There are just two more races before the NASCAR Cup Series championship, making the Round of 8 race at Texas the penultimate opportunity for slumping contenders to make a title move.
They have to wait a few extra days, though, after mist cut the competition short Sunday and washed out Monday and Tuesday. It will restart at Lap 53 on Wednesday afternoon.
Kurt Busch almost certainly needs to win one of the next two outings to advance to Phoenix, and Martin Truex Jr. and Alex Bowman are also more than 20 points below the cut-off line.
Joey Logano is the only safe driver entering the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 in the persistent Texas heat after he won last weekend. His Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski is well-positioned to join him in the finals but still has work left to do.
Below are the Cup Series drivers still championship eligible, ranked by points:
| Pos. | Driver | Distance from cut-off |
| 1 | Joey Logano | ADV |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | +41 |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | +20 |
| 4 | Brad Keselowski | +8 |
| CUT-OFF | CUT-OFF | CUT-OFF |
| 5 | Chase Elliott | -8 |
| 6 | Alex Bowman | -27 |
| 7 | Martin Truex Jr. | -51 |
| 8 | Kurt Busch | -73 |
MORE: Watch today’s NASCAR race live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)
Here’s all you need to know about the schedule for Monday’s Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 race at Texas.
What time does the NASCAR race start today?
- Date: Wednesday, Oct. 28
- Start time: 3:30 p.m. ET
The Round of 8 NASCAR playoff race at Texas is scheduled to resume Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. ET.
The race is 334 laps spread over three stages and will become official after Lap 167. The distance of the race is 501 miles. The first 52 laps were completed Sunday before rain pushed the rest of the race back.
Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin each have three career wins at Texas.
MORE: NASCAR at Texas weather updates
What channel is NASCAR on today?
The crucial race at Texas will be shown on NBCSN — not NBC — in a somewhat confounding move given the stakes of the occasion. While NBCSN is part of many cable packages, showing the race on NBC proper would have likely been able to expand viewership.
In any case, drama should be high for those who tune in. There have been a slew of personal rivalries gaining ferocity in recent weeks, primarily involving Joey Logano.
The NBCSN network has a channel finder feature for viewers to find the TV channel options in their areas.
As is the case for all the Cup Series races on NBC and NBCSN this season, Rick Allen will call Wednesday’s race at Texas with the assistance of analysts Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte.
Viewers in Canada can watch this week’s NASCAR race on TSN.
NASCAR live stream for Texas race
Anybody who has a cable or satellite subscription can stream Monday’s NASCAR race at Texas Motor Speedway live via NBCSports.com or the NBC Sports app. This should be the preferred route for any viewer who has such a subscription but isn’t able to get in front of his or her TV.
For those who don’t have a cable or satellite subscription, there are five OTT TV streaming options that carry NBC and NBCSN — Sling, Hulu, YouTubeTV, fuboTV and AT&T Now. Of the five, Hulu, YouTubeTV and fuboTV offer free trial options.
Below are links to each.
NASCAR schedule 2020
NASCAR remains committed to running 36 races this season, four of which were completed before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the sports world.
Despite so many changes to the regular-season schedule, NASCAR is keeping its 10 playoff races in the fall intact and at their original tracks. Below is that playoff schedule, with Wednesday’s race at Texas in bold.
| Date | Track | TV channel | Start time |
| Sun., Sept. 6 | Darlington | NBCSN | 6 p.m. ET |
| Sat., Sept. 12 | Richmond | NBCSN | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| Sat., Sept. 19 | Bristol | NBCSN | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun, Sept. 27 | Las Vegas | NBCSN | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sun., Oct. 4 | Talladega | NBC | 2 p.m. ET |
| Sun., Oct. 11 | Charlotte (ROVAL) | NBC | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun., Oct. 18 | Kansas | NBC | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Wed., Oct. 28 | Texas | NBCSN | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun. Nov. 1 | Martinsville | NBC | 2 p.m. ET |
| Sun. Nov. 8 | Phoenix Raceway | NBC | 3 p.m. ET |
As for the regular season, a previously unscheduled Darlington race ran on May 17 instead of the the Chicagoland race that was originally scheduled for June 21. Another Darlington race ran on May 20 instead of the postponed Richmond race that was originally scheduled for April 19. The Charlotte race on May 27 ran instead of the Sonoma race that was originally scheduled for June 14.
The Pocono doubleheader remained as previously scheduled for the final weekend of June, with the Cup Series racing on back-to-back days. Those races were presented on Fox (and FS1) rather than on NBC. Fox’s closed its coverage this season with the All-Star Race at Bristol on July 15.
Previously postponed races at Dover and Michigan became part of Saturday-Sunday doubleheaders at those respective tracks in August.
Because New York required people to quarantine for 14 days after traveling from one of the states impacted heavily by COVID-19 (including North Carolina), the Watkins Glen race on Aug. 16 was moved to the Daytona road course. According to The Athletic, NASCAR tried to get a quarantine waiver for its Watkins Glen races but was denied by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office.
The Aug. 16 race was the NASCAR Cup Series’ first on the road course at Daytona.