Track: Texas Motor Speedway
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Track length: 1.5 miles
When: Sunday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Where to tune in: FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Race purse: $11,055,250
Race distance: 267 laps | 400.5 miles
Stages: 80 | 165 | 267
Defending winner: Chase Elliott, April 2024
Starting lineup: Carson Hocevar hustles to Busch Light Pole
Uncertainty is bigger in Texas
A few things you can count on when NASCAR’s traveling troupe heads to Texas Motor Speedway: marketing with a side dish of swagger (“No Limits”), the “everything’s bigger in …” trope, replays of the Michael McDowell qualifying crash, and the on-brand cowboy hats awaiting the winner in Victory Lane. Something that’s less counted on: A sure thing when it comes to establishing a favorite.
The Cup Series digs deeper into the regular season with three consecutive points-paying races at intermediate-sized tracks lined up in May, starting with Sunday’s Würth 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). That stretch is only broken up by the non-points NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway’s short track on May 18.
Kansas on May 11 and the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte on May 25 follow Sunday’s 400-miler. A trifecta of 1.5-mile circuits might resemble a return to what’s traditionally been the lifeblood of the Cup Series schedule, setting the tone for who might contend in the balance of the season. It also might be a welcome sight for the field after getting through the gauntlet last weekend at the ever-unpredictable Talladega Superspeedway, where 10 different drivers have won the last 10 races.
MORE: Cup Series standings | Full 2025 schedule
Texas, however, might not be the safe haven for tried-and-true favorites at first blush, bearing some similarities to Talladega, at least on paper. The last eight Cup Series races at Texas have been won by eight different drivers. That’s not even the longest such streak in track history; a soup of 13 unique winners ratcheted up the variety in a span that stretched from 1998 to 2007.
There’s also variation in the more recent history of races on 1.5-mile tracks. The last six events on intermediate-sized ovals have also been won by six different drivers.
A top candidate to extend both of those streaks is Ryan Blaney, who is still searching for his first victory of the 2025 campaign. The Team Penske driver won the last running of the All-Star Race at Texas in 2022, but he’s also poised to break through on the points-paying side. Blaney has accumulated the most Cup Series points (224) in the last six Cup Series races there, and his 216 laps led during that stretch is second only to another former Cup champ, Kyle Larson (451).
Carson Hocevar, last year’s top rookie, is another ready to throw his wide-brimmed hat into the winner’s ring after becoming a first-time pole winner in Saturday’s session. It’s the latest qualifying coup for Spire Motorsports, which notched its first-ever Cup pole a month ago with McDowell at 1.5-mile Las Vegas.
Drivers will also need to not create their own Texas turmoil, being mindful to avoid clipping the infield grass in the frontstretch dogleg. Putting a wheel off there has caused multiple incidents already this weekend in the Craftsman Truck Series and Xfinity Series races that have preceded Sunday’s 400-miler.
MORE: Full Saturday recap
From atop the pit box …
What do crew chiefs have in focus to win Sunday’s race?
Texas Motor Speedway is one of the more unique mile-and-a-half race tracks that the Cup Series visits. With varying degrees of banking at each end and temperatures that can make the racing surface slippery, crew chiefs must ensure the balance is just right to set up for success.
“The two ends are very, very different,” said James Small, crew chief for the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driven by Chase Briscoe. “You know, we don’t really go to many tracks outside of Darlington that have this much of a difference between (Turns) 1 and 2 and 3 and 4.”
Chevrolet crew chief Travis Peterson, who oversees Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports entry, echoed Small’s sentiments about the evolving challenges that Texas presents, emphasizing the importance of achieving the perfect balance to handle everything that Turns 3 and 4 throw at you.
“It’s such a fast corner that it almost feels like a straightaway,” Peterson told NASCAR.com. “So you really kind of plan the whole thing for one end, and then it’ll change the way you approach your setup and your body builds and things like that. It’s tough because the things that you do that get you close for that bump to be a problem are making speed, so you’re always painting that line, and it really comes down to how aggressive you make some choices and how much the driver says he can handle. So it’s really important that he gets into that situation, right?”
MORE: Power Rankings for Texas
At the heart of the conversation with any crew chief this weekend is strategy. A softer left-side Goodyear tire and the ability for the track to take rubber at high speeds and high temperatures give the Cup Series competitors multiple options to capitalize.
Brian Wilson, who recently came away as the winning crew chief at Talladega Superspeedway with Austin Cindric’s Team Penske No. 2 Ford, touched on the importance of having those multiple strategy options.
“It’s one thing that we’ve been talking about a lot with this intermediate package,” Wilson said. “How do you get better in traffic? I think we’ve made gains. It’s really interesting to look back at a setup from one year ago and see what you’ve learned and what’s different.
“So, one, you think about the setup, but two, I also think about the strategy. This is a track that typically you can do two tires, you can flip stages and you could possibly stay out. You review last year’s race, and there were a lot of varying strategies and tire calls. So, you’ve got options there. You’ve got the ability to try to move yourself forward at the end of the race.”
— Chris Murdock
RELATED: See where drivers will pit for Sunday’s race
History tells us …
Big momentum for bowties. The last four Texas Motor Speedway races have been snapped up by Chevrolet drivers. Moreover, three of those victors are Hendrick Motorsports pilots; an Alex Bowman win on Sunday would make it a clean sweep for the four-car organization in a five-year span.
He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for …
BRAD KESELOWSKI. The glaring 32nd-place spot in the Cup Series standings might be a deterrent, but Keselowski’s recent run of consistency at Texas makes him well worth the consideration. The RFK Racing driver/owner has finished in the top 10 in six consecutive Texas races — a series-leading streak that nets out to another series-best with a 6.0 average finish in that time frame.
Fantasy update
NASCAR Fantasy Live expert Dustin Albino provides insight for your race-day lineup.
Carson Hocevar backed up his pace from practice, scoring his first pole award in 56 career starts. Entering the weekend, Hocevar was in my lineup, so it wasn’t unforeseen that he would excel, given that he earned his first career top 10 at Texas last year. Two additions were made to my lineup, bumping in Ty Gibbs and Austin Cindric to replace Chase Briscoe and Brad Keselowski. Cindric commanded the scoring chart on 10-, 15-, 20- and 25-lap averages during practice. Meanwhile, Gibbs displayed the most consistent pace of the Toyotas.
Lineup: William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, Carson Hocevar, Ty Gibbs.
Garage: Austin Cindric.
MORE: Get lineup advice in Fantasy Fastlane
Speed reads
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
– NASCAR at Texas: Key information, links, results through the weekend | Read more
– Kyle Busch at 40: ‘Rowdy’ reflects on a full career, fatherhood and the future | Read more
– Elliott’s Lone Star defense: No. 9 driver aims for another streak-snapper | Read more
– Honoring and remembering: Bell lays wreath at Tomb of Unknown Soldier | Read more
– Battle of All-Stars: Joey Logano ‘surprised’ by Chipper Jones’ rant | Read more
– Racing Insights: Full finishing order projections for Sunday’s Würth 400 | Read more
– Turning Point to Texas: Ten races in, how the playoff picture shakes out | Read more
– At-track images: Best photos, scenes from a Texas tripleheader | View gallery
– NASCAR Classics: Dip into the Lone Star archives with full-race replays | Watch races
– Paint Scheme Preview: Fresh designs ready to tackle Texas | View gallery
