The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) heads to Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona, for the Straight Talk Wireless 500 on Sunday, March 8, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1. Heading into Phoenix, after three straight dominating races, Tyler Reddick has a huge 70-point lead over teammate Bubba Wallace in the series standings.
Last season, Alex Bowman captured the pole with a lap at 131.984 mph (27.276 seconds), and Christopher Bell edged Denny Hamlin in a photo finish amid a two-lap shootout to win the NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, March 9, 2025.
Track & Race Information for the Straight Talk Wireless 500
Season Race #: 4 of 36 (March 8, 2026)
Purse: $11,233, 037
Track Size: 1-mile
Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 9 degrees
Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 11 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 3 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 9 degrees
Length and Race Stages for the Straight Talk Wireless 500
Race Length: 312 laps / 312 Miles / 500 Kilometers
Stage 1 Length: 60 laps
Stage 2 Length: 125 laps (Ends on Lap 185)
Final Stage Length: 127 laps (Ends on Lap 312)
Who and what should you look out for at the Phoenix Raceway?
The first and third (13.5%) starting positions are the two most proficient, having produced eight winners each, more than any other positions on the starting grid. Chase Elliott (Championship finale 2020; started first due to Metric Qualifying), Kyle Larson (2021 Championship race), and Joey Logano (2022 Championship Race) are three of the active pole and race winners. Elliott leads the NCS in average starting position at Phoenix Raceway with a 6.8 in 19 starts.
| Stats | Winning % | Wins | |||
| Winning from the Pole: | 13.56% | 8 | |||
| Winning from the Front Row: | 20.34% | 12 | |||
| Winning from a Top-Five Starting Position: | 40.68% | 24 | |||
| Winning from a Top-10 Starting Position: | 59.32% | 35 | |||
| Winning After Starting Outside the Top 10: | 40.68% | 24 | |||
| Winning After Starting Outside the Top 20: | 6.78% | 4 | |||
Ten of the 32 NCS Phoenix Raceway winners are active this race: Joey Logano leads all active NCS drivers in wins at Phoenix Raceway with four (2016, 2020, 2022, 2024).
| Pos | Active Phoenix Cup Winners | Wins | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joey Logano | 4 | 2024, 2022, 2020, 2016 |
| 2 | Kyle Busch | 3 | 2019, 2018, 2005 |
| 3 | Christopher Bell | 2 | 2025, 2024 |
| 4 | Denny Hamlin | 2 | 2019, 2012 |
| 5 | Ryan Blaney | 1 | 2025 |
| 6 | Ross Chastain | 1 | 2023 |
| 7 | William Byron | 1 | 2023 |
| 8 | Chase Briscoe | 1 | 2022 |
| 9 | Kyle Larson | 1 | 2021 |
| 10 | Chase Elliott | 1 | 2020 |
Kyle Busch is the only active driver to win consecutive NCS races at Phoenix Raceway (2018 Playoff race, 2019). Busch is also the youngest NCS Phoenix Raceway winner at 20 years, 6 months, 11 days on November 13, 2005. Busch also won the 2005 Phoenix Raceway race from the 15th-place starting position, the furthest back an active NCS race winner has started.
Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney lead all active NCS drivers at Phoenix Raceway with four second-place finishes each.
Denny Hamlin leads all active NCS drivers in top-five finishes at Phoenix with 17 top-five finishes, and Kyle Busch leads all active drivers in top-10 finishes at Phoenix with 28 top-10s.
The Driver Picks For Phoenix
| 1 | Tyler Reddick | Hot off three wins in a row, Tyler Reddick has two top fives, four top 10s, and an average finish of 17.750. |
| 2 | Kyle Larson | Kyle Larson has two poles, one win, 11 top fives, 15 top 10s, and an average finish of 10.348. |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | Denny Hamlin has four poles, two wins, 17 top fives, 24 top 10s, and an average finish of 10.488. |
| 4 | Ryan Blaney | Ryan Blaney has three poles, one win, ten top fives, 14 top 10s, and an average finish of 10.850. |
| 5 | William Byron | William Byron has two poles, one win, three top fives, nine top 10s, and an average finish of 12.188. |
| 6 | Kyle Busch | Kyle Busch has four poles, three wins, 13 top fives, 28 top 10s, and an average finish of 11.244. |
