NASCAR at Charlotte weather updates: Coca-Cola 600 halted due to rain on track

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This weekend's Coca-Cola 600 is being threatened by a forecast of rain over Charlotte Motor Speedway, and NASCAR has already changed its weekend schedule in response.

Both Saturday's practice and qualifying and Sunday's race are likely to be affected: weather.com says there is an 83 percent chance Sunday.

LIVE: Follow SN's updates from the Coca-Cola 600

The start time for Saturday's Xfinity Series race, the Alsco Uniforms 300, has been moved up an hour to noon ET to help ensure that it is run.

Cup Series practice and qualifying are scheduled for Saturday night, although the odds point to that being washed out. Because Charlotte is an oval track of greater than a mile (it's 1.5 miles long), rain tires are not available.

Coca-Cola 600 weather updates

Monday

5:20 p.m.: Wetness rears its ugly head once more. We're under red after rain begins to descend on Turns 3 and 4. Drivers out of their cars. Looks like the rain has stopped. However, it will take some time to get the track dry. Per Bob Pockrass, we might be back to green in 30 minutes or so.

Sunday

6:30 p.m.: Rain proving an unruly dance partner for NASCAR. The Cup Series race is off for Sunday. It was rescheduled to begin at 3 p.m. ET on Monday.

6:20 p.m.: Air titans are out and about at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Remains to be seen how effective they prove against the blistery mix of rain and wind.

4:50 p.m. — Charlotte Motor Speedway President & CEO Marcus Smith said showers are expected to let up around 6 p.m. ET, and that the track will be dried then. From there, they'll hope to start the race around 8-8:30 p.m. ET.

"No guarantees, but I hope they are right!" Smith wrote on Twitter.

3:20 p.m. — No Doobie Brothers concert in Charlotte, but NASCAR is still hoping to get the race in today. The Charlotte Motor Speedway is preparing to start drying the tracks.

3 p.m. — Teams have reportedly been told to wait to make adjustments before. Pockrass believes the rain will have to stop by 7 p.m. ET for the race to begin today.

12:22 p.m. — As Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass notes, there will need to be a "break to get a big enough window and conditions to dry track." Rain has continued in Charlotte as the race gets to within six hours.

11:20 a.m. — The weather has shown little signs of clearing up. The National Weather Service has said showers and a possible thunderstorm are expected after 3 p.m. ET. The evening doesn't look any better, with showers likely to continue through the night before midnight and scattered showers until 3 a.m. ET.

9 a.m. — A Monday afternoon race would be likely if the Coca-Cola 600 is postponed from Sunday, Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass noted. An official call by NASCAR isn't expected until late in the afternoon.

8 a.m. — Rain showers are in the Charlotte forecast throughout Sunday morning after afternoon. There is a possibility for relief in the evening before the scheduled green flag at 6:21 p.m. ET, but 3-4 hours are required to dry the track.

Saturday

4 p.m. -- With no window to be found, the Xfinity race has been postponed to Monday at noon.

Cup qualifying has also been cancelled.

2:40 p.m. -- The rain in Charlotte continues to fall, and it's been fairly steady. According to Bob Pockrass, they're looking for a three-four hour window to run the race.

1:15 p.m. -- The Xfinity race has been delayed, and there's going to be a lot of push and pull throughout the day. Track drying crews were trying to get the course dry, but they have since retired as the rain as kicked up again. Expect a lot of this throughout the day.

Radar shows obvious potential for rain but NASCAR hopeful to get started. Official race would be Lap 90. FS1. pic.twitter.com/9H7ir11Tvc

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 27, 2023

What time is the Coca-Cola 600?

The timing of Coca-Cola 600 events this weekend are likely to be affected by the weather, starting with practice and qualifying on Saturday evening.

MORE: Date, time, TV channels for every NASCAR Cup Series race in 2023

The Coca-Cola 600 is scheduled to begin at 6:21 p.m. ET Sunday.

  • Coca-Cola 600 practice: Saturday, May 27, 7:05 p.m. ET
  • Coca-Cola 600 qualifying: Saturday, May 27, 7:50 p.m. ET
  • Coca-Cola 600 start time: Sunday, May 28, 6:21 p.m. ET green flag

Coca-Cola 600 weather forecast

Saturday, May 27

The forecast for May 27 calls for a 95 percent chance of rain in the Charlotte, N.C., area.

Between noon and 3 p.m. ET, the chance of rain increases from 72 percent to 90 percent, and it will hover around 95 percent from 5 p.m. until midnight.

Temperatures are expected to be in the mid- to high 50s throughout the day.

Sunday, May 28

The forecast for race day includes a rain chance in the mid-70s to low 80s. Temperatures will be slightly warmer, in the low-60s from 1 p.m. on.

The Coca-Cola 600 green flag is scheduled to drop at 6:21 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Monday, May 29

If the race is postponed to Monday, it's hardly a sure thing it can be run smoothly. The forecast looks better, but not by much.

The day will be warmer than Saturday or Sunday, with temperatures in the mid-60s to low 70s after noon, but the rain continues to linger, with a 30-to-50-percent chance throughout the day.

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Kevin Skiver is a content producer at The Sporting News
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