CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kyle Larson will start from the pole for Sunday Bank of America 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway after rain washed out practice and qualifying Saturday as remnants of Hurricane Isaias moved inland.
Larson, the defending NASCAR Cup champion, leads the playoff standings by 40 points over Denny Hamlin heading into the Charlotte oval race. He already has two postseason victories and three other top-five finishes despite winning no races in the regular season.
Chase Briscoe, last week winner at Las Vegas, will start alongside Larson on the front row. Tyler Reddick and Ryan Blaney fill the second row under the rule-book lineup. Christopher Bell, third in the playoff hunt, will start 17th after the weather cancellation.
Charlotte is the fourth playoff race — and the ninth overall this season — in which weather wiped out qualifying. Bell said Saturday that the top level of American auto racing should still find a way to practice and qualify, even if that means a Sunday morning session before the green flag.
The Bank of America 400 is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET Sunday on the 1.5-mile Concord oval, the first fall race on the Charlotte oval since 2017 after years on the Roval. Frontstretch reporting listed William Byron, Joey Logano, Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott and Shane van Gisbergen rounding out the top 10 starters.
Mayor Rob Harrington administration and Concord-area tourism partners treat Cup weekends at Charlotte Motor Speedway as major hospitality draws for Mecklenburg County. CMPD Chief Estella D. Patterson department often coordinates traffic plans around Speedway Boulevard when race-day crowds peak.
Hamlin is trying to rebound from a 16th-place finish at Las Vegas that widened Larson lead. With five of 10 playoff races still ahead after Charlotte, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney and Chase Briscoe remain within 100 points of the points lead as the Chase reaches its midpoint at the Charlotte track.
