It’s a Toyota lockout in the first two rows with a 1-2-3 Joe Gibbs Racing in Las Vegas NASCAR Cup qualifying.
Christopher Bell moved to the top of the standings and was the only driver to break the 28-second mark. Four of Bell’s 15 career poles have come at Vegas, with the other three coming in 2022 (first career Cup Series pole), 2023 and 2024.
Advertisement
“Our Camry Interstate Batteries is very nice,” Bell said with a smile after qualifying. “I’ve talked about it a lot over the last couple of races, but I’m just super, super proud of my team. We’re finally getting back to where we need to be and it feels good. We were able to qualify really well on these intermediates, and then, I don’t know, I feel like we lost a little bit and now we got it back. My engineers, my crew chief, my mechanics, my pit crew – everyone did such a good job in 2026. It’s so much fun to drive this #20 car and I’m excited for tomorrow.”
He beat teammate Denny Hamlin by 0.150 seconds, both followed by Ty Gibbs in third, who is coming off back-to-back top-five finishes. Bubba Wallace rounded out the Toyota quartet in fourth, while Kyle Larson led the Chevrolets in fifth.
Ryan Blaney was the highest-qualified Ford driver in sixth, followed by championship leader Tyler Reddick in seventh, Ryan Preece in eighth, William Byron in ninth and Chris Buescher in tenth.
Advertisement
There were no incidents during the session and all cars managed to record a time. Ty Dillon was the slowest of all, but he also didn’t practice as he was one of four drivers whose cars struggled to pass inspection earlier in the day.
Photos from Las Vegas – Practices and Qualifications
Chris Buescher, RFK Racing
Chris Buescher, RFK Racing
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
John Hunter Nemechek, Legacy Motor Club
John Hunter Nemechek, Legacy Motor Club
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Advertisement
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
AJ Allmendinger, Kaulig Racing
AJ Allmendinger, Kaulig Racing
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Austin Cindric, Team Penske
Austin Cindric, Team Penske
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports
Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Advertisement
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Connor Zilisch, Track Running
Connor Zilisch, Track Running
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Connor Zilisch, Track Running
Connor Zilisch, Track Running
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Daniel Suarez, Spire Motorsports
Daniel Suarez, Spire Motorsports
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Joey Logano, Team Penske
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Daniel Suarez, Spire Motorsports
Daniel Suarez, Spire Motorsports
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Advertisement
Las Vegas NASCAR Cup starting lineup
|
1 |
20 |
Christopher Bell |
Toyota |
28,853 |
187.156 |
|
|
2 |
11 |
Denis Hamlin |
Toyota |
29.003 |
0.150 |
186,188 |
|
3 |
54 |
Ty Gibbs |
Toyota |
29,063 |
0.210 |
185,803 |
|
4 |
23 |
Darrell Wallace Jr. |
Toyota |
29,068 |
0.215 |
185,771 |
|
5 |
5 |
Kyle Larson |
Chevrolet |
29.103 |
0.250 |
185,548 |
|
6 |
12 |
Ryan Blaney |
Ford |
29.160 |
0.307 |
185.185 |
|
7 |
45 |
Tyler Reddick |
Toyota |
29.168 |
0.315 |
185.134 |
|
8 |
60 |
Ryan Preece |
Ford |
29.205 |
0.352 |
184,900 |
|
9 |
24 |
William Byron |
Chevrolet |
29,217 |
0.364 |
184,824 |
|
10 |
17 |
Chris Buescher |
Ford |
29,245 |
0.392 |
184,647 |
|
11 |
3 |
Austin Dillon |
Chevrolet |
29,250 |
0.397 |
184,615 |
|
12 |
38 |
Zane Smith |
Ford |
29,252 |
0.399 |
184,603 |
|
13 |
7 |
Daniel Suarez |
Chevrolet |
29,279 |
0.426 |
184,433 |
|
14 |
43 |
Erik Jones |
Toyota |
29,285 |
0.432 |
184,395 |
|
15 |
9 |
Chase Elliott |
Chevrolet |
29,289 |
0.436 |
184,370 |
|
16 |
97 |
Shane van Gisbergen |
Chevrolet |
29,294 |
0.441 |
184,338 |
|
17 |
1 |
Ross Chastain |
Chevrolet |
29,338 |
0.485 |
184.062 |
|
18 |
19 |
Chase Briscoe |
Toyota |
29,343 |
0.490 |
184.030 |
|
19 |
77 |
Carson Hocevar |
Chevrolet |
29,356 |
0.503 |
183,949 |
|
20 |
35 |
Riley Herbst |
Toyota |
29,363 |
0.510 |
183,905 |
|
21 |
48 |
Justin Allgaier |
Chevrolet |
29,376 |
0.523 |
183,824 |
|
22 |
22 |
Joey Logano |
Ford |
29,376 |
0.523 |
183,824 |
|
23 |
47 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
Chevrolet |
29,387 |
0.534 |
183,755 |
|
24 |
8 |
Kyle Busch |
Chevrolet |
29,455 |
0.602 |
183,331 |
|
25 |
88 |
Connor Zilisch |
Chevrolet |
29,478 |
0.625 |
183,187 |
|
26 |
42 |
John Hunter Nemechek |
Toyota |
29,493 |
0.640 |
183,094 |
|
27 |
34 |
Todd Gilliland |
Ford |
29,493 |
0.640 |
183,094 |
|
28 |
6 |
Brad Keselowski |
Ford |
29,504 |
0.651 |
183,026 |
|
29 |
16 |
AJ Allmendinger |
Chevrolet |
29,530 |
0.677 |
182,865 |
|
30 |
71 |
Michael McDowell |
Chevrolet |
29,652 |
0.799 |
182.113 |
|
31 |
2 |
Austin Cindric |
Ford |
29,690 |
0.837 |
181,879 |
|
32 |
21 |
Josh Berry |
Ford |
29,745 |
0.892 |
181,543 |
|
33 |
51 |
Cody Ware |
Chevrolet |
29,770 |
0.917 |
181,391 |
|
34 |
4 |
Noah Gragson |
Ford |
30,059 |
1.206 |
179,647 |
|
35 |
41 |
Cole Custer |
Chevrolet |
30,250 |
1,397 |
178,512 |
|
36 |
10 |
Ty Dillon |
Chevrolet |
30,607 |
1,754 |
176,430 |
To read more articles on Motorsport.com visit our website.
