NASCAR at Texas 2020: Start time, lineup, TV schedule and more for O’Reilly Auto Parts 500
It’s race day at Texas Motor Speedway, and we've got all the information you need to get ready for Sunday's O’Reilly Auto Parts 500.
Sunday’s Cup race will be the first major sporting event in Texas with spectators since the coronavirus pandemic shut down the sports world in March. It will be the second time this week the Cup Series has competed in front of fans, after Bristol Motor Speedway had about 20,000 fans for Wednesday's NASCAR All-Star Race.
START TIME: 3 p.m. ET (2 p.m. local).
TV: NBCSN. Pre-race broadcast begins at 2:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. local).
RADIO: Performance Racing Network. STREAMING: stream.nbcsports.com, for those who sign in with their cable/satellite provider's credentials.
RACE DISTANCE: 334 laps around the 1.5-mile track for a total of 501 miles.
STAGE LENGTHS (laps per stage): Stage 1: 105, Stage 2: 105, Stage 3: 164.
LAST TIME: Kevin Harvick dominated the playoff race last November, leading 119 laps before holding off Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Aric Almirola by 1.594 seconds. In the March 2019 race at Texas, Denny Hamlin led 45 laps, including the final 12, and topped Clint Bowyer by 2.743 seconds.
QUALIFYING: No practice sessions or qualifying was held at Texas, so the starting lineup was determined by a random draw among groups in the team owner standings:
- Positions 1-12: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
- Positions 13-24: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
- Positions 25-36: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
- Positions 37-40: Open teams in order of owners points
LINEUP: It will be an all-Ford front row after Aric Almirola drew the pole position and Ryan Blaney drew the No. 2 starting spot.
Here is the lineup for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (car number in parentheses):
1. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford
2. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
3. (1) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet
4. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota
5. (4) Kevin Harvick, Ford
6. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford
7. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
8. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
9. (22) Joey Logano, Chevrolet
10. (19) Martin Truex, Jr., Toyota
11. (21) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford
12. (88) Alex Bowman, , Chevrolet
13. (47) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Chevrolet
14. (43) Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet
15. (6) Ryan Newman, Ford
16. (17) Chris Buescher, Ford
17. (14) Clint Bowyer, Ford
18. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet
19. (41) Cole Custer, Ford
20. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet
21. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
22. (42) Matt Kenseth, Chevrolet
23. (20) Erik Jones, Toyota
24. (8) Tyler Reddick, Chevrolet
25. (37) Ryan Preece, Chevrolet
26. (00) Quin Houff, Chevrolet
27. (53) Garrett Smithley, Chevrolet
28. (38) John Hunter Nemechek, Ford
29. (27) Gray Gaulding Panini America, Ford
30. (13) Ty Dillon GEICO, Chevrolet
31. (51) JJ Yeley, Ford
32. (15) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet
33. (95) Christopher Bell, Toyota
34. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford
35. (77) Joey Gase, Chevrolet
36. (32) Corey LaJoie, Ford
37. (96) Daniel Suarez, Toyota
38. (66) Timmy Hill, Toyota
39. (78) BJ McLeod, Chevrolet
40. (7) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet