It’s NASCAR race day at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and we’ve got some essential information you need to get ready for Sunday’s South Point 400, the first playoff race of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series:

START TIME: Part-time NASCAR driver and Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan will instruct drivers to start their engines at 3:07 p.m. ET (12:07 p.m. local), followed by the green flag at 3:16 p.m. ET (12:16 p.m. local).

RACE DISTANCE: The South Point 400 is is 267 laps around the 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway for a total of 400.5 miles.

RACE STAGES: After a successful run last season, NASCAR will once again be dividing races into stages and handing out points. Here are the segments for today's race: Stage 1: 80 laps, Stage 2: 80 laps, Stage 3: 107 laps.

PLAYOFFS: Today's race is the first of 10 playoff races and the first of the three-race first round, which also includes races in Richmond at Charlotte. Sixteen drivers qualified for the postseason and four will be eliminated after the Charlotte race on Sept. 30.

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NATIONAL ANTHEM: Singer/songwriter and Las Vegas native Sierra Black will perform the national anthem at 3:01 p.m. ET (12:01 p.m. local), followed by a flyover by four A-10s from Strike Fighter Squadron 213 Blacklions out of Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

TV RADIO SCHEDULE: The race will be broadcast on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) starting at 3 p.m. ET (noon local), with a pre-show beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET (11:30 a.m. local) Radio calls can be found on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius/XM NASCAR Radio.

LIVE STREAMING: NBCSports.com will live-stream the race for those who sign in with their cable/satellite provider's credentials.

WEATHER: Scorching hot. The Weather Channel is forecasting sunny skies with highs in the upper 90s. There is currently no chance of rain.

LAST TIME: Kevin Harvick absolutely dominated in March, leading 214 of 267 laps to score his second career Cup win at Las Vegas. Las Vegas did not host a playoff race in 2017.

LINEUP: Erik Jones scored his second career Cup Series pole, narrowly edging Joey Logano. Playoff drivers will start in the first 11 positions, with the other five failing to advance to the final round of qualifying.

Here is the starting lineup for the South Point 400 (car number in parentheses):

1. (20) Erik Jones, Toyota

2. (22) Joey Logano, Ford

3. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota

4. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota

5. (4) Kevin Harvick, Ford

6. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford

7. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet

8. (41) Kurt Busch, Ford

9. (88) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet

10. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota

11. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet

12. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet

13. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford

14. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford

15. (14) Clint Bowyer, Ford

16. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford

17. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet

18. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet

19. (19) Daniel Suarez, Toyota

20. (21) Paul Menard, Ford

21. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet

22. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet

23. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford

24. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford

25. (95) Regan Smith, Chevrolet

26. (32) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford

27. (38) David Ragan, Ford

28. (37) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet

29. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet

30. (13) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet

31. (43) Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet

32. (72) Corey LaJoie, Chevrolet

33. (99) Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet

34. (15) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet

35. (96) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Toyota

36. (23) JJ Yeley, Toyota

37. (00) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet

38. (51) BJ McLeod, Ford

39. (66) Timmy Hill, Toyota

40. (7) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet

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