The starting lineup for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway was set by applying the statistical formula NASCAR is using for the majority of the series' races in 2021.
NASCAR returned to the formula after holding qualifying the previous two weekends at Circuit of the Americas and Charlotte.
Drivers' starting positions for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 (4 p.m. ET; FS1, TSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) were based on four factors:
- Driver's finishing position from the previous race (25 percent)
- Car owner's finishing position from the previous race (25 percent)
- Team owner points ranking (35 percent)
- Fastest lap from the previous race (15 percent)
NASCAR is conducting qualifying and practice for just eight Cup Series races in the 2021 season. The remaining sessions will be held at Nashville, Road America, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and Phoenix. The first three tracks are new to the NASCAR schedule, and Phoenix is the site of the season-ending Championship 4 race.
Below is the starting lineup, which was set without qualifying, for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race on Sonoma Raceway's 2.52-mile road course.
MORE: Watch Sunday's NASCAR race live with fuboTV (free 7-day trial)
Who won the pole for the NASCAR race at Sonoma?
Kyle Larson is on the pole for Sunday's race after his dominating win in the Coca-Cola 600. The Hendrick Motorsports driver also has the No. 1 pit stall location for the race.
His teammates Chase Elliott and William Byron were awarded the second and third spots in the lineup. Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin, the Cup Series points leader, completed the second row.
Martin Truex Jr., the two-time defending race winner, was assigned the 19th starting position.
NASCAR starting lineup at Somoma
NASCAR used a mathematical formula to set the starting lineup for Sunday's race at Sonoma Raceway, the Toyota/Save Mart 350, without qualifying. Thirty-seven drivers were entered for the race.
| Start pos. | Driver | Car No. | Team |
| 1 | Kyle Larson | 5 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 2 | Chase Elliott | 9 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 3 | William Byron | 24 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 4 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 5 | Kyle Busch | 18 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 6 | Austin Dillon | 3 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 7 | Alex Bowman | 48 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 8 | Kevin Harvick | 4 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 9 | Brad Keselowski | 2 | Team Penske |
| 10 | Tyler Reddick | 8 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 11 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Team Penske |
| 12 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 13 | Joey Logano | 22 | Team Penske |
| 14 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 15 | Bubba Wallace | 23 | 23XI Racing |
| 16 | Daniel Suarez | 99 | Trackhouse Racing Team |
| 17 | Matt DiBenedetto | 21 | Wood Brothers Racing |
| 18 | Erik Jones | 43 | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | 19 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 20 | Christopher Bell | 20 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 21 | Michael McDowell | 34 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 22 | Corey LaJoie | 7 | Spire Motorsports |
| 23 | Cole Custer | 41 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 24 | Ryan Newman | 6 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 25 | Chase Briscoe | 14 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 26 | Aric Almirola | 10 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 27 | Ryan Preece | 37 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 28 | Anthony Alfredo | 38 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 29 | Ross Chastain | 42 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 30 | Kurt Busch | 1 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 31 | Ben Rhodes | 77 | Spire Motorsports |
| 32 | James Davison | 15 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 33 | Quin Houff | 00 | StarCom Racing |
| 34 | Garrett Smithley | 53 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 35 | Scott Heckert | 78 | Live Fast Motorsports |
| 36 | Josh Bilicki | 52 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 37 | Cody Ware | 51 | Petty Ware Racing |
