Qualifying sessions have been rained out for five oval races already during the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, most recently for the race at North Wilkesboro Speedway in mid-July, and the weather forecast for Friday afternoon at Richmond Raceway isn't looking completely promising.
According to AccuWeather, there is an 88% chance of a couple of afternoon showers and a thunderstorm in the area of the four-turn, 0.75-mile (1.207-kilometer) Richmond, Virginia oval. Practice is scheduled to take place at 3:30 p.m. ET, followed by qualifying at 4:40 p.m. ET.
If qualifying can't actually take place ahead of NASCAR's first Saturday night Cup Series race of the 2026 season, the full 37-car starting lineup would be determined by the qualifying metric.
This formula, which was introduced in 2020 but modified ahead of the 2025 season, takes into account each car's finish in the most recent race (70%) and its position in the owner standings (30%).
The metric is designed to be used to determine qualifying orders, but when qualifying cannot take place, the order is simply reversed to set the starting lineup.
With that in mind, here's how the full starting lineup would look for Saturday night's 400-lap Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway if Friday's qualifying session is unable to take place as scheduled.
NASCAR Cup lineup at Richmond if qualifying is rained out
Order | Driver |
|---|---|
1 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
2 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford |
3 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
4 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
5 | Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
6 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
7 | Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
8 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford |
9 | Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford |
10 | A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
11 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
12 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota |
13 | Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford |
14 | Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
15 | Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
16 | Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
17 | Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford |
18 | Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
19 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet |
20 | Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
21 | John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
22 | Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota |
23 | Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
24 | Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
25 | Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
26 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford |
27 | Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford |
28 | Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
29 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
30 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota |
31 | Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
32 | Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
33 | Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet |
34 | Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
35 | Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
36 | Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet |
37 | Josh Bilicki, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford |
Tune in to USA Network at 7:00 p.m. ET this Saturday, August 15 for the live broadcast of the Cook Out 400 from Richmond Raceway. Begin a free trial of FuboTV today and catch all of the action!
Add us as a preferred source on Google