NASCAR in Las Vegas: Schedule, watch info, picks for South Point 400

And then there were eight.

Four drivers were eliminated from the NASCAR playoffs last week, as the third round is set to get underway Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The stakes have never been higher in Vegas, with a victory by one of the eight title contenders automatically moving them into the Championship 4.

So, who is racing in Las Vegas? What’s the schedule for TV and streaming? And what drivers could contend for the win? Here’s everything you need to know for 2024 South Point 400:

When is the NASCAR race in Las Vegas?

The South Point 400 is set for Sunday, Oct. 20, at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

Before the race, there will be practice and qualifying sessions on Saturday. The 37 drivers will be split into two groups (found here) with each group getting 20 minutes of free practice and then competing in two-round qualifying. Here’s how it works:

• Each driver will make one lap in the first round, with the five fastest drivers in each group advancing.
• In the final round, the remaining drivers each get one lap to set the top 10 starting order. The fastest driver overall will start on the pole, the fastest driver in the other group will start second.
• Positions 3 through 10 are set on final round times – Group A filling the even-numbered positions (4th, 6th, 8th, 10th), Group B filling the odd-numbered positions (3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th).
• Positions 11 through 37 are set based on first round times – Group A filling the even-numbered positions, Group B filling the odd-numbered positions.

What is the NASCAR TV schedule this weekend?

Leigh Diffey (play-by-play), Jeff Burton (analyst) and Steve Letarte (analyst) will be on the call for NBC with Marty Snider, Kim Coon, and Dillon Welch serving as pit reporters. Here’s the full TV and streaming schedule:

Saturday, Oct. 19 (USA Network and streaming)

• Practice: 4:35 p.m. ET, USA Network NBC Sports app
• Qualifying: 5:20 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app

Sunday, Oct. 20 (NBC and streaming)

• Countdown to Green: 2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports app
• South Point 400: 2:30 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports app

NASCAR Las Vegas entry list, drivers

Thirty-seven drivers will race at Las Vegas – the 34 full-timers, plus three others.

The headliner is seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, who will drive the No. 84 for his eighth of nine starts this season. Then there’s Shane van Gisbergen and Cody Ware, who will continue their part-time schedules for Kaulig Racing and Rick Ware Racing, respectively.

Here’s the full entry list for Las Vegas:

Car number	Driver	Team	Sponsor
1	Ross Chastain	Trackhouse Racing	Worldwide Express
2	Austin Cindric	Team Penske	Autotrader
3	Austin Dillon	Richard Childress Racing	Boot Barn
4	Josh Berry	Stewart-Haas Racing	Mobil 1
5	Kyle Larson	Hendrick Motorsports	HendrickCars.com
6	Brad Keselowski	RFK Racing	King's Hawaiian
7	Justin Haley	Spire Motorsports	Gainbridge
8	Kyle Busch	Richard Childress Racing	FICO
9	Chase Elliott	Hendrick Motorsports	NAPA Auto Parts
10	Noah Gragson	Stewart-Haas Racing	Fanttik
11	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing	Yahoo!
12	Ryan Blaney	Team Penske	Menards
14	Chase Briscoe	Stewart-Haas Racing	Texas A&M
15	Cody Ware	Rick Ware Racing	Parts Plus/Pronto
16	Shane van Gisbergen	Kaulig Racing	Wendy's
17	Chris Buescher	RFK Racing	Castrol
19	Martin Truex Jr.	Joe Gibbs Racing	Bass Pro Shops
20	Christopher Bell	Joe Gibbs Racing	Rheem
21	Harrison Burton	Wood Brothers Racing	DEX Imaging
22	Joey Logano	Team Penske	Pennzoil
23	Bubba Wallace	23XI Racing	Leidos/U.S. Air Force
24	William Byron	Hendrick Motorsports	RaptorTough.com
31	Daniel Hemric	Kaulig Racing	Cirkul
34	Michael McDowell	Front Row Motorsports	Love's Travel Stops
38	Todd Gilliland	Front Row Motorsports	gener8tor
41	Ryan Preece	Stewart-Haas Racing	Bonanza Cabernet
42	John Hunter Nemechek	Legacy Motor Club	Pye-Barker Fire & Safety
43	Erik Jones	Legacy Motor Club	Massey Motor Freight
45	Tyler Reddick	23XI Racing	Jordan Brand
47	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	JTG Daugherty Racing	Scott Brand
48	Alex Bowman	Hendrick Motorsports	Ally
51	Corey LaJoie	Rick Ware Racing	Mighty Fire Breaker
54	Ty Gibbs	Joe Gibbs Racing	Monster Energy
71	Zane Smith	Spire Motorsports	Focused Health
77	Carson Hocevar	Spire Motorsports	Delaware Life
84	Jimmie Johnson	Legacy Motor Club	Dollar Tree/Family Dollar
99	Daniel Suarez	Trackhouse Racing	Tootsies Orchid Lounge

NASCAR Las Vegas predictions, picks, favorites

One organization has ruled this track in recent years: Hendrick Motorsports.

Since 2021 at Las Vegas (seven races), Hendrick’s four drivers have combined for five wins, 10 top-fives, 15 top-10s and 878 laps led. Larson has three wins over that time, including the last two races. Byron and Bowman have one win each, while Elliott has a best finish of second.

Beyond the Hendrick quartet, many of the other playoff drivers are set up for success at Las Vegas. Logano has a 9.9 average finish in 22 starts, with top-15 finishes in 17 of his last 18 races. There’s also Hamlin, who has led laps in eight straight Vegas races.

Bell and Blaney, despite never winning in Vegas, could challenge for their first victories in Sin City. Bell finished second in this race to Larson last fall and dominated at Kansas (a similar track) a few weeks ago, while Blaney has six top-fives in his last 13 Vegas starts.

Looking beyond the playoff field, Busch, Truex and Chastain stand out. Busch, who grew up in Las Vegas, has 12 top-fives in 26 starts at his home track. Truex, making his final Vegas start before retirement, has a 9.8 average finish in 25 starts. Chastain, meanwhile, won at Kansas last month and has four top-fives in his last five Vegas starts.

NASCAR Las Vegas winners list, race history

Nine of the 37 drivers in the field are past winners at Las Vegas, including five with multiple victories.

Johnson leads all drivers with four Las Vegas wins, followed by Larson, Logano and Keselowski with three apiece. Truex has two wins, and the one-time winners are Busch (2009), Hamlin (2021), Bowman (2022) and Byron (2023).

NASCAR playoff standings entering Las Vegas

The standings are reset for the Round of 8, with each driver getting 4,000 points plus their playoff points earned in the first 32 races – and Larson leads the way. Blaney, Hamlin, Elliott and Logano are below the cut line, but they have three races to either win or put themselves into the top four.

You can find a full explanation of NASCAR’s playoff format right here.

Here’s the playoff standings entering Las Vegas:

Rank	Driver	Points
1.	Kyle Larson	4,052 (+33 above the cut)
2.	Christopher Bell	4,032 (+13 above the cut)
3.	Tyler Reddick	4,029 (+10 above the cut)
4.	William Byron	4,023 (+4 above the cut)
5.	Ryan Blaney	4,019 (-4 below the cut)
6.	Denny Hamlin	4,015 (-8 below the cut)
7.	Chase Elliott	4,014 (-9 below the cut)
8.	Joey Logano	4,012 (-11 below the cut)