Chase Briscoe will start on the pole in the final NASCAR Cup Series race of the season, but all eyes will be on Kyle Larson
The driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports has one hand what would be his third championship trophy entering the race on Sunday, Nov. 8 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. All Larson needs to do is score nine points to secure the title.
Larson’s team seems to be loose entering the season finale.
“They were debating on if a hot dog is a sandwich and if cereal is a soup,” Larson said of his No. 5 crew. “I would say they're pretty relaxed ... A hot dog is not a sandwich. Absolutely, cereal is not a soup.”
And that should be easy enough for the 34-year-old wheelman from California. Larson has an average finish of 12th
at Homestead through 12 races, which is eighth-best all-time. Larson also has led more laps at Homestead than any other driver in the history of the Cup Series with 645. He has two wins there, coming in 2022 and 2025.
Larson will start the race in fourth place. He’ll score one point for starting, and then just needs eight stage points across the first two portions of the race to seal the championship. Regardless of stage points, if Larson finishes 28th or better in the race, he will win the title.
“I just want to be the fastest every time I hit the track,” Larson said Saturday after qualifying. “I just have high expectations when I come here and want to do a really good job.
“There's going to be fast guys coming from behind, too. I'm just hoping we can stay in the top 10 all day.”
The only two other drivers still mathematically eligible for the championship are Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell, both of Joe Gibbs Racing. To win the title over Larson, Hamlin or Bell would have to win the race and score stage points – Bell would need 14 and Hamlin would need 17 in addition to a victory.
Simply put, Hamlin or Bell have to have one of their greatest races ever while hoping that something disastrous happens to Larson on arguably his top track.
Elsewhere on the track, fans might notice a neutered version of the No. 77 Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports as the hard-driving Carson Hocevar won’t be behind the wheel. Following his incident with Austin Cindric at Martinsville — where Hocevar brake-checked Cindric multiple times and destroyed his No. 2 Team Penske Ford — Spire suspended Hocevar for the race.
Justin Haley, a former Cup Series winner at Daytona who has raced for Kaulig Racing in the Truck Series this season, will fill in for Hocevar. NASCAR also fined Hocevar and Josh Berry, and docked them points, for separate brake-checking incidents at Martinsville.
Additionally, Casey Mears is making his 500th NASCAR Cup Series start in Sunday’s race, driving the No. 62 Chevrolet for Beard Motorsports. Meanwhile, JJ Yeley, piloting the No. 44 Chevrolet for NY Racing, will be making his 400th Cup Series start. Yeley joins Morgan Shepherd and Joe Nemechek as the only drivers to have 400 or more starts in both the Cup Series and second-tier O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
Here’s everything you need to know about the final NASCAR Cup Series race of 2026 at Homestead-Miami Speedway:
What time does the NASCAR race at Homestead start?
The green flag is set to drop on the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 8, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.
What TV channel is the NASCAR race at Homestead on?
The NASCAR Cup Series Championship will be broadcast on NBC. Pre-race coverage will start at 2 p.m. ET.
It is the fourth of four races this season on NBC, but the broadcast will still be produced by the USA Sports crew.
Leigh Diffey will have the call alongside analysts Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte, while Dale Jarrett and Brad Daugherty will offer additional analysis from the pit box. Marty Snider will host the pre- and postrace shows, and he, Kim Coon, Dave Burns and Trevor Bayne will report from pit road.
Will there be a live stream of the NASCAR race at Homestead?
Despite being on NBC, this race will not be streamed on Peacock.
Subscribers to YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV can watch the NASCAR Cup Series Championship through those services.
HBO Max will continue to provide live streams of in-car cameras, while MRN will carry the live radio broadcast.
How many laps is the NASCAR race at Homestead?
The NASCAR Cup Series Championship is 267 laps around the 1.5-mile asphalt oval for a total of 400.5 miles. The race will have three segments (laps per stage) — Stage 1: 80 laps; Stage 2: 85 laps; Stage 3: 102 laps.
What is the weather for the NASCAR race at Homestead?
The track at Homestead-Miami Speedway should be dry and the NASCAR Cup Series Championship should start on time.
The National Weather Service is forecasting a mostly sunny afternoon, with a high temperature near 84 degrees with winds of 5 miles-per-hour from the north,
Into the evening, projections say it will be partly cloudy with a low temperature around 72 degrees with light wind.
Who won the last NASCAR race at Homestead?
The Cup Series has raced annually at Homestead since 1999. It was the host of the season finale from 2002 through 2019. After moving the championship race to Phoenix for six years, it’s back in south Florida.
Kyle Larson won the last Cup Series race at Homestead, held on March 23, 2025. Larson has also led more laps at Homestead than any other driver in Cup Series history.
Three drivers have three wins at Homestead, with Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle and Denny Hamlin tied for the most victories there.
What are the current standings for the NASCAR Chase?
Drivers already mathematically eliminated have an asterisk.
- Kyle Larson
- Christopher Bell -67
- Denny Hamlin -70
- Chase Briscoe -84*
- Joey Logano -103*
- Tyler Reddick -125*
- Ryan Blaney -133*
- Ty Gibbs -160*
- William Byron -166*
- Chase Elliott -201*
- Austin Cindric -206*
- Bubba Wallace -212*
- Carson Hocevar -235*
- Ryan Preece -255*
- Daniel Suarez -259*
- Chris Buescher -270*
What is the lineup for the NASCAR race at Homestead?
(Car number in parentheses, Chase drivers designated with asterisk)
- Chase Briscoe (19) — Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing*
- Denny Hamlin (11) — Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing*
- Tyler Reddick (45) — Toyota, 23XI Racing*
- Kyle Larson (5) — Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports*
- Austin Cindric (2) — Ford, Team Penske*
- Christopher Bell (20) — Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing*
- Chase Elliott (9) — Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports*
- William Byron (24) — Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports*
- Ryan Blaney (12) — Ford, Team Penske*
- Daniel Suarez (7) — Chevrolet, Spire Motorsports*
- Austin Hill (33) — Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Michael McDowell (71) — Chevrolet, Spire Motorsports
- Alex Bowman (48) — Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports
- Josh Berry (21) — Ford, Wood Brothers
- Ross Chastain (1) — Chevrolet, Trackhouse Racing
- Corey Heim (67) — Toyota, 23XI Racing
- Chris Buescher (17) — Ford, RFK Racing*
- Bubba Wallace (23) — Toyota, 23XI Racing*
- Joey Logano (22) — Ford, Team Penske*
- Ty Gibbs (54) — Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing*
- Austin Dillon (3) — Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47) — Chevrolet, HYAK Motorsports
- Connor Zilisch (88) — Chevrolet, Trackhouse Racing
- Erik Jones (43) — Toyota, Legacy Motor Club
- Todd Gilliland (34) — Ford, Front Row Motorsports
- Justin Haley (77) — Chevrolet, Spire Motorsports
- Zane Smith (38) — Ford, Front Row Motorsports
- Cole Custer (41) — Chevrolet, Haas Factory Team
- AJ Allmendinger (16) — Chevrolet, Kaulig Racing
- Riley Herbst (35) — Toyota, 23XI Racing
- Ty Dillon (10) — Chevrolet, Kaulig Racing
- Ryan Preece (60) — Ford, RFK Racing*
- Noah Gragson (4) — Ford, Front Row Motorsports
- Shane van Gisbergen (97) — Chevrolet, Trackhouse Racing
- Cody Ware (51) — Chevrolet, Rick Ware Racing
- John Hunter Nemechek (42) — Toyota, Legacy Motor Club
- Casey Mears (62) — Chevrolet, Beard Motorsports
- JJ Yeley (44) — Chevrolet, NY Racing
- Chad Finchum (66) — Ford, Garage 66
- Brad Keselowski (6) — Ford, RFK Racing
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NASCAR race at Homestead: Start time, TV, streaming, lineup, weather for championship
