Clint Bowyer

One of the most unique seasons in NASCAR history concludes on Sunday with the running of the 2020 Season Finale 500. After a two-month COVID suspension, countless races rescheduled, and a flurry of off-track news in the summer (see: Confederate flag ban, Bubba Wallace incident at Talladega Superspeedway) NASCAR will wind down its season and crown a Cup Series champion.

Five races down, five races remain in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Charlotte Motor Speedway plays host to the Bank of America ROVAL 400 this weekend, a race on the infield road course that will officially cut the playoff field from 12 to 8.

The NASCAR postseason is typically an all-encompassing event. If you're not in that group of 16, chances are your name is forgotten until the 2021 Daytona 500 in February. I'm not saying that's fair; it's just the way it is in the playoff era of stock car racing. The Federated Auto Parts 400 is typically no different, the short track that helps separate the championship contenders from early pretenders.

We're halfway through the Monster Mile doubleheader at Dover International Speedway. NASCAR's grand experiment of back-to-back Cup Series races concludes with a second straight Drydene 311 on Sunday.

Denny Hamlin took the checkered flag first in Saturday's Act I. A dream season for the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driver now includes his first win in 29 career starts at one of his worst tracks on the circuit.

The 2020 Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway jumpstarts the final portion of the NASCAR Cup Series regular season after a 10-day layoff. It's a break stock car racing's top level desperately needed after squeezing 16 races into a little over 10 weeks, an exhausting schedule even for the most well-funded teams.