Circuit of The Americas turn-by-turn analysis

Editor's note: This story was first published on May 20, 2021: The NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series are set for Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, for a tripleheader weekend that will include practice and qualifying sessions. Saturday will be a doubleheader for the Camping World Truck Series and Xfinity Series, with Trucks taking to the track for the XPEL 225 at 1 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Xfinity's Pit Boss 250 race will then be held at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. The Cup Series finishes the weekend with Sunday's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Before drivers take to the 3.41-mile, 20-turn road course, here is a turn-by-turn breakdown, courtesy of eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series driver Bobby Zalenski. RELATED: Weekend schedule for COTA TURN 1 Once drivers take the green flag, it’s a steep uphill climb into a left-hand hairpin turn to kick off the lap. TURN 2 It’ll be a right-hander out quickly after the exit of the first corner as the track goes back downhill. TURNS 3-5 The third corner starts the esses portion of the circuit. Turn 3 is a left-hand corner, Turn 4 is a right-hand corner and Turn 5 is another left-hander. TURNS 6-7 This corner is a long, sweeping right-hander, which is immediately followed by a left-hand corner. TURNS 8-9 Drivers will want to maintain a centered line out of Turn 7 to get a good entry into the right-hand, sweeping eighth turn. Turn 9 is another quick left-hander. TURN 10 This left-hand corner acts more like a kink in a straightaway. Drivers will use this section to set up for a good passing zone leading into the entry of the 11th turn. TURN 11 Like the first corner but without as much elevation change, Turn 11 is another hairpin left-hander. A long straightaway awaits drivers at the exit of this corner. TURN 12 After taking the longest straight on the course, drivers with face another sharp left-hand turn, which doesn’t provide a lot of grip for acceleration out of the corner. TURNS 13-14 These two corners are tight right-handers following a short chute coming out of Turn 12. TURN 15 Drivers will have to decide if they want to enter this sharp left-hand turn tight or with a wider angle depending on what arc they want to take through the corner. TURNS 16-18 These three turns make up the carousel section, which consists of a series of sweeping right-handers. TURN 19 This left-hand turn isn’t as tight, serving more of a rolling corner which sends you out into a short straight before heading into the final turn. TURN 20 The last turn of the course is a hard-braking, sharp left-hand corner. Drivers will be trying to get a good launch off the corner to maximize speed down the frontstretch and toward the start-finish line.