A look at the NASCAR qualifying results and starting lineup for the 2026 Brickyard 400 NASCAR Cup Series Race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
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One of NASCAR’s most prestigious events is on tap for Sunday. The Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a Crown Jewel race and one of the most storied events on the Cup Series schedule, first held in 1994 as the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to take place on the legendary 2.5-mile oval. This year’s edition carries even more weight — it doubles as the Champions Round of the 2026 NASCAR In-Season Challenge, with Ryan Blaney and Todd Gilliland set to battle head-to-head for a $1 million grand prize on top of the regular season points on the line.
The following shares the official starting grid for Sunday’s race, along with Indianapolis Motor Speedway track details and key observations from NASCAR Cup Series qualifying.
NASCAR Qualifying Results at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
2026 Brickyard 400 Race Info
Date: Sunday, July 26, 2026
Start Time: 2:00 p.m. ET (Green flag: 2:20 p.m. ET)
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway — Speedway, IN
Coverage: TNT Sports, truTV, HBO Max, IMS Radio Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Pole Sitter: Carson Hocevar
Defending Race Winner: Bubba Wallace (2025)
Brickyard 400 Race Breakdown
Distance: 400 miles
Laps: 160
Lap Length: 2.5 miles
Stage 1: Ends Lap 50
Stage 2: Ends Lap 100
Final Stage: Ends Lap 160
Surface: Asphalt
Turns: 4
Banking: Turns — 9°; Front Stretch — 0°; Back Stretch — 0°
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Official Brickyard 400 Starting Lineup
Carson Hocevar delivered a career-defining qualifying lap Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, turning a speed of 186.598 mph in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet to claim the Busch Light Pole Award. It is the second pole of Hocevar’s career and his first at Indianapolis — a remarkable result for the young driver and one of the top single-car qualifying efforts by a Spire Motorsports entry in recent memory.
Daniel Suarez lines up second at 186.382 mph, giving Chevrolet a front-row sweep to open the Brickyard. Tyler Reddick and Ty Gibbs slot into third and fourth, with points leader Denny Hamlin starting fifth. Toyota fills four of the top five starting spots, continuing their dominance as the class of the 2026 field.
Several notable names will have work to do on Sunday. Chase Elliott starts 27th, Kyle Larson draws 10th, and Christopher Bell — who enters as one of the In-Season Challenge favorites — will start 23rd. Casey Mears makes a rare Cup Series appearance in the No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet, starting 38th, while Daniel Dye rounds out the 39-car field in 39th.
| Pos. | Driver | Car No. | Manufacturer | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carson Hocevar | 77 | Chevrolet | 186.598 mph |
| 2 | Daniel Suarez | 7 | Chevrolet | 186.382 mph |
| 3 | Tyler Reddick | 45 | Toyota | 186.077 mph |
| 4 | Ty Gibbs | 54 | Toyota | 185.966 mph |
| 5 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | Toyota | 185.835 mph |
| 6 | Michael McDowell | 71 | Chevrolet | 185.762 mph |
| 7 | Corey Heim | 67 | Toyota | 185.456 mph |
| 8 | Alex Bowman | 48 | Chevrolet | 185.368 mph |
| 9 | AJ Allmendinger | 16 | Chevrolet | 185.345 mph |
| 10 | Kyle Larson | 5 | Chevrolet | 185.315 mph |
| 11 | Chase Briscoe | 19 | Toyota | 185.269 mph |
| 12 | Cole Custer | 41 | Chevrolet | 185.265 mph |
| 13 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Ford | 185.197 mph |
| 14 | Erik Jones | 43 | Toyota | 185.060 mph |
| 15 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Ford | 184.991 mph |
| 16 | Brad Keselowski | 6 | Ford | 184.896 mph |
| 17 | John Hunter Nemechek | 42 | Toyota | 184.877 mph |
| 18 | Riley Herbst | 35 | Toyota | 184.782 mph |
| 19 | Joey Logano | 22 | Ford | 184.699 mph |
| 20 | Austin Dillon | 3 | Chevrolet | 184.699 mph |
| 21 | William Byron | 24 | Chevrolet | 184.574 mph |
| 22 | Ross Chastain | 1 | Chevrolet | 184.540 mph |
| 23 | Christopher Bell | 20 | Toyota | 184.287 mph |
| 24 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | Chevrolet | 184.245 mph |
| 25 | Shane van Gisbergen | 97 | Chevrolet | 184.237 mph |
| 26 | Josh Berry | 21 | Ford | 184.128 mph |
| 27 | Chase Elliott | 9 | Chevrolet | 183.887 mph |
| 28 | Ty Dillon | 10 | Chevrolet | 183.869 mph |
| 29 | Bubba Wallace | 23 | Toyota | 183.861 mph |
| 30 | Zane Smith | 38 | Ford | 183.494 mph |
| 31 | Connor Zilisch | 88 | Chevrolet | 183.132 mph |
| 32 | Austin Hill | 33 | Chevrolet | 183.083 mph |
| 33 | Noah Gragson | 4 | Ford | 182.990 mph |
| 34 | Ryan Preece | 60 | Ford | 182.786 mph |
| 35 | Austin Cindric | 2 | Ford | 182.726 mph |
| 36 | Todd Gilliland | 34 | Ford | 182.460 mph |
| 37 | Cody Ware | 51 | Chevrolet | 182.072 mph |
| 38 | Casey Mears | 62 | Chevrolet | 179.522 mph |
| 39 | Daniel Dye | 78 | Chevrolet | 178.962 mph |
NASCAR Brickyard 400 Qualifying Notes
- Carson Hocevar claimed his second career pole and first at Indianapolis with a lap of 186.598 mph. It is one of the strongest qualifying efforts in Spire Motorsports history and a significant milestone for the 22-year-old driver, who continues to establish himself as one of the rising stars in the Cup Series.
- Daniel Suarez starts alongside Hocevar in second at 186.382 mph, giving Chevrolet a front-row sweep. Suarez has been quietly consistent in 2026 and will be a driver to watch from the front.
- Toyota placed four cars in the top five — Tyler Reddick (P3), Ty Gibbs (P4), and Denny Hamlin (P5) — continuing a season-long pattern of Toyota dominance across qualifying and race results.
- Ryan Blaney, who enters as the No. 3 seed in the In-Season Challenge Champions Round and will battle Todd Gilliland (P36) for the $1 million prize, starts 13th. Blaney’s superior starting position is a notable advantage in the head-to-head matchup — Gilliland will need a tremendous race just to out-finish him.
- Todd Gilliland starts 36th, making his path to an In-Season Challenge victory an extremely difficult one. The No. 25 seed has pulled off upsets before in this year’s tournament but will need everything to go right on Sunday.
- Chase Elliott had a quiet qualifying session and will start 27th. One of Hendrick Motorsports’ top performers this season, Elliott will need to work his way through the field at a track that historically rewards patience and clean laps.
- Corey Heim makes his eighth Cup Series start of the season in the No. 67 23XI Racing Toyota, starting seventh — his best starting position of the year.
- Casey Mears starts 38th in the No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet. Mears has 496 career Cup Series starts and is one of the more experienced part-time competitors in the garage.
- Bubba Wallace, the defending Brickyard 400 winner, starts 29th. The 2025 race winner will need a strong strategy to get back to victory lane.
- 39 cars are entered in Sunday’s race — the largest field of the past several weeks.
