After hosting the NASCAR Cup Series championship finale each year from 2020 to 2025, Phoenix Raceway was moved forward three weeks in the postseason schedule, and it is scheduled to host this Sunday's Freeway Insurance 500.
Qualifying has taken place just twice in the first six weeks of the 10-race 2026 playoffs, with inclement weather canceling as many qualifying sessions during that stretch as it did throughout the entire 2024 and 2025 seasons combined.
Should qualifying for Sunday's 312-lap race around the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) Avondale, Arizona oval take place as planned on Saturday, it would be a single-round session, with no second-round shootout for pole like there is on superspeedways.
And because Phoenix is technically more than one mile in length, thus making it an intermediate track rather than a traditional short track, each driver is set to run just one qualifying lap, without the option to run a second. The qualifying metric determined the full 37-car order for Saturday's session.
Follow along with our qualifying updates from Phoenix.
NASCAR Cup Series starting lineup at Phoenix
Order | Driver |
|---|---|
1 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford |
2 | Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford |
3 | Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
4 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
5 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
6 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota |
7 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
8 | Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
9 | Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford |
10 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
11 | Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
12 | Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
13 | Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
14 | Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
15 | Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford |
16 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
17 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford |
18 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford |
19 | Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota |
20 | Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
21 | A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
22 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
23 | Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
24 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota |
25 | Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet |
26 | Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford |
27 | Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet |
28 | Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet |
29 | Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
30 | Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford |
31 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet |
32 | John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota |
33 | Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet |
34 | Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
35 | Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
36 | Corey Heim, No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota |
37 | Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet |
Tune in to USA Network for its final race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season this Sunday, October 18 at 3:00 p.m. ET. After the Freeway Insurance 500 at Phoenix Raceway, all remaining races on this year's schedule are set to be shown live on NBC, so begin a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action!
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