Drivers to watch in Sunday's Cup race at Texas
NASCAR Cup teams return to Texas Motor Speedway for a Sunday afternoon race (3 p.m. ET on FS1).
This is the first intermediate track on the schedule since Kyle Larson won at Las Vegas in March.
Larson leads the Cup standings after eight races. William Byron leads the series with three wins. Both have previous wins at Texas.
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Here is a look at the Cup drivers to watch during Sunday's race at the 1.5-mile track.
FRONTRUNNERS
Kyle Larson
Points position: 1st
Best finish this season: 1st (Las Vegas I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with four top-10 finishes, four top fives and one win. An average finish of 10.6 with 454 laps led.
Past at Texas: Sixteen starts with six top-10 finishes, four top fives and one win. Larson won the final Gen 6 race at Texas. He also won the 2021 All-Star Race at Texas.
William Byron
Points position: 4th
Best finish this season: 1st (Daytona 500, Circuit of the Americas, Martinsville I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with five top-10 finishes, three top fives and three wins. An average finish of 11.3 with 149 laps led.
Past at Texas: Nine starts with five top-10 finishes, two top fives and one win. Byron is the defending Texas winner and has top-10 finishes in both Next Gen Texas races.
Denny Hamlin
Points position: 3rd
Best finish this season: 1st (Bristol I, Richmond I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with three top-10 finishes, two top fives and two wins. An average finish of 11.0 with 358 laps led.
Past at Texas: Thirty-three starts with 16 top-10 finishes, eight top fives and three wins. Hamlin's last Texas win was 2019. He has 14 career wins on 1.5-mile tracks.
Bubba Wallace
Points position: 12th
Best finish this season: 4th (Martinsville I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with three top-10 finishes and three top five finishes. An average finish of 15.3 with 23 laps led.
Past at Texas: Nine starts with two top-10 finishes and one top five. Wallace won the pole last season at Texas, led 111 laps and finished third. He has six top-10 finishes in the last 11 races at 1.5-mile tracks, including a win at Kansas.
William Byron tops NASCAR Power Rankings after Martinsville win
William Byron has two wins in the last three Cup races.
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER
Jimmie Johnson
Points position: Not running for points
Best finish this season: 28th (Daytona 500)
Next Gen stats: Four starts with three DNFs. Completed this season's Daytona 500 after being involved in a crash in the opening five laps.
Past at Texas: Thirty-five starts with 22 top-10 finishes, 16 top fives and a series-high seven wins. Johnson finished 26th or worse in his last three Texas starts and has not raced at the track in a Next Gen car.
Chase Elliott
Points position: 6th
Best finish this season: 3rd (Martinsville I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with three top-10 finishes and two top fives. An average finish of 11.5 with 87 laps led. All three top 10s were in the last four races.
Past at Texas: Thirteen starts with six top-10 finishes and two top fives. Elliott's last top 10 at Texas was seventh in 2021. He only has two top-10 finishes in the last 13 races at 1.5-mile tracks.
Austin Dillon
Points position: 31st
Best finish this season: 16th (Las Vegas I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with no top-10 finishes, no laps led and an average finish of 26.8.
Past at Texas: Nineteen starts with two top-10 finishes, one top five and one win (2020). Dillon has five top-10 finishes in the last 10 races at 1.5-mile tracks.
Kyle Busch
Points position: 15th
Best finish this season: 3rd (Atlanta I)
2024 stats: Eight starts with two top-10 finishes and one top five. An average finish of 16.6 with 63 laps led.
Past at Texas: Thirty-three starts with 18 top-10 finishes, 14 top fives and four wins. Busch's last win at Texas was in 2020. He has DNFs in his last two Texas starts.
