The NASCAR Cup Series Las Vegas event, known as the South Point 400, is set to intensify the playoff chase as the action shifts to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, October 12. The 1.5-mile asphalt oval will serve as the opening contest for the Round of 8, a critical battleground where drivers like Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, William Byron, and others compete for a coveted spot in the Championship 4.
The green flag for the 267-lap, 400.5-mile race drops at 5:30 p.m. ET, with fans able to tune in on USA Network or listen via PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. A $9,797,935 purse adds further stakes to this pivotal playoff showdown in the Cup Series.
Schedule for NASCAR in Las Vegas: Practice, Qualifying, and Races
The NASCAR weekend features a packed slate of activity at Las Vegas. On Saturday, October 11, the day begins with NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) practice and Kennametal Pole Qualifying at 2 p.m. ET, accessible through the CW app. Later, at 4:30 p.m. ET, NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) drivers take to the track for practice and compete in the Busch Light Pole Qualifying, broadcast on truTV, PRN, and SiriusXM. Saturday concludes with the NXS Focused Health 302 race at 7:30 p.m. ET, airing on CW, PRN, and SiriusXM.
The main event, the NASCAR Cup Series Las Vegas – South Point 400, begins Sunday, October 12 at 5:30 p.m. ET, shown on USA, with radio coverage via PRN and SiriusXM.
Critical Storylines and Key Insights for Las Vegas
This year’s event marks the 36th Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, with the playoff format increasingly shaping its competitive identity. Each playoff race at the track has opened a round, and this season continues that trend as Las Vegas launches the Round of 8, followed by Talladega and Martinsville, creating a sequence of challenging tracks. Notably, Talladega appears in the Round of 8 for the first time, adding another layer of unpredictability to the playoff narrative.
The spring Las Vegas race produced a track-record 32 lead changes and saw Josh Berry become the first driver to claim his debut Cup Series win at this venue. The races here are often decided in dramatic fashion: in seven of the last eight, the margin of victory was less than a second, and in four of the last seven, the decisive pass happened in the final six laps. Three of the last five victors at Las Vegas swept the stages, underscoring the importance of both speed and strategy throughout the race distance.
Notable Drivers and Their Las Vegas Performances
Among the field, repeat winners are rare. Joey Logano leads with four wins over the past 15 races, while Kyle Larson has three. Other notable winners include William Byron and Denny Hamlin—Hamlin being the only Toyota driver to claim victory at Las Vegas in the past 11 events. Starting position historically plays a crucial role, as 10 of the last 11 races have been won from inside the top 10 grid spots. Stage racing has also proven significant, with the stage two winner capturing victory in 10 of 16 races since the introduction of stages at Las Vegas.
Kyle Larson stands out with a track-leading 690 laps led, seven stage wins, and the highest average finish (9.39) among multi-race starters. His successes are joined by consistent showings from William Byron, who has five straight top-10 finishes at this venue—tied for his longest such streak at any track, matched only by Talladega.
The track has also served as a launching pad for careers, with Kyle Larson’s first of 26 wins for Hendrick Motorsports coming at Las Vegas in March 2021. Hendrick drivers have secured five of the last nine Las Vegas events with Larson, Alex Bowman, and William Byron contributing to that total.
Recent race data also highlights William Byron and Kyle Larson as serious contenders. Their performances have solidified Hendrick Motorsports as a dominant force on the 1.5-mile tracks, which are prominent in the current playoff format.
Playoff Race, Historical Impact, and The Championship Chase
Victory in the opening race of the Round of 8 has proven to be a strong predictor for championship glory, with three of the last four season champions winning this Vegas race en route to their titles. This weekend’s contest stands as the last of seven on a 1.5-mile track in 2025, and so far, Toyota remains winless on these intermediate ovals for the year.
The race winner has led fewer than 25 laps in five out of six 1.5-mile events thus far in 2025, suggesting that timing and late-race positioning often outweigh pure dominance. Lead changes in the closing laps are a recurrent theme, with the final pass for victory occurring in the last seven laps in six of the previous eight similar races—two of them settled on the very last lap.
Chase Briscoe is notable for being the only playoff driver without prior Championship 4 experience. The competitive bubble to advance to the final round is typically razor thin; in each of the past six years, fewer than 10 points separated the last advancing driver from elimination. Team Penske, associated with Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney, has secured Round of 8 wins in four of the last five seasons, underscoring their status as perennial threats in decisive moments.
Key Performances and Patterns on 1.5-Mile Tracks
The recent performance history on 1.5-mile tracks offers clues for this Sunday’s outcome. Kyle Larson has finished in the top 10 in the last three such races—matching his best streak since earlier in the season—while Ryan Blaney has struggled, averaging a 23rd-place finish with four results of 24th or worse over six races in 2025.
Notably, prior experience on the current round’s tracks could play a role in shaping strategies, as both Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott are the only drivers this year to finish top 10 at all three of these venues. Byron joins them in terms of laps led and competitiveness. The current crop of Round of 8 drivers has dominated, winning five of the past six Las Vegas races and holding a similar winning streak at Martinsville as well.
Points accumulation remains a focal point: in the last two years, only one driver has reached the Championship 4 merely through points. Historically, none have pointed their way to the final round with a finish worse than 25th in the Round of 8, with an average finish required of about eighth place.
Ryan Blaney’s average points across the three prior Round of 8 tracks stand at 13 per race, while the bubble to advance has consistently hovered around 38 points per race since 2017. The only two drivers since 2017 to reach the Championship 4 after being below the cutline entering the round are Chase Elliott (minus eight) and Martin Truex Jr. (minus twenty-two) in 2021.
NASCAR Cup Series Las Vegas Playoff Scenarios
Heading into Las Vegas, none of the drivers have secured a spot in the Championship 4. Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano all remain in contention and can guarantee advancement with a win in Sunday’s race.
Joey Logano faces steep odds, entering the Round of 8 with a 24-point deficit to the cutline—the largest gap ever faced at this stage. On the other end, top seed Denny Hamlin arrives just eight points above the cutline, representing the smallest margin for a number one seed since 2019, when Kyle Busch entered at plus eighteen. The projected cutline points total is lower this year, in part due to typically lower points scored at drafting tracks like Talladega.
The Road Ahead in the NASCAR Playoff Picture
The Las Vegas stop in the NASCAR Cup Series Las Vegas Playoff round is critical for drivers like Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, and others vying for a championship berth. A win locks a driver into the final four, but the battle for points is fiercer than ever with slim margins and high stakes for each remaining contender. The high-speed drama at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is poised to shape the Championship 4 driver lineup, setting the stage for the remainder of the Playoffs and ultimately the crowning of the series champion.
