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Starting lineup and qualifying

2026 Food City 300 Starting Lineup: Jesse Love on Pole & Starting Grid — September 18

Jesse Love starts P1, with Sheldon Creed alongside in P2 for the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. The listed field contains 38 starters.

Pole position

Jesse Love

No. 2 · Chevrolet

Outside pole

Sheldon Creed

No. 00 · Chevrolet

Field

38 starters

NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series

Race weekend

Friday, September 18, 2026

Open weekend hub →

Grid briefing

Jesse Love leads the Food City 300 starting lineup

How the front row was set

Jesse Love and Sheldon Creed occupy row one in the latest available starting order. The table below preserves the listed start-position order, car number and manufacturer supplied for the event.

What track position means at Bristol Motor Speedway

Bristol's steep concrete half-mile produces constant traffic, short reaction time and a groove that can move as rubber builds.

Food City 300 grid watch

The O'Reilly field mixes developing drivers with experienced regulars, so adaptation can reshape the order quickly. Watch bottom-versus-top control, lapped traffic and pit-road timing. The 2026 Chase has no eliminations, but every point carries to the finale after the one-time reseed. For this event, the season role is O'Reilly Chase race 3 of 9.

Starting-order facts checked against ESPN Core. A post-qualifying inspection or unapproved adjustment can still send a car to the rear without changing its scored starting position.

Row-by-row grid

Food City 300 starting positions

RowStartDriverCarManufacturerSponsor
11Jesse LoveNo. 2ChevroletSamsara
12Sheldon CreedNo. 00ChevroletRoad Ranger
23Sam MayerNo. 41ChevroletAudibel
24Carson KvapilNo. 1ChevroletWilde Protein Crackers
35Taylor GrayNo. 54ToyotaOperation 300
36Brent CrewsNo. 19ToyotaMobil 1
47Parker RetzlaffNo. 99ChevroletSamsara
48Sammy SmithNo. 8ChevroletSamsara
59Justin AllgaierNo. 7ChevroletHellmann's
510Rajah CaruthNo. 88ChevroletHendrickCars.com
611Brandon JonesNo. 20ToyotaMenards
612Dean ThompsonNo. 26ToyotaSamsara
713Jeb BurtonNo. 27ChevroletSamsara
714Ryan SiegNo. 39ChevroletSci Aps
815Kyle SiegNo. 28ChevroletSamsara
816William SawalichNo. 18ToyotaSoundGear
917Brennan PooleNo. 44FordSamsara
918Patrick StaropoliNo. 48ChevroletSamsara
1019Anthony AlfredoNo. 96ChevroletSamsara
1020Austin HillNo. 21ChevroletBennett Transportation
1121Blaine PerkinsNo. 31ChevroletSamsara
1122Josh WilliamsNo. 92ChevroletSamsara
1223Andrew PattersonNo. 32ChevroletSamsara
1224Stefan ParsonsNo. 91ChevroletSamsara
1325Garrett SmithleyNo. 0ChevroletSS GreenLight Racing
1326Corey DayNo. 17ChevroletHendrickCars.com
1427Ryan EllisNo. 02ChevroletSamsara
1428Josh BilickiNo. 07ChevroletSamsara
1529Jeremy ClementsNo. 51ChevroletSamsara
1530David StarrNo. 55FordStripes
1631Logan BeardenNo. 42ChevroletSamsara
1632Lavar ScottNo. 45FordSamsara
1733Nick SanchezNo. 87ChevroletSamsara
1734Harrison BurtonNo. 24ToyotaSamsara
1835Carson WareNo. 53ChevroletSamsara
1836Jake FinchNo. 9ChevroletSuperFile
1937Natalie DeckerNo. 47ChevroletSamsara
1938J.J. YeleyNo. 38FordSamsara

38 listed starters shown.

Grid to checkered flag

How the Food City 300 winner started

Sheldon Creed won after starting P2

Sheldon Creed moved from P2 to the win, a net gain of 1 positions. The starting grid records where the car took the green; the race recap explains the decisive sequence that produced the finish.

Read the race recap and finishing order →

Quick answers

Food City 300 starting lineup FAQ

Who is on pole for the Food City 300?

Jesse Love is listed in pole position.

Who starts on the front row?

Jesse Love starts P1 and Sheldon Creed starts P2.

How many cars are in the Food City 300 starting lineup?

The listed field has 38 starters.

Can the starting lineup change after qualifying?

Yes. Inspection failures, backup cars and unapproved adjustments can send a driver to the rear. The official scored start position may remain unchanged even when the car drops behind the field for the green flag.

How to use this tool

Read the starting grid

  1. 1

    Use Start for the exact grid spot and Row to see which two cars share a row.

  2. 2

    Search a driver, car number or manufacturer to jump straight to that entry.

  3. 3

    Open the race recap after the checkered flag to compare start versus finish.

Race fan notes:
  • An entry list is not a confirmed lineup.
  • A car sent to the rear can retain its original scored starting position.