Qualifying for the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium was initially scheduled to take place on Saturday. Then, due to snow in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, it was pushed back until Sunday. Now it has been pushed back until Monday.
There will be no 25-lap heat races around the four-turn, 0.25-mile (0.402-kilometer) Madhouse, meaning that the top 20 drivers in qualifying are simply set to lock into the 200-lap main event, with the other 18 relegated to the 75-lap Last Chance Qualifier.
Because of the advantage that comes with qualifying last, coupled with the fact that the top 20 speeds are set to be based on the combined results, NASCAR has shifted the group format to be based strictly on the 2025 owner standings, with the bottom drivers in the first group, the middle drivers in the second, and the top drivers in the third.
Each group is effectively split up into two groups. Here’s a look at the qualifying order and groups for the Cook Out Clash.
Bowman Gray NASCAR Clash qualifying Group 1Group A
Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota
Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
Chad Finchum, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford
Burt Myers, No. 50 Team AmeriVet Chevrolet
Group B
A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Bowman Gray NASCAR Clash qualifying Group 2Group A
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Corey LaJoie, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Group B
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford
Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet
Bowman Gray NASCAR Clash qualifying Group 3Group A
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Group B
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
There are two things worth noting here. First of all, we want to reiterate the fact that the owner points are what matter here, rather than the driver points, from a year ago. That’s why Corey LaJoie, who is set to fill in for the injured Brad Keselowski at RFK Racing, is listed as the 20th place finisher in the 2025 standings. That result is tied strictly to the No. 6 entry.
And second, Cody Ware is in the second group, rather than the first, and Ryan Preece is in the first, rather than the second. This is inverse of their position in the 2025 standings.
This is because of the fact that Rick Ware Racing’s second charter is being leased out to RFK Racing for Preece’s No. 60 Ford, and teams are not allowed to lease the same charter two years in a row. So the No. 60 entry and the No. 51 entry are effectively swapped in the owner standings.
Beyond qualifying, the top two of 18 drivers in the Last Chance Qualifier are also set to lock into the main event, as is whomever is awarded the 2025 point standings provisional to create a 23-car Clash.
Fox Sports 2 is set to provide live qualifying coverage starting at 11:00 a.m. ET on Monday, February 2. Fox is set to provide live coverage of the Last Chance Qualifier at 4:30 p.m. ET and the Cook Out Clash itself at 6:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and catch all of the action!