The unofficial kickoff of the NASCAR season happens annually with Sunday’s event at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, airing at 8 pm on Fox. This marks the first time the non-points race is held on a traditional quarter-mile track after three years at a temporary quarter-mile circuit inside the Los Angeles Coliseum.
For those new to the event, Bowman Gray is famous for its close-contact, intense weekly races filled with dramatic driver confrontations. While such incidents are rare in Sunday night Cup Series races, fans should still expect some physical racing action.
Sunday night’s race covers 200 laps, featuring 23 of the 39 entered cars. Only green flag laps count during the heats and main event, but due to frequent crashes and caution periods, the race could last a while.
Practice is divided into three groups, each with 13 drivers, sorted based on owner points from the 2024 season. Group 1 includes William Byron and Kyle Larson, Group 2 has Ryan Branny and Christopher Bell, and Group 3 features Joey Logano and Tyler Reddick.
Qualifying for four 25-lap heat races will be based on fastest lap times from practice. The highest lap time overall earns the pole for the first heat, the second fastest for the second heat, and so on. Three heats feature 10 drivers and one has nine, with practice starting Saturday at 6 pm and heat races at 8:30 pm on FS1.
The top five drivers from each heat advance to the main event, filling positions 1-20. Three spots remain open for Sunday’s main race. Two of these will be decided in a 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier race featuring 19 drivers who didn’t qualify on Saturday, with the top two finishers earning spots 21 and 22. The 23rd and final spot goes to the highest-ranked driver from last year’s points who did not qualify through heats or the last-chance race. Defending Cup Series champion Logano is secured in the field based on his points, and if he claims an auto spot, fellow driver Blaney would also be guaranteed entry based on his 2024 standing.
Fan Take: This race is a thrilling prelude to the Daytona 500, offering fans fast-paced action and intense driver rivalries on a classic short track. It’s a reminder of NASCAR’s roots and showcases the gritty, aggressive style that keeps fans on the edge of their seats every season.
