As has become the norm, 40 cars are entered for the Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway. A noon ET Friday practice will be followed by qualifying that begins about 5:15 p.m. ET. Sunday’s race begins after 2 p.m. ET.
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By the way, weather forecasts say there won’t be a rain problem this weekend.
There was a flurry of activities as drivers made promotional visits. Those included stops at manufacturer’s facilities in Detroit, Kurt Busch throwing a ceremonial pitch at a Marlins game in Miami and Kasey Kahne putting the hammer down at a Habitat for Humanity site in Virginia.
Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt Jr. went back to work toward recovery from concussion-like symptoms. Junior fans were disappointed at Wednesday’s news that Earnhardt will not drive this week or next at Darlington. This week’s driver in Junior’s No. 88 car will be Alex Bowman.
Michigan will provide the third and final test of proposed aerodynamics changes for 2017. The package was used in June’s Michigan race and at Kentucky a month later. June’s impact included higher speeds on straightaways and more challenges in the corners of Michigan’s D-shaped track.
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Joey Logano won the June race. Matt Kenseth won the 2015 Pure Michigan 400.
Here are the entries for Sunday’s Sprint Cup race.
After Michigan, two races remain before the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The 16-driver championship field will be set after Sept. 10’s race at Richmond.
