What to Keep an Eye on in the Cup Race at Las Vegas

What’s Happening?

NASCAR’s annual West Coast Swing marches on with our biannual stop in Sin City. That’s right. Today, the greatest drivers in the world take to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Pennzoil 400 Presented by Jiffy Lube. The odds-on favorite to win today is, of course, the driver of the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, Kyle Larson. He won yesterday after having a modest run. Can he do it again today? He starts in the top 5 but will have to go through the Toyotas to get it done. Meanwhile, Christopher Bell nabbed the Busch Light Pole as defending race winner, Josh Berry, starts deep in the field.

Let’s break down all that and more. Here’s what you need to keep your eyes peeled for in today’s NASCAR Cup Series Race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

For these three, they call Las Vegas home.

The rest of the field calls it the next opportunity. pic.twitter.com/M2OKwhEFlN

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) March 15, 2026

Pre-Race Fast Notes:

• The big storyline heading into today is just how fast the Toyotas have fired off this season. They won the first three races in a row with Tyler Reddick. Now, in Vegas, they claim the first four starting spots with Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs claiming the first row. It is Bell’s fourth pole at the track but he has yet to cash in and win in Sin City. His best finish at the track is a pair of 2nd places, which he earned in 2023 and 2024 respectively. In the fall 2025 race at the track, he finished 3rd. Could today be his day?
• Also, keep an eye on Ty Gibbs. Despite the controversy around him and his role in the JGR and Chris Gabehart lawsuit, he’s off to a good start to the year. The last two weeks, he finished in the Top 5 and even led some laps. Could today be the day that he gets that monkey off his back and finally captures his first Cup Series checkered flag?
• Also starting strong in the Toyota camp are veteran driver Denny Hamlin and his 23XI driver, Bubba Wallace. Wallace currently sits 3rd in the standings after a strong start to the year. He has yet to record a finish worse than 11th with three of the four races to start the 2026 season being finishes within the Top 10.
• Since switching to the new Chevy body, Chevrolets have been slow to start the year. The highest starter in the field today is Kyle Larson, rolling off 5th with his teammate, William Byron, starting 7th. Don’t get me wrong, they’re good but they’re just not showing race-winning speed. But if anyone can get them over that hurdle, Larson might just be the guy to do it.
• Defending race winner, Josh Berry, had a shockingly slow qualifying time. After a lot of promise to start the year, he’ll be rolling off the grid today in the 32nd position. He’ll have a lot of work in front of him if he wants to defend his win.
• Coverage for today’s race begins at 4 PM EST/1 PM PST on FS1, HBOMax, PRN Radio, and SERIUS XM NASCAR Radio.

The Pennzoil 400 Presented by Jiffy Lube Starting Lineup

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