And then there were eight.
The 2025 NASCAR playoffs had its second batch eliminations last weekend in Charlotte, and only eight drivers remain in the chase for the championship.
The Cup Series rolls into Las Vegas this weekend for the first of three races in the Round of 8, with Sunday’s winner (if a playoff driver) clinching the first spot in the Championship 4.
So, what’s in store for Las Vegas? What’s the TV schedule for the weekend? And who could contend for the win on Sunday? Here’s everything you need to know for the South Point 400.
When is the NASCAR race this weekend in Las Vegas?
Green flag for the South Point 400 is set for Sunday, Oct. 12, at 5:35 p.m. ET.
Before the race, there will be practice and qualifying on Saturday. The 38 drivers will be split into two groups, with each group getting 25 minutes of free practice. For qualifying, each driver will get one lap to set the starting order based on speed.
NASCAR TV schedule this weekend for Las Vegas
Leigh Diffey (play-by-play), Jeff Burton (analyst) and Steve Letarte (analyst) will be on the call for NBC Sports. Marty Snider, Kim Coon, and Dillon Welch will serve as pit reporters, with Hall of Famer Dale Jarrett and Brad Daugherty providing pre- and post-race analysis.
Here’s the full schedule for Las Vegas:
Saturday, Oct. 11 (truTV and HBO Max)
Practice: 4:30 p.m. ET, truTV and HBO Max
Qualifying: 5:40 p.m. ET, truTV and HBO Max
Sunday, Oct. 12 (USA Network and NBC Sports app)
Countdown to Green: 5 p.m. ET, USA Network and NBC Sports app
South Point 400: 5:30 p.m. ET, USA Network and NBC Sports app
NASCAR Post-Race: 8:30 p.m. ET, USA Network and NBC Sports app
Who is racing in Las Vegas? Here’s the entry list
Thirty-eight drivers will race in Las Vegas — the 36 full-timers, plus two additional part-time entries.
J.J. Yeley (NY Racing Team) and Katherine Legge (Live Fast Motorsports) will make their ninth and seventh starts of the season, respectively.
Here’s the full entry list for Las Vegas:
NASCAR playoff standings 2025
The playoff standings are reset for the Round of 8 after Ross Chastain, Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace and Austin Cindric were eliminated last week. Austin Dillon, Shane van Gisbergen, Alex Bowman and Josh Berry were previously eliminated three weeks earlier.
There are now three more races (Las Vegas, Talladega, Martinsville) before four more drivers are eliminated. To advance to the Championship 4, a driver must either win one of the next three races or be above the bottom four in the points standings.
Here’s how the playoff standings stack up entering Las Vegas:
Denny Hamlin, +8 above cutline
Ryan Blaney, +6
Kyle Larson, +4
William Byron, +4
Christopher Bell, -4
Chase Elliott, -14
Chase Elliott, -14
Joey Logano, -24
NASCAR Las Vegas picks and predictions
There’s a case to be made that Las Vegas is the second-most important race of the playoffs.
In the last nine years, the eventual champion has won the Round of 8 opener five times — including three of the last four years (Larson ’21, Logano ’22, Logano ’24). All three of Logano’s titles, in fact, came after winning the Round of 8 opener.
So, who does that favor heading into Las Vegas? Truthfully, all eight playoff drivers have a fighting chance.
This field is deeper than ever, with four of the eight previously winning in Las Vegas.
Logano enters in the worst points position after another up-and-down regular season, but he’s always delivered in the playoffs. He has four victories and a 9.8 average finish in 24 Vegas starts, best among all tracks (minimum six starts). Based on pure speed this season, it’s clear that the No. 22 is a longshot — but you can’t count him out.
Larson has been the best in Vegas recently, picking up three wins since 2021 with a career average finish of 9.4 in 18 starts. He leads all drivers with 690 laps led and a 105.5 driver rating. In the spring Vegas race earlier this year, he led 61 laps and won Stage 2 before a ninth-place result.
Aside from those Ford (Logano) and Chevy (Larson) drivers, it could be a Toyota show on Sunday. The Joe Gibbs Racing teammates of Hamlin and Bell dominated two weeks ago at Kansas Speedway, a similar track type.
Bell has finished second in this race the last two years before eventually clawing his way into the Championship 4 — he knows that winning this time could be the difference in earning his first title. Hamlin, meanwhile, had the Kansas race won before some late-race chaos handed it over to Elliott (who oddly struggles at Las Vegas).
Outside of the playoff drivers, keep an eye on 23XI Racing and Trackhouse Racing as possible sleepers. Reddick and Wallace should carry over their speed from Kansas, and Chastain has five top-fives in his last seven Vegas starts. Suárez was second in the spring race this year.
The winning pick for Las Vegas is Bell, who finally finishes one spot better in Vegas and punches the first ticket to Phoenix.
NASCAR past winners, race history for Las Vegas
Eight of the 38 drivers in the field are past winners at Las Vegas.
Logano leads the way with four victories, followed by Larson and Keselowski with three each. One-time winners include Busch (2009), Hamlin (2021), Bowman (2022), Byron (2023) and Berry (2025).