Christopher Bell on pole alongside Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr.; full grid list

The NASCAR Cup Series returns to the northeast this weekend for the Crayon 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway’s just over one-mile mostly flat oval. The Joe Gibbs Racing stable enters the weekend as heavy favorites, but weather is likely to be a factor for the third straight week.

Here’s everything to know ahead of the Crayon 301:

Crayon 301 qualifying results

1. Christopher Bell (20), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

2. Martin Truex Jr. (19), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

3. Aric Almirola (10), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

4. Joey Logano (22), Team Penske Ford

5. Ryan Blaney (12), Team Penske Ford

6. Tyler Reddick (45), 23XI Racing Toyota

7. William Byron (24), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

8. Bubba Wallace (23), 23XI Racing Toyota

9. Brad Keselowski (6), RFK Racing Ford

10. Kyle Busch (8), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

11. Austin Dillon (3), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

12. Daniel Suárez (99), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

13. Kevin Harvick (4), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

14. A.J. Allmendinger (16), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

15. Kyle Larson (5), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47), JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet

17. Michael McDowell (34), Front Row Motorsports Ford

18. Chase Elliott (9), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

19. Justin Haley (31), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

20. Denny Hamlin (11), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

21. Ryan Preece (41), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

22. Austin Cindric (2), Team Penske Ford

23. Todd Gilliland (38), Front Row Motorsports Ford

24. Corey LaJoie (7), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

25. Alex Bowman (48), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

26. Chris Buescher (17), RFK Racing Ford

27. Chase Briscoe (14), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

28. Harrison Burton (21), Wood Brothers Racing Ford

29. Noah Gragson (42), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet

30. Erik Jones (43), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet

31. Ross Chastain (1), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

32. BJ McLeod (78), Live Fast Motorsports Ford

33. Ryan Newman (15), Rick Ware Racing Ford

34. Cole Custer (51), Rick Ware Racing Ford

35. Ty Dillon (77), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

36. Ty Gibbs (54), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Crayon 301 TV, streaming, radio schedule

All times Eastern

Saturday
12:05 – 12:50 p.m.: Practice (USA, NBC Sports app, PRN)
1 – 2:15 p.m.: Qualifying (USA, NBC Sports app, PRN)

Sunday
2 – 2:30 p.m.: Pre-race show (USA)
2:30 – 5:30 p.m.: Crayon 301 (USA, NBC Sports app, PRN)

Crayon 301 details

Track: New Hampshire Motor Speedway (1.056-mile oval), Loudon, New Hampshire
Length: 301 laps for 318.458 miles
Banking: Turns – 2-7 degrees | Straightaways – 1 degree
Last year’s winner: Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing

Top drivers and best bets for the Crayon 301

Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas have won six of the last 11 races at Loudon and as such are well-represented among the favorites according to BetMGM. Christopher Bell, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin all enter the weekend with better than 10-to-1 odds to visit Victory Lane.

Best odds to win
• Christopher Bell +600
• Martin Truex Jr. +600
• Denny Hamlin +800
• Kyle Larson +900

Yahoo Sports’ Nick Bromberg wrote earlier in the week on the betting outlook for Loudon and suggests staying away from the fourth JGR driver Ty Gibbs (+3500). Gibbs has only driven in one national series event at Loudon – last year’s Xfinity race – and turned a second-row start into a 21st-place finish.

Bromberg points to 2021 series champion Chase Elliott (+1200) and Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney (+1600) as good mid-tier value bets. Elliott finished second at New Hampshire last year while Blaney has been remarkably consistent there with an average start of 10.5 and average finish of 12.8 in 10 career entries.

Ryan Newman leads list of part-timers

Ryan Newman – who drove full-time in the Cup Series from 2002-2021, winning 18 races – will make just his second start since stepping away from the series when he drives the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford entry this weekend. Cole Custer will make his second-straight start in the No. 15 Ware Racing machine while BJ McLeod makes his 12th start in the No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Ford as he continues to split time with Josh Bilicki and Anthony Alfredo.

Crayon 301 entry list

Ross Chastain (1), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Austin Cindric (2), Team Penske Ford
Austin Dillon (3), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Kevin Harvick (4), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Kyle Larson (5), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Brad Keselowski (6), RFK Racing Ford
Corey LaJoie (7), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Busch (8), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Chase Elliott (9), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Aric Almirola (10), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Denny Hamlin (11), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Blaney (12), Team Penske Ford
Chase Briscoe (14), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Ryan Newman (15), Rick Ware Racing Ford
A.J. Allmendinger (16), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Chris Buescher (17), RFK Racing Ford
Martin Truex Jr. (19), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Christopher Bell (20), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Harrison Burton (21), Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Joey Logano (22), Team Penske Ford
Bubba Wallace (23), 23XI Racing Toyota
William Byron (24), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Justin Haley (31), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Michael McDowell (34), Front Row Motorsports Ford
Todd Gilliland (38), Front Row Motorsports Ford
Ryan Preece (41), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Noah Gragson (42), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Erik Jones (43), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet
Tyler Reddick (45), 23XI Racing Toyota
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47), JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
Alex Bowman (48), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Cole Custer (51), Rick Ware Racing Ford
Ty Gibbs (54), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ty Dillon (77), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
BJ McLeod (78), Live Fast Motorsports Ford
Daniel Suárez (99), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Crayon 301 weekend weather forecast

Rain and thunderstorms are in the forecast for the entire weekend, including an 84% chance of rain Sunday. NASCAR does have a wet-weather package that includes brake lights, windshield wipers and grooved tires that allow the cars to race on a damp track, but not anything more than a drizzle.

Given NASCAR’s protocols (see above) for moving race start times combined with the predicted deluge, a postponement to Monday afternoon seems most likely.