The 2018 Coca-Cola 600, the 59th running of the event, was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on May 27, 2018 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Contested over 400 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.42 km) asphalt speedway, it is the 13th race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.
Report
Background
The race was held at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which is located in Concord, North Carolina. The speedway complex includes a quad-oval track that will be utilized for the race, as well as a dragstrip and a dirt track. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams based in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith serving as track president.
Entry list Driver Team Manufacturer 00 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 7 J. J. Yeley (i) NY Racing Team Chevrolet 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 10 Aric Almirola Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 23 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 41 Kurt Busch Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 43 Bubba Wallace (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51 B. J. McLeod (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 55 Jeffrey Earnhardt Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 66 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota 72 Corey LaJoie TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 96 Parker Kligerman (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing ToyotaOfficial entry list
First practice Denny Hamlin was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 28.401 seconds and a speed of .
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.401 190.134 2 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 28.470 189.673 3 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 28.506 189.434Official first practice results
Qualifying Kyle Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 28.149 and a speed of .
Qualifying results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer 118 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.407 28.185 28.149 222 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 28.510 28.379 28.240 311 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.539 28.360 28.265 420 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.425 28.555 28.288 52 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 28.565 28.590 28.338 631 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.579 28.408 28.391 71 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 28.267 28.433 28.430 812 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 28.463 28.387 28.437 910 Aric Almirola Stewart–Haas RacingFord 28.741 28.448 28.465 1019 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.662 28.591 28.465 1142 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 28.629 28.461 28.580 123 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.626 28.560 28.712 1317 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 28.542 28.595 — 1421 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 28.519 28.601 — 1578 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 28.632 28.620 — 1641 Kurt Busch Stewart–Haas RacingFord 28.481 28.668 — 176 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 28.685 28.726 — 1837 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 28.652 28.738 — 1938 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 28.756 28.796 — 2013 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 28.734 28.815 — 2124 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.722 28.835 — 229 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.588 28.860 — 2348 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.652 28.935 — 2443 Bubba Wallace (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 28.673 29.061 — 2515 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 28.781 — — 2695 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 28.787 — — 2788 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.801 — — 2814 Clint Bowyer Stewart–Haas RacingFord 28.834 — — 2934 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 28.894 — — 3047 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 28.921 — — 3132 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 29.025 — — 3296 Parker Kligerman (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota 29.173 — — 3372 Corey LaJoie TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 29.484 — — 3423 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota 29.486 — — 3500 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet 29.513 — — 3666 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota 29.963 — — 3755 Jeffrey Earnhardt Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 30.172 — — 3851 B. J. McLeod (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 30.383 — — 394 Kevin Harvick Stewart–Haas RacingFord 0.000 — — 407 J. J. Yeley (i) NY Racing Team Chevrolet 0.000 — —Official qualifying results
Practice (post-qualifying)
Second practice Second practice session for Saturday was cancelled due to weather.
Final practice Erik Jones was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 28.870 seconds and a speed of .
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.870 187.045 2 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 28.929 186.664 3 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 29.016 186.104Official final practice results
Race
Stage Results
Stage 1 Laps: 100
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 102 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 93 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 84 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 75 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 66 10 Aric Almirola Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 57 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 48 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 39 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 210 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1Official stage one results
Stage 2 Laps: 100
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 102 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 93 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 84 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 75 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 66 10 Aric Almirola Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 57 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 48 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 39 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 210 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 1Official stage two results
Stage 3 Laps: 100
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 102 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 93 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 84 41 Kurt Busch Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 75 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 66 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 57 95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 48 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 39 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 210 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1Official stage three results
Final Stage Results
Stage 4 Laps: 100
Pos Grid Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points1 1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 400 702 15 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 400 543 3 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 400 494 5 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 400 415 23 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 416 7 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 400 377 11 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 400 468 16 41 Kurt Busch Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 400 369 27 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 2810 13 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 399 3111 22 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 399 3012 28 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 399 3513 9 10 Aric Almirola Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 399 3414 14 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 399 2315 10 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 399 2216 24 43 Bubba Wallace (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 399 2117 17 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 399 2018 29 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 399 1919 4 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 399 2920 26 95 Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 399 2121 20 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 399 1622 2 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 399 1523 30 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 399 1424 25 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 398 025 19 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 396 1226 33 72 Corey LaJoie TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 396 1127 32 96 Parker Kligerman (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota 394 028 35 00 Landon Cassill StarCom Racing Chevrolet 394 929 18 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 394 830 37 55 Jeffrey Earnhardt Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 389 731 34 23 Gray Gaulding BK Racing Toyota 388 632 36 66 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota 383 033 38 51 B. J. McLeod (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 373 034 12 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 348 335 6 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 344 536 8 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 278 1037 31 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 257 138 40 7 J. J. Yeley (i) NY Racing Team Chevrolet 191 039 21 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 139 140 39 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart–Haas Racing Ford 83 1Official race results
Race statistics Lead changes: 4 among different drivers Cautions/Laps: 11 for 54 Red flags: 0 Time of race: 4 hours, 23 minutes and 22 seconds Average speed:
Media
Television Fox Sports televised the race in the United States for the eighteenth consecutive year. Mike Joy was the lap-by-lap announcer, while three-time Coca-Cola 600 winner, Jeff Gordon and five-time race winner Darrell Waltrip were the color commentators. Jamie Little, Regan Smith, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum reported from pit lane during the race.
Fox TelevisionBooth announcersPit reporters Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip Jamie LittleRegan SmithVince WelchMatt Yocum
Radio Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by the Performance Racing Network (PRN), and was simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice, Mark Garrow and Wendy Venturini called the race in the booth when the field raced through the quad-oval. Rob Albright reported the race from a billboard in turn 2 when the field was racing through turns 1 and 2 and halfway down the backstretch. Pat Patterson called the race from a billboard outside of turn 3 when the field raced through the other half of the backstretch and through turns 3 and 4. Brad Gillie, Brett McMillan, Jim Noble and Steve Richards were the pit reporters during the broadcast.
PRN RadioBooth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters Lead announcer: Doug RiceAnnouncer: Mark GarrowAnnouncer: Wendy Venturini Turns 1 & 2: Rob AlbrightTurns 3 & 4: Pat Patterson Brad GillieBrett McMilanJim NobleSteve Richards
Standings after the race
Drivers' Championship standings