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The NASCAR Cup Series will stop at Michigan International Speedway for the first time this season and promises an exciting race on the fast, 2-mile oval track.
Michigan is the 24th race of the season, and after Sunday, there are just two races left before the 16-driver playoff field is set. Four playoff spots are still up for grabs, giving winless drivers three weekends, including today, to secure an automatic spot with a victory. With 12 playoff spots already filled, at least one driver is assured of making the playoffs on points even if three new winners emerge in these final three races of the regular season.
USA TODAY Sports has full coverage of today’s FireKeepers Casino 400. Stay tuned for the latest updates, highlights and results from Michigan.
Rain has picked up at Michigan International Speedway, further delaying the start of today’s FireKeepers Casino 400 NASCAR Cup Series race. Jet dryers and Air Titans have been deployed on the oval to dry the track and drivers have exited their cars, which were covered on pit road.
After the cars completed a few speed laps at Michigan International Speedway in preparation for the green flag for the FireKeepers Casino 400, NASCAR officials ordered the cars to return to pit road because light rain had fallen in the area, delaying the start of the race.
When does the NASCAR Cup race in Michigan start?
The FireKeepers Casino 400 begins at 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan.
What TV channel will broadcast the NASCAR Cup race in Michigan?
USA Network will broadcast the FireKeepers Casino 400 and offer pre-race coverage beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Will there be a live stream of the NASCAR Cup race in Michigan?
The FireKeepers Casino 400 can be streamed live on the NBCSports website and NBC Sports app. The race can also be streamed on Fubo.
There’s a good chance of rain at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday.
It will be mostly cloudy and humid throughout the afternoon, with a 55 percent chance of rain and possible thunderstorms, according to the AccuWeather forecast.
There is a north-northwest wind at 9 mph with gusts up to 18 mph.
The FireKeepers Casino 400 consists of 200 laps of the 2-mile track for a total of 400 miles. The race consists of three legs (laps per leg) – Leg 1: 45 laps; Leg 2: 75 laps; Leg 3: 80 laps.
Denny Hamlin set the fastest time in Saturday’s qualifying session in his No. 11 Toyota and will start on the pole position for Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400. Tyler Reddick will also start on the front row in his No. 45 Toyota, as Toyota drivers took four of the top five spots in qualifying.
(Car number in brackets)
- 1. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
- 2. (45) Tyler Reddick, Toyota
- 3. (20) Christopher Bell, Toyota
- 4. (5) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
- 5. (23) Bubba Wallace, Toyota
- 6. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
- 7. (1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet
- 8. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
- 9. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet
- 10. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
- 11. (77) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet
- 12. (99) Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet
- 13. (8) Kyle Busch, Chevrolet
- 14. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
- 15. (6) Brad Keselowski, Ford
- 16. (4) Josh Berry, Ford
- 17. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford
- 18. (17) Chris Buescher, Ford
- 19. (54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota
- 20. (38) Todd Gilliland, Ford
- 21. (14) Chase Briscoe, Ford
- 22. (48) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet
- 23. (2) Austin Cindric, Ford
- 24. (19) Martin Truex, Toyota
- 25. (10) Noah Gragson, Ford
- 26. (41) Ryan Preece, Ford
- 27. (71) Zane Smith, Chevrolet
- 28. (43) Erik Jones, Toyota
- 29. (51) Justin Haley, Ford
- 30. (47) Ricky Stenhouse, Chevrolet
- 31. (7) Corey LaJoie, Chevrolet
- 32. (31) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet
- 33. (42) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota
- 34. (21) Harrison Burton, Ford
- 35. (16) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet
- 36. (15) Cody Ware, Ford
Chris Buescher led 52 laps, including the final 12, before defeating Martin Truex Jr. by a minuscule 0.152 seconds on August 7, 2023, for his second of three victories last season. Buescher, who is winless in 2024, currently sits 13th in the driver standings and has a good chance of making the playoffs.
This season, 13 drivers have won races, but only 12 have secured a playoff spot after NASCAR penalized Austin Dillon, who won last week’s race at Richmond Raceway, by stripping him of his playoff spot for scaring Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin on the final lap.
There are three races left in the regular season, including Sunday’s race at Michigan, and four playoff spots are still up for grabs. A win secures a playoff spot, but some drivers could still make the playoffs based on their points.
Winners 2024 (points in brackets): Kyle Larson 4 (779); Denny Hamlin 3 (758); Christopher Bell 3 (701); William Byron 3 (678); Ryan Blaney 2 (702); Tyler Reddick 1 (774); Chase Elliott 1 (773); Brad Keselowski 1 (636); Alex Bowman 1 (615); Joey Logano 1 (557); Daniel Suarez 1 (497); Austin Cindric 1 (451); Austin Dillon (319) – Dillon lost his automatic playoff spot.
If no more winless drivers reach Victory Lane in the next three races, these are the drivers who are in a position to advance to the playoffs on points before Sunday’s race in Michigan:
- 13. Martin Truex Jr.: 662 points, +78 over the cutline
- 14. Ty Gibbs: 602 points, +18 over the cutline
- 15. Bubba Wallace: 587 points, +3 over the cutline
- 16. (same time) Chris Buescher: 584 points
- 16. (same time): Ross Chastain: 584 points
- Saturday, August 24th: At Daytona International Speedway, 7:30 p.m. ET (NBC)
- Sunday, September 1st: At Darlington Raceway, 6:00 p.m. ET (USA Network)
The NASCAR playoffs with ten races and 16 drivers begin on September 8 with the Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
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