For the first time in what feels like forever, the weather forecast for a NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session finally doesn't call for rain ahead of this weekend's Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
Six Cup Series oval qualifying sessions have been rained out already in 2026, so we'll be the first to admit that this feels like an obligatory weekly post at this point, just in case.
While it is expected that qualifying will indeed run as planned at the four-turn, 1.25-mile (2.012-kilometer) Madison, Illinois oval on Saturday, this is still a great time to remind fans that there is a slightly different method when it comes to the qualifying setup in the playoffs, compared to the regular season.
When it comes to setting the qualifying orders, the same qualifying metric (30% owner standings, 70% most recent race result) is still used. However, the non-playoff drivers are lined up first, guaranteeing that the 16 postseason contenders go out at the end of the session.
When qualifying is canceled, however, NASCAR doesn't simply invert the qualifying order like they do during the regular season. They go completely back to the metric and simply take the reverse order of the metric, irrespective of whether a driver is a Chase driver or a non-Chase driver, to set the starting lineup.
Here's a look at this week's would-be starting lineup in the off chance qualifying were to be canceled. Note that a non-playoff driver would start as high as 12th.
NASCAR lineup at Gateway if qualifying is rained out
Order | Driver |
|---|---|
1 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
2 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
3 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota |
4 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford |
5 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
6 | Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
7 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota |
8 | Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford |
9 | Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford |
10 | Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
11 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
12 | Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford |
13 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
14 | Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford |
15 | Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
16 | Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
17 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford |
18 | Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
19 | Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
20 | Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
21 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford |
22 | A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
23 | Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
24 | Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
25 | Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
26 | John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
27 | Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
28 | Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
29 | Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota |
30 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
31 | Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
32 | Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
33 | Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet |
34 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet |
35 | Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
36 | Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet |
Practice and qualifying are set to be broadcast live on TruTV from World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET this Saturday, September 12. The Enjoy Illinois 300 itself is set to be shown live on USA Network from Gateway starting at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, September 13.
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