NASCAR: Full Atlanta starting lineup if qualifying is canceled

Atlanta Motor Speedway is one of the new additions to the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series playoff schedule, and it is scheduled to get the four-round, 10-race postseason underway this Sunday afternoon with the Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart.

The four-turn, 1.54-mile (2.278-kilometer) is one of seven tracks on this year's playoff schedule which also hosted a race during the 26-race regular season. Trackhouse Racing Team's Daniel Suarez won at the venue back in February in what was the closest three-wide finish in Cup Series history.

Atlanta is considered a superspeedway now, given how it races since it was repaved after the 2021 season, so like at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, group qualifying is not used.

The qualifying formula, which was introduced in 2020, is used to set the qualifying order. A full breakdown of that metric can be found here.

Note that for the playoffs, the playoff drivers are only ranked against other playoff drivers in the metric calculations, guaranteeing that they slot in behind the non-playoff drivers in the qualifying order.

But in the event that qualifying is canceled, the qualifying order at a superspeedway is simply flipped to determine the full starting lineup.

Here is what the starting lineup for Sunday afternoon's 260-lap race would look like, in the event that qualifying can't take place as planned.

NASCAR at Atlanta: Starting lineup without qualifying

1st - Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

2nd - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

3rd - Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

4th - Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

5th - Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota

6th - Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford

7th - Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

8th - Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford

9th - Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford

10th - Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet

11th - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

12th - William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

13th - Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

14th - Harrison Burton, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford

15th - Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford

16th - Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

17th - Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

18th - Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet

19th - Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford

20th - Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota

21st - Corey LaJoie, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

22nd - Todd Gilliland, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford

23rd - Ryan Preece, No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

24th - Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

25th - Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

26th - Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet

27th - Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

28th - Michael McDowell, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford

29th - Josh Berry, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

30th - Justin Haley, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford

31st - Zane Smith, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

32nd - John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

33rd - Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

34th - Noah Gragson, No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

35th - Shane van Gisbergen, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

36th - Cody Ware, No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford

37th - B.J. McLeod, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet

38th - J.J. Yeley, No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet

According to The Weather Channel, there is only a 17% chance of rain on Saturday, however, so more likely than not, Saturday's qualifying session will be able to take place as planned. In February, Front Row Motorsports' Michael McDowell took the pole position at the track.

USA Network is set to broadcast qualifying live from Atlanta Motor Speedway, beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET this Saturday, September 7. It is also set to broadcast the Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart itself, beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, September 8. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss any of the action this weekend!