Two NASCAR Cup Series drivers are set to drop to the rear of the field before the green flag flies for Sunday's Straight Talk Wireless 500 Phoenix Raceway, and one of them won't stop there.
Front Row Motorsports' Zane Smith, who initially qualified 24th ahead of teammates Todd Gilliland in 30th and Noah Gragson in 35th, is set to drop to the rear of the 37-car field and serve a drive-through penalty after the first lap of the race after his team was found making an adjustment to the No. 38 Ford following technical inspection on Friday. The team's car chief was also ejected.
Spire Motorsports' Carson Hocevar, who initially qualified seventh, between teammates Daniel Suarez in fourth and Michael McDowell in 16th, is also set to drop to the rear after the team changed the alternator and parts of the dash of the No. 77 Chevrolet. Unlike Smith, he will not have to serve a drive-through penalty.
The only other driver set to drop to the rear of the field at the start is RFK Racing's Brad Keselowski, who is using a backup No. 6 Ford after an incident in practice that resulted in him missing qualifying. However, he was set to start last anyway.
With Smith set to drop to the tail end of the outside lane, every driver who had qualified in an even-numbered position behind him is set to move up by one row. With Hocevar set to drop to the tail end of the inside lane, every driver who had qualified in an odd-numbered position behind him is set to move up by one row, aside from Keselowski.
Here's an updated starting lineup for this 312-lap race around the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) Avondale, Arizona oval, following the pre-race penalties.
Updated NASCAR Cup Series starting lineup at Phoenix
Order | Driver |
|---|---|
1 | Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford |
2 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
3 | Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford |
4 | Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
5 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford |
6 | Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
7 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
8 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota |
9 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
10 | Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford |
11 | Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford |
12 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
13 | John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
14 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
15 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford |
16 | Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
17 | Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
18 | Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
19 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet |
20 | Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
21 | A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
22 | Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota |
23 | Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
24 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
25 | Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
26 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota |
27 | Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
28 | Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
29 | Anthony Alfredo, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
30 | Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
31 | Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
32 | Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet |
33 | Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
34 | Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet |
35 | Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
36 | Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
37 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford |
Fox Sports 1 is set to provide live coverage of the Straight Talk Wireless 500 from Phoenix Raceway beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season's fourth race!