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NASCAR cup series

  

www.nascar.com

NASCARCelebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series™, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour™), one local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series™) and three international series (NASCAR Pinty’s Series™, NASCAR Mexico Series™, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series™). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).

 

Reddick launches bid for third straight NASCAR Cup win with pole run at COTA

 

February 28, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

AUSTIN, Texas—One of the few things that wasn’t startling about Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session at Circuit of the Americas was Tyler Reddick’s run for the pole position.

 

Negotiating the 2.4-mile road course in 97.760 seconds (88.380 mph) in the second qualifying group, Reddick claimed his third Busch Light Pole Award in six attempts at the track and will lead the field to green in Sunday’s DuraMAX Grand Prix Powered by Reladyne (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Of course, there’s more at stake for Reddick than simply a victory at COTA. In winning at EchoPark Speedway near Atlanta last Sunday, the driver of the No. 45 Toyota became the sixth Cup competitor to start a season with two consecutive wins. No driver has ever won three straight to open a season.

 

The 23XI Racing driver acknowledged that the pole position, the 12th of his career, is a positive first step toward that goal.

 

“It helps the chances, certainly,” said Reddick, whose series-best average finish of 4.6 at COTA includes a victory in 2023. “I think starting up front is huge.”

 

Michael McDowell led the first qualifying group of 19 drivers with a lap at 88.031 mph but fell to sixth soon after the second group took to the track. Ultimately, Ross Chastain posted the second-fastest lap at 88.256 mph (97.897 seconds) and will start on the front row beside Reddick.

 

The shocker was not that Chastain, the 2022 COTA winner, fashioned an excellent lap. What was surprising was that his two Trackhouse Racing teammates, Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch—both vaunted road course racers—failed to crack the top 10 in qualifying.

 

Van Gisbergen was 13th fastest on his third lap. Zilisch could do no better than 25th. Van Gisbergen is seeking his sixth straight road course victory in the Cup Series, a mark that would tie NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon for most consecutive road course wins.

 

Chase Briscoe (88.242 mph) will start third, followed by Ryan Blaney (88.179mph) and Chase Elliott (88.161 mph). Elliott leads active drivers with seven road course victories.

 

Behind McDowell in sixth, AJ Allmendinger qualified seventh, followed by defending race winner Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs and William Byron.

 

“We’ll see how it gets going,” Reddick said. “Certainly, Ross, Shane, Ryan Blaney—there’s a number of good drivers who were really strong in practice today. We’ll try to understand what that all looks like and make our best decisions on the car and everything.”

 

 

 

Reddick’s Hot Start Shifts Focus to Potential Three-Peat

 

February 23, 2026

 

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

HAMPTON, Ga. – Tyler Reddick was all smiles climbing out of his well-used noticeably nicked-up No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota Sunday night at EchoPark Speedway after claiming his second win in as many NASCAR Cup Series races on the 2026 season.

 

A week ago, he led only the last lap to earn his first career DAYTONA 500 win and answered it by leading the most laps and starting on pole position to immediately hoist his second trophy of the season – and 10th of his career – Sunday night in the Autotrader 400 in Atlanta.

 

An hour after taking the checkered flag and hoisting his second trophy, the 30-year-old Californian was still shaking his head and proudly contemplating his perfect start to the season.

 

“Just to start it off that way, knowing how good we've been at these other places we have coming up, just really helps the confidence," said Reddick, who also won at this week’s upcoming venue, the Circuit of The Americas road course in 2023.

 

“Keeps me extra motivated, especially, too, during the week to work hard, knowing what great opportunity we have in front of us to start.

 

“I mean, yeah, at some point we could get caught up in a wreck, we could have had a DNF [tonight]. But to start off like this, I think everyone is extremely hungry to just keep pressing onward, whether that's winning races, winning stages, or just scoring points. We have a great opportunity in front of us to get off to a really good start.”

 

And not only has Reddick’s No. 45 team seized the day, the whole 23XI Racing operation is riding an incredible wave of success to open the season.

 

Reddick’s victories have given him the early lead atop the championship standings – a sizable 40-points up on none other than his teammate Bubba Wallace, who is also experiencing a most excellent start to the year.

 

Wallace finished 10th in the DAYTONA 500 and was leading Sunday night in Atlanta with a lap to go, only to finish seventh in the last lap shuffle to the checkered flag. Wallace’s 40 laps out front at Daytona were best in the field as were Reddick’s 53 laps out front at Atlanta.

 

And Reddick, Wallace and Riley Herbst, driver of the No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota, already upped the game for the entire organization – claiming the team’s very first top-10 sweep - Reddick’s win, Herbst’s eighth place and Wallace’s 10th place at Daytona.

 

“It's very early, but it's not by circumstance," said team co-owner Denny Hamlin, who drives the No. 11 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. “They're running up front. They're fast. Again, just doing a lot of the right things. We're making up for lost time. Last year we didn't have the wins that we expected as a race team, but they're making up for it right now.

 

“It feels good certainly as a car owner knowing that you've got a couple of bullets in the gun. When the end of the race didn't go Bubba's way, you got another one there to pick it up. That certainly increases your odds of winning a lot of races when you've got multiple cars up front like we had tonight.”

 

NBA legend and co-owner of 23XI Racing, Michael Jordan was absolutely ecstatic after the DAYTONA 500 victory – celebrating the win with the entire organization and posing for photos cradling the iconic trophy. And he was equally as excited Sunday night at the team’s first ever back-to-back win.

 

“The guys worked hard all summer," Jordan said. “They kept working hard, and this is the fruit of their labor. You know, they put forth the effort, and for us to come out and win the first two races says a lot about our whole team.”

 

And the story only gets better. Although Reddick has admirably won all 10 of his career trophies at different tracks, next week he has to be considered a favorite to take his first repeat victory when the series competes in the DuraMAX Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne at Austin’s famed COTA road course (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Reddick won there in 2023 and is considered one of the sport’s best at turning left and right.

 

He goes to Austin having equaled an important and rare record as only the sixth driver in NASCAR history to win the opening two races of the season. Could he become the first ever to win the first three straight?

 

“Am I going to throw away a second place to do that? Probably not," Reddick said considering the possibility with a smile. “But certainly, if at any point during this week I'm running out of reasons to be motivated to get the win, I'll keep that in my back pocket, for sure.

 

“You know, it's cool to have the opportunity to potentially do things like that, but for me, with where this season started and what I need to do as a driver, it's all about just doing everything I can and showing up every week being as prepared as I can.

 

“But yeah, I'll try and make that a reality.”

 

 

nascar reviews & NOTEBOOKS

www.nascar.com

Celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series™, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour™), one local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series™) and three international series (NASCAR Pinty’s Series™, NASCAR Mexico Series™, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series™). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).

  

Saturday Circuit of the Americas Notebook

 

Notebook Items

  • Connor Zilisch anticipates “cordial” competition with Trackhouse teammate
  • Road course ace AJ Allmendinger is running under the radar
  • Has Carson Hocevar’s aggressive driving earned comparisons to Dale Earnhardt?

 

February 28, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Connor Zilisch anticipates “cordial” competition with Trackhouse teammate

 

AUSTIN, Texas—Now that Connor Zilisch and Shane vas Gisbergen are full-fledged NASCAR Cup Series teammates at Trackhouse Racing, you can expect them to play nice when it comes to on-track competition.

 

Not that they haven’t done so in the past. Van Gisbergen, 36, a three-time Australian Supercars champion, has expressed respect and admiration for his 19-year-old teammate, who torched the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series with 10 victories last year.

 

Whenever the drivers compete on a road course, however, there’s the expectation that they will compete for the victory.

 

True to form, Zilisch won the pole in Friday’s qualifying for Saturday’s Focused Health 250 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race, with Van Gisbergen a close second. The teammates were the only two drivers to navigate the 2.4-mile Circuit of the Americas road course under 98 seconds.

 

“I think, especially on Sunday (in Cup Series races), but tomorrow (Saturday) as well, the biggest thing that both of us know is that it’s important for the company to win,” Zilisch said. “I think that means that you don’t want to take risk of making a move that might end both of our days or whatever it may be.

 

“I think the biggest thing is that we both know at the end of the day that we can race for the win, and there’s no rule that we can’t race each other. But we’ve got to keep it in the back of our mind that, if we are racing for the win or the lead, it’s important to keep it cordial.”

 

Cordial or not, both Van Gisbergen and Zilisch will have to improve from lackluster qualifying efforts in Sunday’s DuraMAX Grand Prix Powered by Reladyne (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Van Gisbergen starts 13th, with Zilisch mired in 25th.

 

Road course ace AJ Allmendinger is running under the radar

 

Before Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch arrived on the NASCAR scene and began to assert their superiority on road courses, AJ Allmendinger’s name invariably was the first one mentioned when handicapping circuits with right- and left-hand turns.

 

But Allmendinger hasn’t won a road course race since 2023, when he triumphed at Circuit of the Americas in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and won at the Charlotte Roval in the Cup Series.

 

“The way we change that narrative is you go beat them, right?” Allmendinger said. “But for the most part, we didn't do that at most of the road courses last year. It's not frustrating to me. For me, the most frustrating thing was just, in general, we didn't run great at the road courses last year.

 

“I put a lot of that on my shoulders. I think as Goodyear softens the tire, it gives the advantage to a guy like SVG (Van Gisbergen) that really knows how to save the tires. It’s something that, whether it was setup-based or my own doing, I struggled with it last year of trying to be good on long runs.”

 

Allmendinger conceded his own performance has to improve if he plans to return to Victory Lane.

 

“I don’t really put stock in how good SVG is, in that sense. Like for me, it would be different if I ran second every weekend to him on the road courses and you can't beat him, then that kind of gets frustrating.

 

“But we weren't even in that ballpark, so I think it's more focusing on myself. You try to learn from them; study it, try to figure out what makes them so good and try to go out there and be better. That's kind of what I focus on. The only thing I get frustrated with is myself.”

 

On Saturday, however, Allmendinger qualified seventh for Sunday’s DuraMAX Grand Prix, and Van Gisbergen was 13th fastest.

 

Has Carson Hocevar’s aggressive driving earned comparisons to Dale Earnhardt?

 

After the first two drafting-track races of the season, former drivers certainly had different takes on Carson Hocevar.

 

Richard Petty, Kyle Petty and Dale Earnhardt Jr. compared the driver of the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet to early Dale Earnhardt Sr., whose aggressive driving style carried him to seven Cup Series championships and 76 victories in NASCAR’s premier division.

 

On the other hand, Kevin Harvick commented that, “The way I would approach it is I’d probably wreck him the first chance I got,” elaborating that other drivers who have been put in bad spots by Hocevar’s aggressiveness might teach him a lesson with their bumpers.

 

Hocevar was at or near the lead coming to the white flag at both Daytona and Atlanta before finishing 18th and fourth at the respective tracks. As a driver who has studied the accomplishments of competitors from earlier eras, he relished the comparisons with Earnhardt.

 

“I just go out and race and I enjoy it,” Hocevar said Saturday morning before practice and qualifying for Sunday’s DuraMAX Grand Prix at COTA (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). “I take it as a massive compliment, you know, from Richard Petty, Kyle Petty, Dale Jr., all of them making comparisons. I'm appreciative of that.

 

“I would like to just have half the success any of those guys did. But I think we're getting ready to get our cars in a really good spot to be able to be in position. I think we've been in position to win three of these races. I don't know if this week we'll show that, but I think we have really good tracks coming up that we can do that.

 

“But for me, I'm just going in the merch hauler and signing 77 diecasts. You know, that's me. Maybe in 20-30 years, somebody's hopefully making comparisons of myself to the next kid that was doing it and running good.”

 

 

Friday St. Petersburg Notebook

 

Notebook Items:

  • Star Power from Former St. Pete Winner
  • A Little Help from Friends
  • Big Names on the NASCAR Grid

 

February 27, 2026

 

By HOLLY CAIN

NASCAR Wire Service

 

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. --- The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series got less than a half hour of practice into their debut on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile downtown St. Petersburg Street Course before rain moved in and cancelled the remaining track activity.

 

NASCAR set the starting lineup for Saturday’s OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 at St. Petersburg (noon ET., FOX, NRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) based on the rulebook with Connor Mosack claiming pole position. He will start the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevy alongside Gio Ruggiero in the No. 17 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

 

Championship points leader Chandler Smith will line up fifth.

 

Former IndyCar star and current FOX Sports broadcaster James Hinchcliffe will start the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevy third in his series debut. Three-time Indianapolis 500 champion Dario Franchitti will start the No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota sixth on the 36-truck grid with the Kaulig Racing RAM Truck “Free Agent” driver Colin Braun rolling off from the 16th position.

 

Kaden Honeycutt, driver of the No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota, was fastest in the short practice session.

 

Star Power from Former St. Pete Winner

The four-time IndyCar Series Champion and 2011 IndyCar St. Pete Grand Prix winner Franchitti is making his first NASCAR start since 2008 and competing in his first nationally sanctioned race of any kind since 2013.

 

That’s the power of his longtime friend, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and NASCAR Cup Series LEGACY MOTOR CLUB team owner Jimmie Johnson, who persuaded Franchitti to return to the driver’s seat this weekend to steer the No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota on the streets of St. Pete.

 

“He's worked hard at putting this whole thing together from the very first conversation,’’ Franchitti said of the NASCAR Hall of Famer Johnson, who has even committed to helping guide Franchitti during the race from atop the pit box.

 

“Jimmie is going to be there giving me advice. Even two nights ago he's on the phone 11:00 at night and 7:00 the next morning talking about restarts. He's fully into it (smiling).

 

“When you have a seven-time NASCAR champion with you there getting that information, I wish he'd been there in 2008 doing that job. It would have helped,’’ Franchitti joked of his NASCAR foray nearly 20 years ago.

 

“There's no substitute for experience. He might be thinking at some point he wished he got in the truck and drove it here instead of me, depending on how I get on.”

 

A Little Help from Friends

McAnally-Hilgemann Racing driver Daniel Hemric is among a group of NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series drivers making use of the ultimate training guide for the series street course debut. He’s been in contact discussing the tight and challenging downtown course with Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin, who scored his first career IndyCar Series win - from pole position - at St. Petersburg in 2022.

 

“Just tried to lean on Scotty a little bit about the nuances that make this place what it is,’’ said Hemric, who drives the No. 19 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet and has three career top-five finishes on road courses in the series.

 

“Obviously, he’s had a lot of success in the past and obviously I have only limited street course experience with the Chicago deal [in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series]. From what I’ve seen it’s a beautiful layout and I’m jealous we haven’t done it before now. Hope to have some fun and get on track and learn something.”

 

McLaughlin said a couple of NASCAR drivers actually reached out to him. In seven starts, the New Zealander has won two pole positions, claimed a pair of top-five finishes and three times has led the most laps in the race.

 

“There’s skill in learning your proximities, and that’s different, but the NASCAR guys do that week in and week out running so close to the fence at places like Darlington (S.C.) or Bristol (Tenn.) places like that,’’ McLaughlin said. “So that’s not really going to be too much of an issue, I think there’s more to lose if you make a mistake and go down an escape road or flat spotting a tire, hitting a fence is something where there’s a little more risk than other tracks.’’

 

“But there’s a lot of good road course drivers in the trucks and I think it’s good for the event to have a little collaboration with NASCAR. I’m really excited to watch it Saturday, honestly.”

 

Big Names on the NASCAR Grid

Saturday’s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race will feature three “guest” drivers – joining the four-time IndyCar Series champion are former Indianapolis 500 pole-winner, now FOX Sports broadcaster Hinchcliffe, who has identified his truck with the name “Jimmy Hinch” over the door of the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevy. 

 

Sports car star and former NASCAR competitor Colin Braun is driving the No. 25 Kaulig Racing RAM truck as the team’s guest “free agent” this week. And the three-time Indy 500 winner Franchitti is driving for TRICON Garage in a deal brokered by his good friend NASCAR team owner Johnson.

 

“Just looking forward to the opportunity,’’ said Braun, who has a 2009 victory in the truck series (at Michigan driving for Jack Roush), but last raced a truck in 2011 – 15 years ago.


 

“I think it's going to be a cool event, a great venue. An interesting race, I think, from the NASCAR side, obviously. You know, being the first time here for everyone, it's a little bit of a level playing field so going to try to jump in and have some fun.”

 

 

NASCAR Weekend Preview: Circuit of The Americas & Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

 

February 26, 2026

 

By Reid Spencer and Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

 

Tyler Reddick heads to his best track in quest for third straight win

 

Before last Sunday, five drivers had won the first two races of a season at NASCAR’s highest level. None of the five succeeded in winning a third straight race.

 

Minus a right-front fender, DAYTONA 500 champion Tyler Reddick drove his No. 45 Toyota to victory at EchoPark Speedway on that Sunday to become the sixth driver to win the first two races of a given season.

 

It would be foolish not to recognize that Reddick has a realistic chance to claim a record third straight win to start the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season—even with road course mavens Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch in the field for Sunday’s DuraMAX Texas Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Several of his predecessors have come close. Marvin Panch, who won the first two races of the 1957 season—albeit in late 1956—finished third at Titusville in the following race. In the 1959 season, Bob Welborn won at Fayetteville, N.C., and earned the pole position for the DAYTONA 500 by winning the first of two qualifying races.

 

But Welborn’s hopes for a third straight win died when his engine failed in the Great American Race. He finished 41st.

 

Driving the famed Wood Brothers Purolator Mercury in 1976, David Pearson won the road race at Riverside, Calif., and the DAYTONA 500 in a ferocious battle against Richard Petty. His bid for three straight ended with an oil pump failure at Rockingham.

 

In 1997, Jeff Gordon opened the season with victories at Daytona and Rockingham and led the first 65 laps at Richmond before finishing fourth, one lap down, in a race won by Rusty Wallace.

 

Matt Kenseth, the most recent driver to open a season with two wins, took checkered flags at Daytona and Fontana, Calif., in 2009, only to have his engine expire six laps into the following race at Las Vegas.

 

It’s serendipitous for Reddick that the third race of the season takes place at 2.4-mile COTA. The track is Reddick’s best in terms of average finish (4.6). That average finish number also is foremost among active Cup drivers.

 

Only once in five starts at the track has Reddick started or finished outside the top five. That was in 2021 when he ran ninth in his maiden voyage at COTA. Reddick has two poles to his credit at the track (2021 and 2025) and one victory (2023).

 

Reddick is well aware of the possible record, but that won’t be his only consideration on Sunday.

 

“I mean, am I going to throw away a second place to do that?” asked the 23XI driver, who leads the series standings by 40 points over second-place Bubba Wallace, his teammate.  “Probably not. But certainly, if at any point during this week I'm running out of reasons to be motivated to go win, I'll keep that in my back pocket, for sure.

 

“It's cool to be able… or have the opportunity to potentially do things like that, but for me, with where this season started and what I need to do as a driver, it's all about just doing everything I can and showing up every week being as prepared as I can.

 

“So, yeah, I'll try and make that a reality.”

 

Standing in Reddick’s way is New Zealander Shane van Gisbergen, who won five of the six road course races on last year’s Cup schedule. With the number of road courses reduced to four this year, Van Gisbergen may feel a greater sense of urgency at COTA, where he is winless in two starts.

 

On the other hand, SVG has shown considerable improvement on oval tracks. He finished sixth last Sunday at EchoPark Speedway in Georgia and is 16th in the Cup Series standings.

 

“These oval races, we are making big gains, and we weren't really in position very often to score stage points last year,” said the three-time Australian Supercars champion. “Now we are able to do that in Daytona and Atlanta, and it's very promising.

 

“These road courses, we just go and have fun. They are like a holiday for us. We just go and enjoy ourselves and hopefully come away with a lot of points and a great result.” – Reid Spencer

 

Trackhouse Racing teammates renew their rivalry in O’Reilly Auto Parts race

 

Before Trackhouse Racing teammates Shane van Gisbergen and Connor Zilisch face off in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race, they’ll renew their friendly rivalry as heavy favorites in Saturday’s Focused Health 250 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series event at Circuit of the Americas (3 p.m. ET on CW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

 

Zilisch is the defending winner. At age 18, he started from the pole last year and beat Cup driver William Byron to the finish line by 1.639 seconds.

 

Van Gisbergen raced just three times in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series last year during his rookie season in the Cup Series. On the Chicago Street Course he outdueled Zilisch, who finished second.

 

At Sonoma Raceway in July, Zilisch turned the tables, beating SVG to finish line by 0.438 seconds. In the rubber match at Watkins Glen, Zilisch and Van Gisbergen tangled in Turn 7 on Lap 65, with Zilisch surviving to win the race and Van Gisbergen falling to 31st.

 

All told, Zilisch collected a series-best 10 O’Reilly Auto Parts victories in 2025 with JR Motorsports before graduating to the Cup Series with Trackhouse this year.

 

NASCAR doesn’t run the full 3.426-mile Grand Prix Course at COTA, preferring to shorten the track to 2.4 miles, eliminating the long backstretch and creating more passing zones.

 

"COTA is just super-fun, especially since they shortened the course,” said Zilisch. “I really enjoy the shortened course. It has created really good racing and has a short-track type feel to it now.

 

“You don’t really have straightaways anymore, except for the front straightaway. It’s just so unique. You’ve got a new passing zone now with Turn 6A and that cut-through is a great passing zone. As a driver, you’re doing more, more often. You’re turning more, and you’re in a corner more often. It’s a lot of fun.”

 

If there’s a series regular who might be able to dethrone the Cup moonlighters, look no further than Sam Mayer, who has four top 10s in as many starts at the track and a best of third last year. – Reid Spencer

 

Dario Franchitti, Colin Braun return to NASCAR for historic CRAFTSMAN Truck Series street race

 

The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series will make history this weekend competing on its first ever street course in downtown St. Petersburg—a new challenge and a new market.

 

More than 100,000 fans typically fill the grandstands and high rises above the 1.8-mile, 14-turn waterfront course, used by the NTT IndyCar Series for more than two decades and set alongside historic Vinoy Park and the famed St. Petersburg Pier.

 

Saturday's 80-lap OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 at St. Petersburg (12 noon E.T. on FOX, NRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) marks the first time the series has raced on a street circuit. The drivers say they are excited, even if they don't know exactly what to expect on this new type of course.

 

“The first time I got to be on a street course was only about eight months ago (racing in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series) in Chicago, but it was a whole different experience and super unique and I really enjoyed it,” said Kaulig Racing's RAM Truck driver Daniel Dye, who came to St. Pete earlier this month to help mark the track-build.

 

“So, to get to do it in my home state of Florida in such a cool place as St. Petersburg, I'm pumped. I love coming to Florida as much as I can—start in Daytona and end in Miami (Homestead) and be here in St. Pete for the third race of the season is pretty cool.

 

“I'm looking forward to it and been talking to my teammate A.J. Allmendinger,” he said of his team's NASCAR Cup Series driver, who is considered one of NASCAR's best-ever road racers.

 

Another driver to lean on is sports car star Colin Braun, who will be in the RAM team's No. 25 RAM 1500 "free agent truck" — used throughout the season to  feature different star drivers from other series. NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart drove it in the Daytona season-opener, and current NASCAR Cup Series driver Ty Dillon raced it in Atlanta last weekend.

 

Former Indianapolis 500 winner and multi-time IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti will be making his first start in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, driving the No. 1 TRICON Garage Toyota. He won the St. Pete IndyCar race in 2011.

 

He'll be joined by another famed IndyCar star, former Indianapolis 500 polesitter James Hinchcliffe, who will drive the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet.  Adam Andretti, brother of the late NASCAR star John Andretti and nephew of the legendary Mario Andretti, will be competing in the No. 5 TRICON Garage Toyota after making his NASCAR debut last week at Atlanta.

 

These drivers will have their hands full competing against a highly-motivated group of championship contenders. Front Row Motorsports' Chandler Smith, this year's Daytona winner, leads the standings by 28 points over TRICON Garage driver Gio Ruggiero.

 

The trucks get their first laps in downtown St. Pete on Friday, with a 50-minute practice at 4 p.m. followed by Kennametal Pole Qualifying at 5:05 p.m. ET.  – Holly Cain

 

--30--

 

   nascar cup series

NASCAR Cup Series schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

Date Race Track Time
Feb. 1 Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Bowman Gray Stadium 8 p.m.
Feb. 12 Duel 1 at Daytona Daytona International Speedway 7 p.m.
Feb. 12 Duel 2 at Daytona Daytona International Speedway 8:45 p.m.
Feb. 15 Daytona 500 Daytona International Speedway 2:30 p.m.
Feb. 22 Autotrader 400 EchoPark Speedway 3 p.m.
March 1 DuraMax Grand Prix Circuit of the Americas 3:30 p.m.
March 8 Straight Talk Wireless 500 Phoenix Raceway 3:30 p.m.
March 15 Pennzoil 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway 4 p.m.
March 22 Goodyear 400 Darlington Raceway 3 p.m.
March 29 Cook Out 400 Martinsville Speedway 3:30 p.m.
April 12 Food City 500 Bristol Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
April 19 AdventHealth 400 Kansas Speedway 2 p.m.
April 26 Jack Link's 500 Talladega Superspeedway 3 p.m.
May 3 Wurth 400 Texas Motor Speedway 3:30 p.m.
May 10 Go Bowling at the Glen Watkins Glen International 3 p.m.
May 17 All-Star Race Dover Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
May 24 Coca-Cola 600 Charlotte Motor Speedway 6 p.m.
May 31 Cracker Barrel 400 Nashville Superspeedway  7 p.m.
June 7 FireKeepers Casino 400 Michigan International Speedway 3 p.m.
June 14 Cup Series race at Pocono Pocono Raceway 3 p.m.
June 21 Anduril 250 Naval Base Coronado 4 p.m.
June 28 Toyota/Save Mart 350 Sonoma Raceway 3:30 p.m.
July 5 Cup Series race at Chicagoland Chicagoland Speedway 6 p.m.
July 12 Quaker State 400 EchoPark Speedway 7 p.m.
July 19 Window World 400 North Wilkesboro Speedway 7 p.m.
July 26 Brickyard 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2 p.m.
Aug. 9 Iowa Corn 350 Iowa Speedway 3:30 p.m.
Aug. 15 Cook Out 400 Richmond Raceway 7 p.m.
Aug. 23 Cup Series race at New Hampshire New Hampshire Motor Speedway 3 p.m.
Aug. 29 Coke Zero Sugar 400 Daytona International Speedway 7:30 p.m.

NASCAR Cup Series playoff race schedule 2026

(All times Eastern)

Date Race Track Time
Sept. 6 Southern 500 Darlington Raceway 5 p.m.
Sept. 13 Enjoy Illinois 300 World Wide Technology Raceway 3 p.m.
Sept. 19 Bass Pro Shops Night Race Bristol Motor Speedway 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 27 Hollywood Casino 400 Kansas Speedway 3 p.m.
Oct. 4 South Point 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway 5:30 p.m.
Oct. 11 Bank of America ROVAL 400 Charlotte Road Course 3 p.m.
Oct. 18 Freeway Insurance 500 Phoenix Raceway 3 p.m.
Oct. 25 Yellawood 500 Talladega Superspeedway 2 p.m.
Nov. 1 Xfinity 500 Martinsville Speedway 2 p.m.
Nov. 8 Cup Series Championship Race Homestead-Miami Speedway 3 p.m.

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