This is the first season without
Kevin Harvick since
2000, as he retired after the
2023 season and joined the NASCAR on Fox broadcast booth in 2024,[1] and the first season since
2011 without
Aric Almirola, who stepped away from racing full-time after the 2023 season. In addition, this will be the last season for NASCAR's current TV rights deal, which began in 2015.[2] This will also be the last season for
Stewart–Haas Racing, as the team announced that they would be shutting down operations at season’s end.[3]
^Justin Allgaier ran the Coca Cola 600 in place of Kyle Larson, who ran the Indianapolis 500 the same day. Larson was originally supposed to get in the car, but the race was called before he officially took over.
^On April 2, RCR announced that Justin Alexander would replace Rodden as the crew chief of the No. 3 car for the remainder of the 2024 season.[22]
^On April 20,
Team Penske announced that Palmer would substitute for Hassler as the crew chief of the No. 12 car, as Hassler's wife was expected to give birth soon.[52]
^On April 28,
Legacy Motor Club announced that Cohen would substitute for Elenz as the crew chief of the No. 43 car, as Elenz had to attend to a personal matter.
^Bryan Berry started the Las Vegas race weekend as crew chief of the No. 44 car but was ejected after the car failed pre-qualifying inspection too many times. It is unclear who filled in for him as interim crew chief in the race.[75]
^It was initially announced that Jimmie Johnson would be participating in the championship race at Phoenix Raceway. However, a subsequent announcement revealed that he would instead be present in the NBC booth.
In 2023, it was announced that
The Money Team Racing would run five to eight races in 2024. They reportedly planned to participate in the
2024 Daytona 500, but did not attempt the race.[100] The team would undergo an ownership change, being renamed to
Team AmeriVet, with the
Coca-Cola 600 being the first race the team attempted after the changes.[82]
Drivers
AJ Allmendinger returned to the
NASCAR Xfinity Series full time after running a full time season in the
Kaulig Racing 16 car. The 16 car now returns to full time car with multiple drivers running it.
Noah Gragson was removed from
Legacy Motor Club mid way through the 2023 season. The team fielded multiple drivers in the 42 car to round off the season before fully replacing Gragson with
John Hunter Nemechek.
Smithfield Foods announced that it will not return to NASCAR as a sponsor in 2024, after
Aric Almirola announced his retirement from full-time competition. Smithfield sponsored Almirola from 2012 to 2023, as he drove the No. 43 for
Richard Petty Motorsports and the No. 10 for Stewart–Haas Racing.[105]
Hunt Brothers Pizza signed a multi-year deal to serve as sponsor of the
Team Penske No. 22 of
Joey Logano, starting in 2024. The pizza chain will also act as an associate sponsor for the No. 12 of
Ryan Blaney.[108] Hunt Brothers previously sponsored the Stewart–Haas Racing No. 4 of Kevin Harvick, who retired at the end of the 2023 season.
The
United States Air Force signed a deal to sponsor the
23XI Racing No. 23 of
Bubba Wallace for several races in 2024. The USAF previously sponsored Wallace when he drove the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 from 2018 to 2020.[110]
In 2022,
3F Racing announced that they hope to run the full season with their No. 30 car in the Cup Series in 2024 after debuting in the series part-time in 2023. The team ultimately did not enter any Cup Series races in 2023.[119] On July 18, 2023, the team announced that Xfinity and Truck Series driver
Ryan Vargas would be their Director of Team and Driver Development as well as a reserve driver for them when they debut in the Cup Series.[120] On November 5, Frontstretch reporter Jared Haas spoke to the team's owners at the
2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race and they indicated that 3F could debut in the Cup Series in 2024 and run eight to ten races if they are able to find sponsorship.[121] The team did make their debut in the
NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in
2023.[122]
In 2023, it was announced that
Erebus Motorsport planned to enter the Cup Series for five races in 2024, including an oval race with
Brodie Kostecki in collaboration with
Richard Childress Racing.[123][124] Due to ongoing contract controversy between Erebus and Kostecki, it is unknown whether or not Erebus Motorsport will still race in the Cup Series or with a different driver.[125]Paul Morris, Kostecki's long–time mentor, later confirmed that the planned races, Sonoma and Chicago being two of the likely races, had been axed.[126]
Drivers
On March 11, 2024,
Matt Jaskol revealed that he is planning on making his Cup Series debut at the
Circuit of the Americas with
MBM Motorsports, whom he had previously driven for in the Xfinity Series in 2021 and 2022, but that they would need sponsorship in order to participate in the race.[127] A couple hours before it was announced that
Timmy Hill would drive the car, Jaskol stated that he had failed to find sponsorship in time for the race, but that he was still planning on making a start with MBM later this season.[128]
Rule changes
Cup Series cars will run a new aero package at all road courses and tracks measuring one mile or shorter (except
Bristol Motor Speedway and
Dover Motor Speedway). The package consists of a three-inch spoiler, a simplified diffuser and diffuser strakes, the 2023-spec short track/road course splitter stuffers, and no engine panel strakes.[129]
All road/street courses in 2024 will have stage-break cautions.[130]
Schedule
The 2024 schedule was released on October 4, 2023 and consists of 31 oval races, 4 road course races, one street track race, and 4 non-championship races to be held on ovals.[131]
Notes: Race names and title sponsors are subject to change. Not all title sponsors/names of races have been announced for 2024. For the races where a 2024 name and title sponsor has yet to be announced, the title sponsors/names of those races in 2023 are listed.
^Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum was brought forward from Sunday, February 4 to Saturday, February 3 due to anticipated severe weather.[133] Television broadcasting of the race was switched from Fox to FS1 due to this rescheduling.[131]
^The Daytona 500 was postponed from Sunday, February 18 to Monday, February 19 due to rain.[134]
Bolded races indicate an event generally known as a
Crown Jewel race.
O Oval track R Road course S Street course
Confirmed schedule changes
On November 6, 2022, it was confirmed that 2023 would be the last race on
Auto Club Speedway's 2-mile configuration.[138] The track is scheduled to be reconfigured into a short track in the coming years and will not be on the 2024 schedule while it is under construction.
On September 15, 2023,
Bristol Motor Speedway announced that the
spring Bristol race would return to being run on concrete, after the race taken place of dirt the prior three seasons. In the same press release, it was confirmed that
Bristol will continue having two race dates; the spring race reverted back to its old Food City 500 name due to the return to concrete.[139]
On October 2, 2023,
Fox Sports and The Athletic reported that
Iowa Speedway was expected to receive a NASCAR Cup Series race in 2024, replacing the
race at Auto Club Speedway.[141] A press conference by Iowa Governor
Kim Reynolds was held on October 3, where she and NASCAR officially announced the inaugural Cup Series race at Iowa Speedway on June 16.[142]
NASCAR was rumored to potentially return to
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in
Montreal, with the track hosting a Cup Series race for the first time in 2024. The race would have been the first international Cup Series race since the 1958 season.[143] On October 2, 2023, it was reported by
Fox Sports and The Athletic that this deal fell through.[141]
The Busch Clash was moved from Sunday, February 4 to Saturday, February 3 in advance of the
February 2024 California atmospheric rivers. This resulted in the cancellation of scheduled heat races, as the event was condensed into a one-day practice, qualifying, and race event.
Denny Hamlin took the pole for the 23-car field, with notable drivers such as
Daniel Suárez,
Austin Dillon,
Austin Cindric, and
Christopher Bell failing to qualify for the 150-lap event. Hamlin led most of the first 50 laps before yielding the lead to
Ty Gibbs on lap 50. Gibbs led 84 of the next 91 laps, as
Justin Haley,
Chase Elliott, and
Todd Gilliland all failed to finish due to mechanical issues. Hamlin reclaimed the lead on a restart with ten laps remaining as Gibbs fell back through the field. Gibbs spun with two laps remaining, ultimately finishing 18th. Hamlin held off on the final restart to win.[144]
In the Bluegreen Vacation Duels, Logano started on the pole for Duel 1 while McDowell started on the pole for Duel 2.
Tyler Reddick won the first duel while
Christopher Bell won the second duel.[145]
Joey Logano started on the pole.
Christopher Bell and
Chris Buescher both hit the wall after a flat tire, with Buescher exiting the race due to the wheel coming off his car.
Kyle Larson dominated the race by leading the most laps. Larson also won both stages and secured the victory by holding off a charging
Tyler Reddick.[148]
Ryan Blaney won the pole. The race was plagued by extreme tire wear.
Ty Gibbs dominated the first half of the race and won both stages. The race saw 54 lead changes, the most for a short-track race in Cup Series history.
Kyle Busch spun twice with a flat tire. Gibbs was heading to the win until the lapped car of
Todd Gilliland slowed down and caused Gibbs and teammate
Christopher Bell to lose multiple spots.
Denny Hamlin dominated the second half of the race and led the most laps. Hamlin and teammate
Martin Truex Jr. stayed out front after the final round of green-flag pit stops and saved their tires. Hamlin was able to hold off Truex for the win, followed by
Brad Keselowski,
Alex Bowman, and
Kyle Larson, marking the first time since the
2004 MBNA America 400 at
Dover that a race ended with 5 or fewer cars on the lead lap.[150]
Kyle Larson won the pole. The race started on weather tires due to the track still being wet from rain. Larson won the first stage while
Martin Truex Jr. won the second stage.
Kyle Busch got into the wall after a flat tire. Truex was heading to the win until Larson spun after contact with
Bubba Wallace, bringing out the caution and sending the race into overtime.
Denny Hamlin won the race off pit road and held off
Joey Logano and Truex for his second win of the season.[152]
Kyle Larson won the pole for the second straight race. Larson dominated early and won the first stage.
Christopher Bell got a flat tire, bringing the caution out for debris.
Joey Logano took two tires and held on to the lead, but started falling back as
Denny Hamlin won the second stage. Hamlin and
Chase Elliott took turns leading the race, but
William Byron pitted a lap before everyone else on the final round of green flag pit stops.
John Hunter Nemechek blew a tire and caught fire, sending the race to overtime. On the restart, Byron held the lead and scored his third win of the season.[153]
Kyle Larson won the pole for the third straight race. Larson won the first stage while
Ross Chastain won the second stage.
Christopher Bell spun into the wall, causing
Alex Bowman to spin after contact with
John Hunter Nemechek.
Michael McDowell spun into the wall while battling Chastain for the lead. On a restart,
Harrison Burton made a three wide pass for the lead on
Bubba Wallace and
Chase Briscoe, which sent the latter two spinning after contact with one another.
Ryan Blaney spun into the wall. On a restart, Larson spun which sent the race to overtime. On the first attempt,
Denny Hamlin spun while battling
Chase Elliott for the lead. On the second attempt, Burton and
Kaz Grala spun after contact. On the restart, Chastain got into the wall after contact with
William Byron on the final lap as Elliott won under caution for his first win in 42 races.[154]
Michael McDowell started on pole for the second time in his career.
Austin Cindric narrowly beat
Chase Elliott by inches to win Stage 1, while
Joey Logano won Stage 2. The race was incident-free until lap 132 when
Christopher Bell crashed out on the backstretch, collecting
Justin Haley,
Chase Briscoe, and
Zane Smith. On lap 151, the Toyota drivers were drafting alone as part of a pit strategy when
Erik Jones lost control and hit the outside wall head-on in turn 3, collecting
Bubba Wallace,
John Hunter Nemechek, and
Denny Hamlin, which claimed four of the six Toyotas in the draft. McDowell held onto the lead in the closing laps of the race until the last lap when
Brad Keselowski attempted a crossover move from second. McDowell got loose while blocking and wrecked on the tri-oval, triggering "The Big One", which caused
Corey LaJoie to flip upside-down.
Tyler Reddick evaded the wreck and made a three-wide pass on Keselowski and
Noah Gragson to score the win.[155]
Tyler Reddick won the pole.
Kyle Larson won the first stage while Reddick won the second stage.
John Hunter Nemechek spun after two flat tires. On a restart,
Ryan Blaney got into the wall after
William Byron made contact with
Martin Truex Jr. Late in the race, Reddick and
Brad Keselowski made contact battling for the lead allowing
Chris Buescher to make a three-wide pass for the lead. With 10 laps to go, Buescher and Reddick made contact battling for the lead causing both flat tires on both cars taking both to pit road as Keselowski retook the lead and held off
Ty Gibbs and
Josh Berry for the win, his first win as an owner/driver (the first since
Tony Stewart in 2016), the first win of 2024 for
Ford, and snapped a 110-race winless streak, the longest drought of his career.[158]
In The Open,
Ty Gibbs started on pole for the
2nd straight time. In the end, Gibbs led all 100 laps and won the Open and advanced to the All-Star Race with runner-up
Bubba Wallace and
Noah Gragson, who won the fan vote for the second year in a row.
In the All-Star Race,
Joey Logano started on pole.
Kyle Busch and
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. made contact on Lap 2 and Busch spun Stenhouse into the wall, taking Stenhouse out of the race and Stenhouse left his damaged car in Busch's pit box. Logano dominated by leading all but one lap and held off
Denny Hamlin to win the $1 million for his second All-Star Race win. Busch and Stenhouse got into a brawl by the haulers and the melee caused crew member suspensions and Stenhouse was fined $75,000 for striking Busch.[159][160]
Ty Gibbs won the pole.
William Byron took the first stage and
Christopher Bell won the second stage.
Noah Gragson spun and slammed into the wall after contact with
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Justin Allgaier, filling in for
Kyle Larson who was running the
Indianapolis 500, got up to 13th position when a caution came out. Larson arrived in Charlotte during the caution, but was unable to race as the race was red flagged due to rain and lightning and race was called after 249 laps as NASCAR tried to dry the track for over an hour but was not making enough progress to get the race restarted at a reasonable hour, so Bell was given his second win of the season.[161]
Michael McDowell started on the pole.
Christopher Bell swept the stages.
Josh Berry slammed into the wall after his left front tire became flat.
Kyle Busch and
Kyle Larson got into the wall after making contact taking Busch, the defending race winner, out of the race.
Ryan Blaney and Bell battled for the lead until Bell began having engine issues and fell back. Blaney would run out of fuel at the white flag and his teammate
Austin Cindric took the lead and won the race, his second career win and breaking a 85-race winless streak, dating back to the
2022 Daytona 500.[162]
(
key) Bold – Pole position awarded by time. Italics – Pole position set by final practice results or owner's points. * – Most laps led. 1 – Stage 1 winner. 2 – Stage 2 winner. 3 – Stage 3 winner.[N 1]
† –
Kyle Larson originally qualified for the race, but was replaced before the start of the race to compete in the
Indianapolis 500, and was replaced by
Justin Allgaier.