Kyle Larson, William Byron and Cody Ware are set to drop to the rear ahead of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway, the Instacart 500.
Three cars failed pre-race inspection twice ahead of this afternoon’s NASCAR Cup Series race, the Instacart 500, at Phoenix Raceway, including one which won last Sunday’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and was slated to start on the front row.
The #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet of Kyle Larson, the #24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet of William Byron and the #51 Petty Ware Racing Chevrolet of Cody Ware are those three cars, and as a result, they are set to drop to the rear ahead of today’s event.
Larson was originally set to start today’s 312-lap race around the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) oval in Avondale, Arizona on the front row in second place while Byron was set to start in 10th and Ware was set to start in 31st.
Larson and Byron will both drop to the tail end of the outside lane due to the fact that they were slated to start in even positions while Ware will drop to the tail end of the inside lane due to the fact that he was slated to start in an odd position.
Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski, who took the pole position via NASCAR’s starting lineup formula to become the fifth different polesitter through five races this season, is still set to lead the field to the green flag and have lane choice behind the wheel of his #2 Ford.
As a result of Larson’s penalty, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell, who was originally set to start in fourth place behind the wheel of his #20 Toyota, is set to be promoted to the front row in second if Keselowski chooses the inside lane. If Keselowski chooses the outside lane, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin is set to move up from third to second behind the wheel of his #11 Toyota.
