After hosting the opening race of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs every year from 2020 to 2023, Darlington Raceway is scheduled to host the finale of the regular season in 2024.

The 366-lap Cook Out Southern 500 on the 1.366-mile (2.198-kilometer) four-turn egg-shaped oval track in Darlington, South Carolina, will still take place on Labor Day weekend, but the playoffs are expected to end a week later this year because NBC takes a three-week summer break due to coverage of the Summer Olympics in Paris, France.

The qualifying order for Sunday night’s crown jewel race was determined by the four-variable metric NASCAR adopted in 2024. A full breakdown of that formula can be found here.

The fastest five drivers from each of the two qualifying groups qualify for the second round of the shootout for pole position.

Since the Cup Series race in Darlington in May, there has been a rule change for the second qualifying round, as it is now also group-based.

Group A

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet

Ryan Preece, No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet

Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

Zane Smith, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Harrison Burton, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford

William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet

Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford

Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford

Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota

Group B

Timmy Hill, No. 66 MBM Motorsports Ford

Corey LaJoie, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Noah Gragson, No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Kaz Grala, No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford

Justin Haley, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford

Michael McDowell, No. 34, front row Motorsports Ford

Josh Berry, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford

Todd Gilliland, No. 38, front row Motorsports Ford

Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford

Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford

Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

The Cook Out Southern 500 will be broadcast live from Darlington Raceway on the USA Network this Sunday, September 1, beginning at 6 p.m. ET. The reigning race winner is Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson, and the most recent winner at this track is RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski, who won in May. Start a Try FuboTV for free now and don’t miss the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale!