NASCAR at Michigan 2016: Start Time, Ticket Info, Lineup, TV Schedule and More
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series dominoes continue to fall into place ahead of Sunday's FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway.
Last week in Pocono, Kurt Busch punched his ticket to the Chase by seizing the checkered flag, following a trend that Martin Truex Jr. started the week before in Charlotte and that Matt Kenseth truly started in Dover a few weeks earlier before the All-Star weekend.
Indeed, those with spots in the Chase continue to take a backseat to those beginning to hit desperation mode as the weeks continue to tick away before drivers can miss out on the title pursuit altogether.
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NASCAR now hits a historic track to dish out another potential automatic bid with a handful of notable names still looking to secure one. Here's everything to know about the event.
Viewing Details
Where: Michigan International Speedway
When: Sunday, June 12, at 1 p.m. ET
Watch: FS1
Live Stream: Fox Sports Go
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Sprint Cup Standings
| 1 | Kevin Harvick | 490 | 1 |
| 2 | Kurt Busch | 465 | 1 |
| 3 | Brad Keselowski | 442 | 2 |
| 4 | Carl Edwards | 437 | 2 |
| 5 | Kyle Busch | 416 | 3 |
| 6 | Jimmie Johnson | 415 | 2 |
| 7 | Chase Elliott | 413 | 0 |
| 8 | Joey Logano | 410 | 0 |
| 9 | Martin Truex Jr. | 403 | 1 |
| 10 | Matt Kenseth | 382 | 1 |
| 11 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 381 | 0 |
| 12 | Denny Hamlin | 372 | 1 |
| 13 | Austin Dillon | 348 | 0 |
| 14 | Jamie McMurray | 342 | 0 |
| 15 | Ryan Blaney | 340 | 0 |
| 16 | Ryan Newman | 338 | 0 |
NASCAR at Michigan Lineup
| 1 | 22 | Joey Logano |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 3 | 14 | Tony Stewart |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin |
| 5 | 21 | Ryan Blaney |
| 6 | 31 | Ryan Newman |
| 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson |
| 8 | 3 | Austin Dillon |
| 9 | 18 | Kyle Busch |
| 10 | 24 | Chase Elliott |
| 11 | 19 | Carl Edwards |
| 12 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 13 | 6 | Trevor Bayne |
| 14 | 1 | Jamie McMurray |
| 15 | 2 | Brad Keselowski |
| 16 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson |
| 17 | 41 | Kurt Busch |
| 18 | 16 | Greg Biffle |
| 19 | 20 | Matt Kenseth |
| 20 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger |
| 21 | 95 | Ty Dillon |
| 22 | 34 | Chris Buescher |
| 23 | 5 | Kasey Kahne |
| 24 | 13 | Casey Mears |
| 25 | 10 | Danica Patrick |
| 26 | 44 | Brian Scott |
| 27 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
| 28 | 38 | Landon Cassill |
| 29 | 4 | Kevin Harvick |
| 30 | 43 | Aric Almirola |
| 31 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 32 | 27 | Paul Menard |
| 33 | 7 | Regan Smith |
| 34 | 15 | Clint Bowyer |
| 35 | 23 | David Ragan |
| 36 | 55 | Cole Whitt |
| 37 | 30 | Josh Wise |
| 38 | 32 | Jeffrey Earnhardt |
| 39 | 46 | Michael Annett |
| 40 | 98 | Reed Sorenson |
Drivers to Watch
This is beginning to feel like the Jeff Gordon saga last year, where every week would feature a spotlight on No. 24 and whether he would even make the Chase during his farewell tour.
Granted, Dale Earnhardt Jr. isn't about to walk away from the sport, steering wheel in hand, and never return. But he's by far the most notable name yet to punch a ticket, and before last weekend's event he hadn't even come close.
Earnhardt has seven top-10 finishes to his name this year but hadn't led any laps since early March before last weekend in Pocono, where he led all of four before finishing second. He fell behind after a late restart, something he wasn't shy conversing about after the fact:
Even so, finishing second should signal Earnhardt's return, right?
Maybe. It's been a shaky season to say the least, with seven finishes outside of the top 10, not counting a miserable 36th-place showing at the Daytona 500. Heck, Earnhardt has qualified inside the top 10 just three times.
The sport needs Earnhardt to turn it around. If all involved are lucky, he did so last weekend ahead of a race he's won twice.
Joey Logano
While perhaps not as universally loved as Earnhardt, Joey Logano is another massive name the sport has yet to see punch a ticket of his own.
Folks have waited for Logano to break through to Victory Lane for weeks. He turned a victory in the All-Star Race into a ninth-place showing in Charlotte and a fifth-place finish in Pocono, starting both of those normal events second.
Unfortunately for Logano, a win at the odd-formatted driver showcase doesn't gift an automatic berth. He's now attempting to prepare for a race capable of getting quite wild, as he told Fox Sports' Alan Cavanna:
Like Earnhardt, though, Logano has seemed all over the place at times this year. Before this strong three-race run, he was the exact opposite over three other races, placing 25th, 38th and 22nd.
It's getting to the point of the season where Logano cannot afford to lapse back into iffy showings if he intends to make a run at a title this year.
Kurt Busch
Kurt Busch was one of the hottest pre-race picks last week because of his showings this year, showings at past Pocono events and the simple fact he was one of the biggest names on the hunt for a bid.
Now Busch has a bid secured, but it's no reason to turn away.
Indeed, Busch led 32 laps last week after starting ninth and turned some rather wild fuel conservation into a major win, as he explained in a post-race interview, according to Dan Gelston of the Associated Press.
"I was like, whoa, how many laps shy are we? They said two,'' Busch said. ''These are really long straightaways at Pocono and you have to manage saving fuel as well as maintaining lap time. So many thoughts can go through your head, but I just stuck with the checklist."
Busch had entered the race with a ridiculous eight top-10 finishes to his name, including five in a row if one wants to count the driver showcase. He had even won a pair of pole positions but failed to turn it into a win.
Now, though, Busch can relax and toy around with aggressive racing at an event he's won twice, including last year.
Given all the above, it's easy to see why Busch is the face of the FireKeepers Casino 400 this season.
Stats and info courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
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