The entry list was revealed for this coming Sunday afternoon's Pennzoil 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and the only change from this past Sunday's race at Phoenix Raceway was the removal of the No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet.
With that car removed, however, there are no non-chartered (open) cars on the entry list. Only the 36 chartered cars, which are all driven by full-time drivers, are set to take part in Sunday's 267-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Las Vegas, Nevada oval.
Not since the August 2024 race at Michigan International Speedway has a race been contested with only the chartered cars, so the Pennzoil 400 will end a 16-race streak of at least 37 cars. Prior to this streak, the Next Gen era, which began in 2022, had never seen more than five consecutive races with at least one open car.
Unfortunately for NASCAR, the Next Gen era has seen nearly as many races with just 36 cars as with more than 36.
Since the 36-charter system was implemented in 2016, the majority of the races with only 36 cars have come in the Next Gen era.
In 2016 and 2017, all 36 races still ran with at least one open entry. In 2018, there was just one race with only 36 cars, and in 2019, that number jumped to four, before dipping back to zero for 2020 and 2021.
But in 2022, a whopping 22 of 36 races were contested with only 36 cars, and that number increased to 23 in 2023. In 2024, it dipped back to eight, but that number still far exceeded the entire total from 2016 to 2021 combined.
The Pennzoil 400's 36-car total also matches the lowest total seen since 1993.
Prior to 2018, no Cup Series race had featured only 36 cars since the September 1996 race at Martinsville Speedway. In 1996, there were two races with just 36 cars. There were five in 1994 and six in 1995.
The most recent instance of a Cup Series race featuring fewer than 36 entries took place at North Wilkesboro Speedway in October 1993, when there were only 34 cars.
A total of 1,098 races have been contested since that race, and Sunday's is set to become just the 72nd with 36 cars, thereby matching the lowest mark in 32 years.
The Pennzoil 400 is set to be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, March 16. Begin a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action!