The CW is running its Cup-driver guest-analyst rotation again this summer, and the headliner kicks it off down at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Folks, that's not nothing.
Denny Hamlin gets the first chair. Six races, six drivers, similar setup to what The CW ran in 2025 covering the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series — but the lineup is fresh.
After Hamlin at Charlotte: Connor Zilisch — the kid who racked up TEN wins in the CW broadcast era — gets Nashville Superspeedway. Ross Chastain takes Pocono Raceway. AJ Allmendinger gets Sonoma Raceway. Kyle Busch — currently the O'Reilly Series wins leader — pulls EchoPark Speedway. And Bubba Wallace closes the rotation at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
That's the schedule. Each driver brings the kind of in-the-car perspective that a permanent booth analyst can't manufacture.
Hamlin opening this thing at Charlotte is the right call. The Charlotte 600 weekend is its own animal, and putting a current Cup driver in the chair the day before the 600 is the right way to start the rotation.
Listen. The CW is running this back, and they're running it back smart. Six Cup drivers, six races, all summer.
I'll be watching. More Charlotte sports coverage at the Mercury.