On Sunday night, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series head to the 1.33-mile Nashville Superspeedway for the running of the Cracker Barrel 400 (7 p.m. ET, Prime Video, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the 14th race of the regular season.
Favorite: Denny Hamlin (+350, per BetMGM)
Hamlin ultimately fell short of a second Coca-Cola 600 victory and had to settle for third in a race that was cut short due to weather. As the series treks to the “Music City” for just the sixth Cup race on the 1.33-mile concrete oval, expect Hamlin to be right back in the mix.
While he and Toyota have been shut out of victory lane there, he has led 344 laps, finished top three in two of the last three races and owns a stellar 9.0 average finish in five starts. Hamlin is beyond due for a Nashville win, and it might just come on Sunday night.
Underdog: Carson Hocevar (+2200, per BetMGM)
Hocevar did not have the race he was looking for at Charlotte as tire issues forced him to play from behind all night and led to a 23rd-place finish. However, Hocevar’s Spire Motorsports teammate Daniel Suarez delivered an emotional win in wake of the sudden passing of Kyle Busch just days before the race.
Hocevar was runner-up to Ryan Blaney in the 2025 Nashville race and quietly sits ninth in points. He has only made two starts there, but his 9.0 average finish is his best among all tracks and a sign that win No. 2 could be in the cards.
Toyota looking to capitalize on speed
Toyota won seven of the first nine races this season and has led the most laps in nine of the first 13 events on the 2026 schedule. However, since Tyler Reddick’s fifth win of the season at Kansas on April 19, the manufacturer has failed to convert the speed into wins each of the last four points-paying races.
With that said, Toyota had four of the top six finishers in the Coca-Cola 600 and has been stout everywhere the series has visited. Nashville is not a typical intermediate-style track like Charlotte, but with four of the top five drivers in Saturday’s practice session, expect a Toyota driver to be fighting for the win once again.
Ross Chastain shows pace in practice
Chastain only has two top-10s so far and has been one of the biggest surprises outside the 16-driver Chase field as things currently stand. Following a final stage crash at Charlotte, Chastain is 23rd in points and is on pace for his worst average finish (21.2) of his Trackhouse Racing tenure.
As a previous Nashville winner in 2023, it is easy to see why this could be a season-defining race for Chastain. He was also second-quickest in practice and posted the best 15, 20 and 25-lap averages, so the long-run pace is there for Chastain to get his season turned around.
Qualifying rained out for second week in a row
After rain put Saturday’s practice and qualifying session in a holding pattern, NASCAR made the decision to scrap qualifying and give the drivers a 45-minute practice. That followed a soggy weekend at Charlotte that also saw qualifying get rained out.
As a result, the lineup was set by by NASCAR’s metric, placing Hamlin on the pole. While Hamlin benefited from the session getting rained out, others like Chase Elliott (29th), Chase Briscoe (31st) and Chastain (35th) were not as fortunate, setting the stage for an interesting race under the lights.