
| 10 | 5/1 Sat Night |
Richmond International Raceway Richmond, VA |
Heath Calhoun 400 2010: #18-Kyle Busch |
400 | 0.75 | 300 | FOX MRN |
~7:55 7:30 |
4/30 5:40 SPEED |
4/30 2:00 SPEED |
| 11 | 5/8 Sat Night |
Darlington Raceway Darlington, SC Mother’s Day Weekend |
Showtime Southern 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin |
367 | 1.366 | 501.3 | FOX MRN |
~7:55 7:30 |
5/7 5:40 SPEED |
5/7 1:30 SPEED |
| 12 | 5/16 Sun |
Dover International Speedway Dover, DE |
Autism Speaks 400 2010:#18-Kyle Busch |
400 | 1.0 | 400 | FOX MRN |
~1:19 1:00 |
5/14 3:10 SPEED |
5/15 12:340 SPEED |
| * | 5/22 Sat Night |
Charlotte Motor Speedway Concord, NC |
Sprint Showdown* 2010: #56-Martin Truex Jr. |
40 20/20 |
1.5 | 60 | SPEED MRN |
~7:00 | 5/21 5:00 SPEED |
5/21 12:00 SPEED |
| * | 5/22 Sat Night |
Charlotte Motor Speedway Concord, NC |
Sprint All-Star Race* 2010: #2-Kurt Busch |
100 50/20/20/10 |
1.5 | 150 | SPEED MRN |
~9:00 | 5/21 ~6:00 SPEED |
5/21 12:00 SPEED |
| 13 | 5/30 Sun night |
Charlotte Motor Speedway Concord, NC |
Coca-Cola 600 2010: #2-Kurt Busch (2) |
400 | 1.5 | 600 | FOX PRN |
~6:05 5:45 |
5/27 7:00 SPEED |
5/29 12:30 SPEED |
| 14 | 6/6 Sun |
Pocono Raceway Long Pond, PA |
Gillette Fusion ProGlide 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (4) |
200 | 2.5 | 500 | TNT MRN |
~1:18 1:00 |
6/4 3:40 SPEED |
6/5 11:20a SPEED |
| 15 | 6/13 Sun |
Michigan International Speedway Brooklyn, MI |
Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (5) |
200 | 2.0 | 400 | TNT MRN |
~1:16 1:00 |
6/11 3:10 SPEED |
6/12 12:20 SPEED |
| 16 | 6/20 Sun |
Infineon Raceway Sonoma, CA |
Toyota/Save Mart 350 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson (4) |
110 | 1.99 | 224 | TNT PRN |
~3:19 3:00 |
6/18 6:40 SPEED |
6/17 1:30 SPEED |
| 17 | 6/27 Sun |
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Loudon, NH |
Lenox Industrial Tools 301 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson (5) |
301 | 1.058 | 318.485 | TNT PRN |
~1:15 1:00 |
6/25 3:10 SPEED |
6/26 11:20 SPEED |
| 18 | 7/3 Sat Night |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona, FL |
Coke Zero 400 2010: #29-Kevin Harvick (2) |
160 | 2.5 | 400 | TNT MRN |
~7:49 7:30 |
7/2 4:10 SPEED |
7/1 6:35 SPEED |
| 19 | 7/10 Sat |
Chicagoland Speedway Joliet, IL |
LifeLock 400 2010: #00-David Reutimann |
267 | 1.5 | 400.5 | TNT MRN |
~7:46 7:30 |
7/9 6:05 SPEED |
7/9 2:30 SPEED |
| 7/18 | OFF | off weekend #3 | ||||||||
| 20 | 7/25 Sun |
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Speedway, IN |
Brickyard 400 2010: #1-Jamie McMurray |
160 | 2.5 | 400 | ESPN IMS |
~1:19 1:00 |
7/24 10:10a ESPN2 |
7/24 3:40 ESPN2 |
| 21 | 8/1 Sun |
Pocono Raceway Long Pond, PA |
Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 2010: #16-Greg Biffle |
200 | 2.5 | 500 | ESPN MRN |
~1:18 1:00 |
7/30 3:40 SPEED |
7/31 11:20a SPEED |
| 22 | 8/8 Sun |
Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen, NY |
Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen 2010: #42-Juan Pablo Montoya |
90 | 2.45 | 220.5 | ESPN MRN |
~1:18 1:00 |
8/7 11:10a ESPN2 |
8/6 4:00 ESPN2 |
| 23 | 8/15 Sun |
Michigan International Speedway Brooklyn, MI |
Carfax 400 2010: #29-Kevin Harvick |
200 | 2.0 | 400 | ESPN MRN |
~1:16 1:00 |
8/13 3:40 SPEED |
8/14 12:20 SPEED |
| 24 | 8/21 Sat Night |
Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol, TN |
IRWIN Tools Night Race 2010: #18-Kyle Busch (3) |
500 | 0.533 | 266.5 | ABC PRN |
~7:43 7:30 |
8/20 5:40 ESPN |
8/20 2:00 SPEED |
| 8/29 | OFF | off weekend #4 final | ||||||||
| 25 | 9/5 Sun Night |
Atlanta Motor Speedway Hampton, GA Labor Day Weekend |
Emory Healthcare 500 2010: #14-Tony Stewart |
325 | 1.54 | 500.5 | ESPN PRN |
~7:46 7:30 |
9/6 4:40 SPEED |
9/6 1:45 SPEED |
| 26 | 9/11 Sat Night |
Richmond International Raceway Richmond, VA |
Air Guard 400 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (6) |
400 | 0.75 | 300 | ABC MRN |
~7:43 7:30 |
9/10 5:40 ESPN2 |
9/10 2:45 ESPN2 |
| The Chase Races | ||||||||||
| Race# | Date | Location (click track for info) |
Race (click name for race info if available) 2009/2010 Winner |
Laps | Track Size Miles |
Race Length Miles |
TV Radio |
Race Start TV Start Time |
Qualifying Time/TV |
Happy Hour Final Prac Time/TV |
| 27 | 9/19 Sun |
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Loudon, NH |
Sylvania 300 2010: #33-Clint Bowyer |
300 | 1.058 | 317.4 | ESPN PRN |
~1:15 1:00 |
9/17 3:10 ESPN2 |
9/18 11:30a SPEED |
| 28 | 9/26 Sun |
Dover International Speedway Dover, DE |
AAA 400 2010: #48-Jimmie Johnson (6) |
400 | 1.0 | 400 | ESPN MRN |
~1:15 1:00 |
9/24 3:10 ESPN2 |
9/25 1:50 SPEED |
| 29 | 10/3 Sun |
Kansas Speedway Kansas City, KS |
Price Chopper 400 2009: #16-Greg Biffle (2) |
267 | 1.5 | 400.5 | ESPN MRN |
~1:19 1:00 |
10/1 4:40 SPEED |
10/2 1:50 ESPN2 (t) 6:30 |
| 30 | 10/10 Sun |
Auto Club Speedway Fontana, CA |
Pepsi Max 400 2010: #14-Tony Stewart (2) |
200 | 2.0 | 400 | ESPN MRN |
~3:25 3:00 |
10/8 6:40 ESPN2 |
10/9 2:50 none |
| 31 | 10/16 Sat Night |
Charlotte Motor Speedway Concord, NC |
Bank of America 500 2010: #1-Jamie McMurray (3) |
334 | 1.5 | 501 | ABC PRN |
7:46 7:00 |
10/14 7:10 ESPN2 |
10/15 6:20 ESPN2 |
| 32 | 10/24 Sun |
Martinsville Speedway Martinsville, VA |
TUMS Bring It On 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (7) |
500 | 0.526 | 263 | ESPN MRN |
~1:13 1:00 |
10/22 3:10 ESPN2 |
10/24 11:15a ESPN2 (t) 6:30 |
| 33 | 10/31 Sun |
Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, AL |
AMP Energy Juice 500 2010: #33-Clint Bowyer (2) |
188 | 2.66 | 500.08 | ESPN MRN |
~1:19 1:00 |
10/30 12:15 SPEED |
10/29 3:30 SPEED |
| 34 | 11/7 Sun |
Texas Motor Speedway Fort Worth, TX |
AAA Texas 500 2010: #11-Denny Hamlin (8) |
334 | 1.5 | 500.5 | ESPN PRN |
~3:16 3:00 |
11/5 4:40 SPEED |
11/6 11:00a SPEED |
| 35 | 11/14 Sun |
Phoenix International Raceway Avondale, AZ |
Kobalt Tools 500(k) 2010: #99-Carl Edwards |
312 | 1.00 | 312 | ESPN MRN |
~3:15 3:00 |
11/12 4:40 ESPN2 |
11/13 2:50 ESPN2 |
| 36 | 11/21 Sun |
Homestead-Miami Speedway Homestead, FL |
Ford 400 2009: #11-Denny Hamlin |
267 | 1.5 | 400 | ESPN MRN |
~1:15 1:00 |
11/19 3:10 ESPN2 |
11/20 2:50 ESPN2 |
| Race# | Date | Location (click track for info) |
Race (click name for race info if available) 2009/2010 Winner |
Laps | Track Size Miles |
Race Length Miles |
TV Radio |
Race Start TV Start Time |
Qualifying Time/TV |
Happy Hour Final Prac Time/TV |
All times Eastern and are PM unless noted
All times are scheduled RACE START TIMES; NOT when coverage begines for the pre-race.
Schedule confirmed and updated 9-15-2009 when NASCAR released the 2010 schedules
*Non-Points Race
(t) = tape delayed
SC = SPEED