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Since 2020, NASCAR has settled its season and crowned its champions in a fitting location where the sun sets on an entire year of racing. But The Valley of the Sun isn't just a place for the sun set to set -- it's also a part of NASCAR's sunrise.

Just four weeks into the 2024 season, the NASCAR Cup Series makes its first trip of the year to Phoenix Raceway for the Shriners Children's 500 as the sport heads west to open the springtime. This race has become a critical benchmark over the last four years, as it provides a baseline for performance at the track where every team in the field hopes they will return in November with a spot in the Championship 4 and a chance to win the Cup Series championship.

How much does success in the spring at Phoenix carry over into the fall? Well, consider this: Since the season finale was moved to Phoenix in 2020, the winner of the spring Phoenix race -- Joey Logano in 2020, Martin Truex Jr. in 2021 and William Byron in 2023 -- has made the Championship 4 three out of four years. And the only exception to that, Chase Briscoe in 2022, made it to that year's Round of 8. Meaning that whoever takes the trophy this weekend has a good chance at having an opportunity at the Bill France Cup the next time they come to this one-mile dogleg oval.

The field was set on Saturday with Denny Hamlin earning his first pole position of the season. Hamlin, who has enjoyed much success on this track including a win 2012, will be joined on the front row by Ty Gibbs. The 43-year-old will be looking for his first win since the 2023 night race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

"I'm really trying to get better at this place," Hamlin said after qualifying. "If we want to make a run at a championship -- and you've got to win it through Phoenix -- you've got to get better at Phoenix."

How to watch the NASCAR Cup Series at Phoenix

Date: Sunday, March 10
Location: Phoenix Raceway -- Avondale, Arizona
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: Fox
Stream: fubo (try for free)

What to watch

This weekend's race will mark the debut of NASCAR's new aerodynamic rules package for short tracks and road courses in 2024, as the sanctioning body continues to address a racing product that has been uneven on such tracks since the Next Gen car was introduced in 2022. The key changes from 2023 include a simplified rear diffuser with fewer vertical strakes and a strake-free engine panel and a slight increase in spoiler height to three inches. The expressed purpose of these changes is to reduce front downforce and better the ability to race in traffic.

This year's package was developed in part during a two-day test at Phoenix last December, which included drivers Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher, Erik Jones, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson and Corey LaJoie.

"At the test, we noticed an improvement in traffic. The car did not lose rear downforce when it yawed, which is an issue we fight with the current car," Dr. Eric Jacuzzi, NASCAR vice president of vehicle performance, said in a news release. "The drivers would be able to slide around more on the short tracks and really have to be less careful about putting power down. We felt that would be a benefit, and that was the big takeaway from the driver feedback. At the test, they felt they could really tell that it was more forgiving. They felt they could slide the car."

In order to better adjust to the new rules package, NASCAR has granted all teams in the field additional track time this weekend. There will be an extended 50-minute practice session Friday afternoon ahead of qualifying Saturday.

Starting lineup

  1. #11 - Denny Hamlin
  2. #54 - Ty Gibbs
  3. #9 - Chase Elliott
  4. #43 - Erik Jones
  5. #24 - William Byron
  6. #45 - Tyler Reddick
  7. #10 - Noah Gragson
  8. #14 - Chase Briscoe
  9. #34 - Michael McDowell
  10. #77 - Carson Hocevar (R)
  11. #19 - Martin Truex Jr.
  12. #1 - Ross Chastain
  13. #20 - Christopher Bell
  14. #17 - Chris Buescher
  15. #99 - Daniel Suarez
  16. #12 - Ryan Blaney
  17. #5 - Kyle Larson
  18. #6 - Brad Keselowski
  19. #42 - John Hunter Nemechek
  20. #47 - Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
  21. #31 - Daniel Hemric
  22. #23 - Bubba Wallace
  23. #22 - Joey Logano
  24. #21 - Harrison Burton
  25. #48 - Alex Bowman
  26. #16 - Derek Kraus
  27. #41 - Ryan Preece
  28. #71 - Zane Smith (R)
  29. #38 - Todd Gilliland
  30. #3 - Austin Dillon
  31. #8 - Kyle Busch
  32. #15 - Kaz Grala (R)
  33. #51 - Justin Haley
  34. #2 - Austin Cindric
  35. #7 - Corey LaJoie
  36. #4 - Josh Berry (R)

News of the week

  • As was expected after Chris Buescher's crash at Las Vegas due to a wheel failure, NASCAR has issued a two-race suspension to RFK Racing jackman Nicholas Patterson and front tire changer Jakob Prall for the on-track loss of an improperly-installed wheel. However, the two will be able to work this weekend's race in Phoenix, as Fox Sports has reported that RFK Racing has appealed the penalties and received a deferral from NASCAR until the appeal is heard.
  • Goodyear will hold a tire test at North Wilkesboro Speedway on March 12 for Craftsman Truck Series teams and March 13 for Cup Series teams as it develops its tire for the historic North Carolina speedway, which was repaved for the first time in 40 years during the offseason. Participating Cup drivers will include Joey Logano for Ford, Ty Gibbs for Toyota and William Byron for Chevrolet.
  • Sports Business Journal has reported that NASCAR has held discussions with the Los Angeles Dodgers about potentially hosting a race at Dodger Stadium as it evaluates its options for a race in the Southern California market for 2025. Auto Club Speedway, which had been NASCAR's preeminent racing facility in the greater Los Angeles market for a quarter century, has been partially demolished and currently faces an uncertain future in terms of reconfigurement.

Pick to win

Ryan Blaney (+650) -- Ryan Blaney earned the greatest prize of all the last time the Cup Series raced at Phoenix, as a second-place finish in last year's Championship Race was enough to earn him his first Cup championship. It was a result fueled by his late-season charge to the Championship 4, but one that was almost made very, very possible by Blaney's history at Phoenix.

Blaney has earned seven top fives and 11 top 10s in 16 career starts at Phoenix, which includes five-straight top fives dating back to fall 2021, three-straight second-place finishes, and only a crash in spring 2020 interrupting his nine top 10s in his last 10 Phoenix races -- which includes five finishes of third or better. Simply put, he and his team have this track figured out, and he's due to get a win here. Performances like leading 94 laps in spring 2019, 143 laps in spring 2022 and 109 laps in fall 2022 suggest he's more than capable of getting to that Victory Lane.

So who wins the Shriners Children's 500 2024, and which longshot stuns NASCAR? Visit SportsLine now to see the 2024 NASCAR at Phoenix picks and best bets from a team of elite NASCAR handicappers who already nailed Daniel Suarez's win this year, and find out.