The first NASCAR Cup Series "Chase" postseason since 2013 is set to get underway on Sunday with the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
The same qualifying metric that has been used since the 2025 season began was used to determine the order for Saturday's qualifying session around the four-turn, 1.366-mile (2.198-kilometer) egg-shaped oval in Darlington, South Carolina, factoring in both the owner standings and the results of the most recent race.
But for the playoffs, the 16 championship-eligible drivers are not factored into the equation until all of the others are slotted into the order, guaranteeing that they will qualify at the end of the line. As is the case on all intermediate ovals, the single-car qualifying session is set to feature single-lap attempts, with only one round to set the full 38-car starting lineup.
The only lineup changes since this past weekend's regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway have to do with the non-chartered (open) cars. There were five on the entry list at Daytona, and there are just two on this weekend's entry list. The only unchanged open car is the No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota, which is set to be driven by two-time 2026 race winner Corey Heim.
The No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet, No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet, and No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet are not on the entry list after being driven by Joey Gase, Casey Mears, and Daniel Dye, respectively, at Daytona.
Gray Gaulding failed to qualify the No. 66 Garage 66 (MBM Motorsports) Ford at Daytona, but the team have entered the car again this weekend for Chad Finchum, who is set to lead off the qualifying session due to the No. 66 car's series-worst metric score.
Here's a look at Saturday's full qualifying order for Sunday's Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington.
Darlington NASCAR Cup Series qualifying order
Order | Driver |
|---|---|
1 | Chad Finchum, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford |
2 | Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet |
3 | Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
4 | Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
5 | Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
6 | Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
7 | A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
8 | Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
9 | Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
10 | Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
11 | Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
12 | Corey Heim, No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota |
13 | Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
14 | John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
15 | Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet |
16 | Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota |
17 | Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford |
18 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford |
19 | Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
20 | Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
21 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet |
22 | Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
23 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford |
24 | Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
25 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
26 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
27 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford |
28 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
29 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
30 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota |
31 | Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford |
32 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
33 | Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
34 | Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford |
35 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
36 | Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford |
37 | Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
38 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota |
USA Network's live coverage of the Cook Out Southern 500 is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, September 6. Don't miss any of the action from Darlington Raceway to open up the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs!
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