NASCAR's Go Bowling at The Glen: What you need to know before the race

One of the biggest sporting events in the Northeast makes its annual appearance at Watkins Glen International as the track hosts the NASCAR Cup Series' Go Bowling at the Glen on Sunday afternoon.

Start time: 3 p.m.

Television: USA Network.

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Distance: 90 laps (220.5 miles) on the road course's 2.45-mile NASCAR configuration. Stage 1 ends on lap 20 and stage 2 ends on lap 40.

Purse: $6.6 million.

Defending champion: Kyle Larson won at Watkins Glen for the first time last year, one of his 10 Cup Series victories during a championship season. Series points leader Chase Elliott, winner of the previous two WGI Cup races, finished second in 2021 and 2017 Glen winner Martin Truex Jr. was third.

What's new at the Glen:WGI president Michael Printup gives inside scoop

Storylines to watch:How Watkins Glen race can impact NASCAR playoffs

Hear from past champ:Denny Hamlin on his 2016 Watkins Glen victory and the win that got away at Pocono

Defending champ:Kyle Larson on his bid for Watkins Glen repeat and following up on a historic season

Saturday's qualifying: Elliott won the pole position with a top lap of 1 minute, 10.447 seconds. Larson qualified second (1:10.516) and will join Elliott on the front row. Michael McDowell qualified third, William Byron fourth, Tyler Reddick fifth and AJ Allmendinger sixth.

More:Full qualifying results from Saturday

Battle within the battle: Watkins Glen is the penultimate race before the 16-driver field is determined for the 10-race playoffs. Ryan Blaney enters the weekend second in points (766) and Truex is fourth (740), but neither has a win in 2022. With 15 drivers having what will likely be playoff-qualifying wins, one of the two could be on the outside looking in when the playoffs start. With their healthy point totals, a victory by Truex or Blaney at Watkins Glen would secure a playoff berth.

International flavor: The 39-driver field includes drivers from seven countries. Among those is Finland's Kimi Raikkonen in the No. 91 TrackHouse Racing Chevrolet. Raikkonen, the 2007 Formula One world champion, is making his Cup Series debut.

Grand marshal: NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace, the 2017 and 2019 winner of the Bud at The Glen.

Race history: This will mark the 39th time NASCAR's top series has competed in Watkins Glen and the 36th race at The Glen in the modern era, dating back to 1986. There was no race at Watkins Glen in 2020 because of the COVID pandemic.

Follow Andrew Legare on Twitter: @SGAndrewLegare. You can also reach him at alegare@gannett.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: NASCAR Go Bowling at The Glen schedule, TV, storylines