Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series teams are revving up for the first race in the Round of 12 at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Bank of America 500 on Sunday, October 8th at 2 pm ET. Coverage starts at 1 pm ET on NBC with radio coverage available on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Drivers will race 501 miles over 334 laps with Stage 1 ending on lap 90, Stage 2 on lap 180, and the last Stage ending on the last lap 334.

What to Watch for: Kyle Busch goes for his third straight victory. The last driver to make the feat was Joey Logano in the 2015 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Jimmie Johnson attempts to add to his track-record eight Charlotte wins.

Chase Elliott looks for his first win following his fifth career runner-up at Dover.

Non-playoff-eligible drivers who can spoil the day with a victory at Charlotte include past Queen City winners: Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano and Austin Dillon.

Round of 12 Starts at Charlotte

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs opens its Round of 12 with Sunday’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The following drivers advanced following last weekend’s cutoff race at Dover: Martin Truex Jr. (enters Sunday’s race 51 points ahead of Ryan Blaney on the cutoff line), Kyle Busch (+33), Kyle Larson (+26), Brad Keselowski (+12), Jimmie Johnson (+9), Kevin Harvick (+7), Denny Hamlin (+5), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (+2), Ryan Blaney (two points behind Stenhouse on the cutoff line), Chase Elliott (-4), Matt Kenseth (-5) and Jamie McMurray (-7).

Here’s the leaderboard as it stands to enter the Round of 12:

Jimmie Johnson is the defending race winner. The Playoffs drivers who have visited Victory Lane at Charlotte in the past are Johnson (eight wins, track record), Harvick (three), Kenseth (two), McMurray (two), Keselowski (one), Truex (one). 

Busch Goes for Third Consecutive Win and a Victory at All Active Tracks

If Kyle Busch wins Sunday’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, not only will he earn his third consecutive victory and an automatic berth in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 8, but he’ll also become the first driver to boast a checkered flag at every active Cup track.

Despite never winning a points race at Charlotte, Busch has quality Loop Data stats at the 1.5-mile track. His average running position (9.7) and driver rating (105.6) ranks second best among active drivers at Charlotte. In 27 Queen City starts, Busch owns 11 top-fives, 16 top-tens, and a 15.0 average finish. He placed runner-up in this year’s Coca-Cola 600.

The last driver to record three consecutive victories was Joey Logano in 2015 when he won three straight playoff races in a sweep of the Round of 12. Busch also won three races in a row in 2015.

King Of Queen City: Johnson Attempts to Add to Record Eight Charlotte Wins

Jimmie Johnson will attempt to add to his record of eight Charlotte wins in Sunday’s Bank of America 500. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver has taken the checkered flag in the Queen City fall race four times, including last season.

In 32 career starts at Charlotte, Johnson also claims 15 top-fives, 19 top-tens, and a 12.7 average finish. He owns the top Charlotte driver rating (110.4) and average running position (8.0) of all Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers.

Johnson’s third-place finish at Dover last weekend marked his first top-five showing since his win at Dover in June.

Larson, Blaney, McMurray, Stenhouse Advance to Round of 12 For First Time

The Round of 16 of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs was no problem for postseason first-timers Ryan Blaney and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Both drivers navigated their way into the Round of 12.

Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Kyle Larson and Jamie McMurray made it to the Round of 12 for their first time in their second and third Playoffs.

The Round of 12 will likely be much tougher. Larson sits 26 points above Blaney on the cutoff line, but Stenhouse only has a two-point edge over Blaney for the last transfer spot entering the Round of 12. McMurray starts the Round of 12 facing a seven-point deficit for the last transfer berth.

In eight career starts at Charlotte, Larson has one top five, two top-tens and a 19.8 average finish.

Blaney has never finished better than 14th at Charlotte in his five career races there, while Stenhouse owns a high finish of 13th in 11 Queen City appearances.

McMurray has had the most success at the 1.5-mile track. In 30 career starts, he claims two wins, seven top fives, 11 top-tens and a 16.2 average finish. He also won the non-points-paying All-Star Race at Charlotte in 2014. 

Another Runner-Up for Elliott

Chase Elliott relinquished the lead to Kyle Busch just before the last go-around of last Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover, finishing second despite leading a race-high 138 laps.

The finish marked the fifth runner-up of Elliott’s career. He continues to hunt down his first win.

Still, Elliott produced a strong Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 16 with two runner-ups (one encumbered at Chicagoland) and a 11th-place finish. He advances to the Round of 12 sitting in tenth on the Playoff leaderboard – a mere four points behind Ricky Stenhouse Jr. for the last transfer spot.

Plenty of notable drivers recorded more runner-ups than Elliott before their first win, including NASCAR Hall of Famers Bill Elliott (Chase’s father, eight runner-ups), Glenn Wood (six) and Mark Martin (six). NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip logged four second-place showings before his first victory.

In four career starts at Charlotte, Elliott has a high finish of eighth. He crashed out of his last two races at the 1.5-mile track after starting both in third. He led 103 laps in last year’s Bank of America 500.

A Spoiler at Charlotte?

As said many times before, a driver doesn’t have to be a Playoffs contender to win a race. Many drivers who are not championship-eligible have won in the past at Charlotte. The group includes Kasey Kahne (four), Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano and Austin Dillon.