TV Schedule: May 11-13

Credit: Geoff Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR 

"Too Tough to Tame." "The Lady in Black."

Whatever you call her, one thing is certain: Darlington Raceway is one of the most difficult tracks in all of NASCAR. The Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series make their annual stop at the South Carolina speedway, the second-oldest track on the circuit. Many fans have the Southern 500 circled on their calendars.

Darlington's unique egg shape presents a challenge for teams. Crews try to make adjustments to account for both ends of the track, so handling is often an issue.

Drivers can go as fast as 190 mph coming off the corners, but must navigate straightaways that are only as wide as those of a short track. As a result, expect to see plenty of "Darlington stripes" - black lines on the right sides of the racecars after they scrape the wall.

Who'll tame the Lady in Black this weekend? Tune in to find out.

Track facts
Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C.
Length: 1.366-mile oval
Type: Intermediate
Banking: 25 degrees in turns 1 and 2, 23 degress in turns 3 and 4, 6 degrees on the frontstretch, 6 degrees on the backstretch

SPRINT CUP
Bojangles' Southern 500 format:
500 miles, 366 laps

2011 winner:
Regan Smith

NATIONWIDE
Darlington 200 format:
200 miles, 147 laps

2011 winner:
Kyle Busch

The Camping World Truck Series is off this week. The series returns May 18 at Charlotte.

The following is a schedule of track events and TV coverage this weekend at Darlington. All times are in Eastern Standard Time. Events without a channel listed will not be televised.

Friday, May 11:
8:30 a.m. NNS Practice
11 a.m. NASCAR Live, SPEED
11:30 a.m. NSCS Practice, SPEED
1:30 p.m. NASCAR Live, SPEED
2 p.m. NSCS Final Practice, SPEED
3 p.m. NASCAR Now, ESPN2
3 p.m. NASCAR Live, SPEED
3:30 p.m. NNS Qualifying, ESPN2   
5 p.m. NSCS Qualifying, SPEED
6:30 p.m. NNS Countdown, ESPN2
7 p.m. NNS: Darlington 200, ESPN2. Green flag: 7:15 p.m.

Saturday, May 12:
2 a.m. NNS: Darlington 200 (re-air), ESPN2
3 a.m. NASCAR K&N Pro Series, SPEED
11 a.m. NASCAR Performance, SPEED
12 noon NASCAR Now presented by 5-HOUR Energy, ESPN2
4 p.m. SPEED Center NASCAR Edition, SPEED
4:30 p.m. NASCAR RaceDay, SPEED
6:30 p.m. NSCS Pre-Race Show, FOX
7 p.m. NSCS: Bojangles' Southern 500, FOX
11 p.m. NASCAR Victory Lane, SPEED

Sunday, May 13:
4 a.m. NNS: Darlington 200 (re-air), ESPN deportes
8 p.m. Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain, SPEED
9 p.m. NASCAR Victory Lane, SPEED (re-airs at midnight and 9 a.m. Monday)