Chase Briscoe narrowly held off teammate Christopher Bell in a thrilling finish last week at Charlotte. With back-to-back wins in the bank, the #19 team hopes to ride that momentum into true title contention with just four races left in the 2026 NASCAR season. Next up is a trip to last year’s host of the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, for the 2026 Freeway Insurance 500.
With Kyle Larson holding a commanding lead at this stage of the postseason, can anyone challenge the #5 team, or Will Larson pull away to win his third NASCAR Championship?
Let’s dive in.
2026 Freeway Insurance 500 Entry List
As he prepares for his full-time Cup Series debut in 2027, Corey Heim will once again be behind the wheel of the #67 Toyota for 23XI. Heim marks the only non-charter entry for the Cup Series at Phoenix this weekend. Silly season continues to unfold as rumors still abound about where Brad Keselowski will end up after the announcement earlier this year that he will be leaving RFK at the end of the season. We will keep an eye on that situation as it develops.
When the dust settles in the desert, just three races will stand between the contenders and a championship. pic.twitter.com/VW4gB2aPG4
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 15, 2026
Phoenix Raceway had previously served as the final race of the season before NASCAR decided to return to hosting the finale at Homestead. The decision came with the return to the Chase format as well as the struggle to provide good racing at Phoenix with the NextGen car. Simply put, Phoenix suffers from the issues that plague all circuits that race like short tracks. The difficulty of passing and the lack of true tire fall-off limit how good the racing is.
Chase Standings
Kyle Larson’s utterly ridiculous start to the 2026 Chase continued at Charlotte with a sixth-place finish. That finish marked the first time this postseason that the #5 team has placed outside of the top five, but Larson still managed to add points courtesy of a stage win. Now, Larson holds a 49-point advantage over his nearest competitor, Denny Hamlin.
- Kyle Larson
- Denny Hamlin -49
- Christopher Bell -51
- Chase Briscoe -65
- Ryan Blaney -85
- Joey Logano -92
- Tyler Reddick -114
- Austin Cindric -145
- Ty Gibbs -156
- Carson Hocevar -180
- Bubba Wallace -185
- Chase Elliott -185
- William Byron -208
- Daniel Suarez -215
- Chris Buescher -216
- Ryan Preece -227
Kyle Larson’s incredible form has whittled down the pool of contenders to the point where I believe only the top five can truly push for the title at this point, and I’m including Ryan Blaney only because of how strong the #12 has been at Phoenix and Martinsville in the past. Chase Briscoe’s back-to-back wins are tough to ignore but I still have a hard time believing anyone can truly challenge Larson as long as that team keeps firing on all cylinders.
2026 Freeway Insurance 500 Race Predictions
I’ll keep this one short and sweet. Though I expect the JGR crew and Kyle Larson to compete for the win come Sunday, Ryan Blaney simply has to be the race winner pick with how well this team seems to perform every time they come to Phoenix. Blaney won here in the spring, and I expect him to go back to Victory Lane.
Phoenix is no stranger to great finishes.
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 15, 2026
Are we in store for another one on Sunday? pic.twitter.com/sIS2yycx7e
The real intrigue for me here comes from whether or not Kyle Larson can continue to build his championship lead. Given his third-place finish in the Spring, I have to lean towards yes. Still, anything can happen when rubber hits the pavement on a NASCAR circuit.
Check out the schedule below so you don’t miss any on-track action this week!
Friday 10/16
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Practice – 2:30 p.m. CT on FS2
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Qualifying – 3:35 p.m. CT on FS2
Zero Carbon Bioethanol 150 Powered by POET (NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series) – 6:30 p.m. CT on FS1
Saturday 10/17
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Practice – 1:00 p.m. CT on the ESPN App
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Qualifying – 2:05 p.m. CT on the ESPN App
NASCAR Cup Series Practice – 3:30 p.m. CT on TruTV
NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying – 4:35 p.m. CT on TruTV
Timberland PRO 200 (NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series) – 6:30 p.m. CT on the CW
Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 100 (ARCA Menards Series) – 10:00 p.m. CT on FloRacing
Sunday 10/18
Freeway Insurance 500 (NASCAR Cup Series) – 2:00 p.m. CT on USA and HBO Max
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