The NASCAR Cup Series is set to make its highly anticipated return to North Wilkesboro Speedway this weekend, headlining the Window World 450 that will unfold under the lights on Sunday night.
Qualifying Order Overview
Fans will have to wait until Saturday to discover the exact starting order, as the grid will be set through a qualifying session that determines each driver’s placement based on a proprietary metric score.
Group One features a tightly contested field, with Chad Finchum securing the pole position with a metric score of 34.500, followed closely by Cody Ware at 33.200 and AJ Allmendinger in third at 32.500. Riley Herbst and Austin Hill round out the top five with scores of 32.000 and 30.700 respectively, while Connor Zilisch, Noah Grayson and Chase Briscoe continue to jockey for position.
The remainder of the lineup in Group One includes Zane Smith, Josh Berry, Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, Alex Bowman, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Brad Keselowski, Ty Dillon, Ryan Preece, Cole Custer, John Hunter Nemechek, and a handful of other competitors, each carrying their own metric values that will influence their race day strategy.
Group Two shifts the focus to a different set of contenders, starting with Todd Gilliland at 20.500, then Daniel Suarez at 18.000 and Michael McDowell at 16.800. Further down the order, William Byron, Austin Cindric, Ross Chastain, Austin Dillon, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Chris Buescher, Shane Van Gisbergen, Denny Hamlin, Erik Jones, Tyler Reddick, Carson Hocevar, Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs, and finally Ryan Blaney round out the field with scores ranging from 1.600 to 8.700.
The blend of veteran talent and emerging drivers promises a dynamic battle, especially as teams fine‑tune their setups after Saturday’s qualifying runs. With the historic venue’s short, tight layout, every position on the grid could prove decisive when the green flag drops on Sunday night.