NASCAR: Two playoff drivers penalized ahead of Las Vegas race

Two of the remaining NASCAR Cup Series championship contenders have been penalized ahead of the round of 12 opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The round of 12 of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs is scheduled to begin with this evening’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but two of the remaining 12 championship contenders will not keep their starting positions.

The 12 remaining championship contenders had all been slated to start this 267-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Las Vegas, Nevada in the top 12, given the fact that those not in contention are not factored into the starting lineup formula until 13th place and back.

But the projected second row starters, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., are set to drop to the rear on the pace laps after their cars failed pre-race inspection twice.

Byron was to have started in third place behind the wheel of his #24 Chevrolet while Truex was to have started in fourth behind the wheel of his #19 Toyota. Byron is set to drop to the tail end of the inside lane while Truex is set to drop to the tail end of the outside lane.

Also failing pre-race inspection twice was the #10 Ford of Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola, who was eliminated from playoff contention after the round of 16. He was to have started in 17th place but is now set to drop to the tail end of the inside lane.

The #24 Chevrolet, the #19 Toyota and the #10 Ford all passed pre-race inspection on their third attempts.

The #66 Toyota of MBM Motorsports’ J.J. Yeley failed pre-race inspection three times. He was set to start in 38th (last) place anyway. Car chief Ty Brazeal has been ejected as a result of these failures.

Here is an updated starting lineup for the 2021 South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Starting Lineup
1st – Kyle Larson
2nd – Ryan Blaney
3rd – Kevin Harvick
4th – Denny Hamlin
5th – Alex Bowman
6th – Brad Keselowski
7th – Joey Logano
8th – Kyle Busch
9th – Chase Elliott
10th – Christopher Bell
11th – Tyler Reddick
12th – Matt DiBenedetto
13th – Austin Dillon
14th – Erik Jones
15th – Chase Briscoe
16th – Ross Chastain
17th – Bubba Wallace
18th – Kurt Busch
19th – Michael McDowell
20th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
21st – Chris Buescher
22nd – Ryan Preece
23rd – Corey LaJoie
24th – Daniel Suarez
25th – J.J. Yeley
26th – Cole Custer
27th – James Davison
28th – Ryan Newman
29th – Anthony Alfredo
30th – Josh Bilicki
31st – B.J. McLeod
32nd – Justin Haley
33rd – Quin Houff
34th – Joey Gase
35th – William Byron
36th – Martin Truex Jr.
37th – Aric Almirola
38th – David Starr

Polesitter Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports is still listed by WynnBET as the favorite to win this race at +275 (bet $100 to win $275). He won the race at the track back in early March.

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Tune in to NBC Sports Network at 7:00 p.m. ET this evening for the live broadcast of the South Point 400 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Start your free trial of FuboTV today if you have not already done so!