Get ready for an exciting race weekend as the NASCAR Cup Series and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series gear up for their first desert adventure of the season! The action-packed races will take place at the one-mile Phoenix Raceway, and we've got all the qualifying details for you.
But here's where it gets controversial... or at least, a bit more complex for those new to the sport. Qualifying orders can be a game-changer, and we're about to dive into the specifics.
The Battle for Pole Position: Cup Series Qualifying
Single-car qualifying for the Cup Series is set to ignite at 1:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, preceded by practice sessions earlier in the day at noon ET, which will be streamed on Prime Video. Here's a breakdown of the qualifying order, with drivers grouped based on their performance metrics:
Position Number Driver Metric Group
1 48 Alex Bowman 36.0 1
2 43 Erik Jones 34.3 1
3 19 Chase Briscoe 34.0 1
4 2 Austin Cindric 31.7 1
5 51 Cody Ware 30.9 1
6 1 Ross Chastain 30.5 1
7 33 * Austin Hill(i) 30.3 1
8 41 Cole Custer 29.0 1
9 47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 27.4 1
10 38 Zane Smith 27.3 1
11 21 Josh Berry 26.6 1
12 77 Carson Hocevar 24.7 1
13 34 Todd Gilliland 23.7 1
14 35 Riley Herbst 23.6 1
15 3 Austin Dillon 23.5 1
16 4 Noah Gragson 20.8 1
17 17 Chris Buescher 20.1 1
18 7 Daniel Suarez 19.6 1
19 88 Connor Zilisch # 19.4 1
20 42 John Hunter Nemechek 18.2 2
21 6 Brad Keselowski 17.6 2
22 60 Ryan Preece 17.4 2
23 10 Ty Dillon 16.9 2
24 8 Kyle Busch 15.0 2
25 11 Denny Hamlin 13.9 2
26 24 William Byron 13.0 2
27 22 Joey Logano 12.3 2
28 20 Christopher Bell 9.3 2
29 5 Kyle Larson 8.7 2
30 16 AJ Allmendinger 8.7 2
31 23 Bubba Wallace 8.3 2
32 54 Ty Gibbs 7.9 2
33 12 Ryan Blaney 6.8 2
34 71 Michael McDowell 6.2 2
35 9 Chase Elliott 5.8 2
36 97 Shane van Gisbergen 2.9 2
37 45 Tyler Reddick 1.0 2
- Required to qualify on time # denotes series rookie (i) denotes ineligible for driver points
The O'Reilly Auto Parts Series: Qualifying Order
The O'Reilly Auto Parts Series will also be putting on a show, with single-car qualifying scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET on Friday, following practice sessions at 7 p.m. ET, which can be viewed on The CW App. Here's the qualifying order for this series:
Position Number Driver Metric Group
1 92 Josh Williams 41.0 1
2 52 Daniel Dye 40.7 1
3 35 Blake Lothian 39.5 1
4 74 Dawson Cram 38.6 1
5 5 Chandler Smith(i) 38.3 1
6 30 Austin J. Hill 36.4 1
7 55 Joey Gase 35.9 1
8 07 Josh Bilicki 33.3 1
9 51 Jeremy Clements 33.2 1
10 87 Austin Green 32.1 1
11 24 Harrison Burton 32.0 1
12 02 Ryan Ellis 30.4 1
13 42 Nathan Byrd 27.4 1
14 26 Dean Thompson 26.9 1
15 96 Anthony Alfredo 26.3 1
16 28 Kyle Sieg 26.1 1
17 25 Nick Sanchez 23.8 1
18 99 Parker Retzlaff 23.7 1
19 88 William Byron(i) 23.5 1
20 45 Lavar Scott # 22.9 1
21 91 Mason Maggio 21.7 2
22 48 Patrick Staropoli# 19.1 2
23 27 Jeb Burton 18.6 2
24 1 Carson Kvapil 17.7 2
25 31 Blaine Perkins 17.6 2
26 39 Ryan Sieg 16.6 2
27 0 Garrett Smithley 16.0 2
28 20 Brandon Jones 14.1 2
29 41 Sam Mayer 13.1 2
30 54 Taylor Gray 12.6 2
31 19 Brent Crews 11.4 2
32 44 Brennan Poole 10.9 2
33 18 William Sawalich 9.4 2
34 00 Sheldon Creed 8.9 2
35 32 Rajah Caruth 7.8 2
36 7 Justin Allgaier 6.5 2
37 17 Corey Day 5.9 2
38 8 Sammy Smith 4.2 2
39 2 Jesse Love 3.4 2
40 21 Austin Hill 1.7 2
- Required to qualify on time # denotes series rookie (i) denotes ineligible for driver points
So, there you have it! The qualifying orders for both series are set, and the race weekend is almost upon us. Will the favorites live up to expectations, or will there be some unexpected twists? Find out as the action unfolds at the Phoenix Raceway!
And this is the part most people miss... qualifying can be just as exciting as the race itself! Keep an eye on those starting positions, as they could be the key to an unforgettable race.
What are your predictions for the Phoenix Raceway spring races? Who do you think will dominate the desert tracks? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
