The starting lineup and pole for Saturday night's NASCAR race at Richmond Raceway, the second race of the 2020 Cup Series playoffs, were not set by the random-draw procedure that determined the starting order for most of the races in 2020 that ran without qualifying sessions amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The starting grid for Saturday's race at Richmond, scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. ET and broadcast live on NBCSN, features some of this season's top drivers at the front of the field. It is the result of a new formula that takes into account finishing position from the previous race, team owner points standings and the fastest lap from the previous race to set the lineup.
MORE: Updated 2020 NASCAR Cup Series schedule
As for pit stall selection for the NASCAR Cup Series races being run without qualifying, it is ordered based on the same formula. Which means the pole sitter for Sunday's race (more on him below) also had the first pit stall selection.
Below is the starting lineup for Saturday night's NASCAR race at Richmond and how it was set.
Who won the pole for the NASCAR race at Richmond?
The 10-race NASCAR playoffs began last week with the favorite to win the 2020 championship earning his eighth win of the season. So of course points leader Kevin Harvick is on the pole for Saturday night's race at Richmond.
Joey Logano, who finished third last week at Darlington and who is third in points, will join Harvick on the front row to start Saturday night's race at Richmond.
Below is the formula for how the Cup Series field was set at Darlington:
- 35 percent: Ranking in team owner points
- 25 percent: Driver's position from previous race
- 25 percent: Team owner's position from previous race
- 15 percent: Fastest lap from previous race
NASCAR starting lineup at Richmond
Saturday night's race at Richmond is just the fifth to use NASCAR's new formula for setting the starting lineup without qualifying (and the second to use it since NASCAR tweaked the finishing position portion of the formula). The same procedure will be used through the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
As for the starting lineup for Saturday night's NASCAR race at Richmond, below is the field the formula created:
| Pos. | Driver | Car No. | Team |
| 1 | Kevin Harvick | 4 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 2 | Joey Logano | 22 | Team Penske |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | 3 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 4 | Alex Bowman | 88 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 5 | William Byron | 24 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 6 | Kyle Busch | 18 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 7 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 8 | Kurt Busch | 1 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 9 | Brad Keselowski | 2 | Team Penske |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | 10 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 11 | Clint Bowyer | 14 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 12 | Chase Elliott | 9 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 13 | Cole Custer | 41 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 14 | Martin Truex Jr. | 19 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 15 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Team Penske |
| 16 | Matt DiBenedetto | 21 | Wood Brothers Racing |
| 17 | Erik Jones | 20 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 18 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 19 | Matt Kenseth | 42 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 20 | Michael McDowell | 34 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 21 | Ryan Newman | 6 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 22 | Tyler Reddick | 8 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 23 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 24 | Ryan Preece | 37 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 25 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 26 | Christopher Bell | 95 | Leavine Family Racing |
| 27 | Ty Dillon | 13 | Germain Racing |
| 28 | Daniel Suarez | 96 | Gaunt Brothers Racing |
| 29 | Brennan Poole | 15 | Premium Motorsports |
| 30 | Bubba Wallace | 43 | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 31 | John Hunter Nemechek | 38 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 32 | JJ Yeley | 27 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 33 | Quin Houff | 00 | StarCom Racing |
| 34 | Corey LaJoie | 32 | Go Fas Racing |
| 35 | Reed Sorenson | 77 | Spire Motorsports |
| 36 | Joey Gase | 51 | Petty Ware Racing |
| 37 | Timmy Hill | 66 | Motorsports Business Management |
| 38 | James Davison | 53 | Rick Ware Racing |