2026 NASCAR Cup Series

2026 NASCAR Cup Series

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Champions | Seasons

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series will be the 78th season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 55th season for the modern-era Cup Series. The season will start with the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on February 1 at Bowman Gray Stadium, followed by The Duel at Daytona on February 12, and the 68th running of the Daytona 500 (the first points race of the season) on February 15, both at Daytona International Speedway. The season will end with the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Homestead–Miami Speedway on November 8. ^[1]

Teams and drivers

Chartered teams

Manufacturer	Team	No.	Driver	Crew chief	Notes
Chevrolet	Haas Factory Team	41	Cole Custer	TBA	Custer is signed through 2026. HFT will switch to Chevrolet with a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports. [2] [3]
	Hendrick Motorsports	5	Kyle Larson	TBA	Larson is signed through 2026. [4]
		9	Chase Elliott	TBA	Elliott is signed through 2027. [5]
		24	William Byron	TBA	Byron signed a four-year extension in 2025. [6]
		48	Alex Bowman	TBA	Bowman is signed through 2026. [7]
	Hyak Motorsports	47	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	TBA	Stenhouse signed a multi-year extension in 2022 [8] and reaffirmed that he is signed through 2026 and will be staying with the team. [9] [10]
	Kaulig Racing	10	Ty Dillon	TBA	Ty Dillon is expected to return. [11]
		16	A. J. Allmendinger	TBA	Allmendinger is signed through 2026. [12]
	Richard Childress Racing	3	Austin Dillon	TBA	Austin Dillon is signed through 2026. [11]
		8	Kyle Busch	TBA	Busch is signed through 2026. [13]
	Spire Motorsports	7	Justin Haley	TBA	Haley is signed through 2026. [11]
		71	Michael McDowell	TBA	McDowell signed a multi-year deal in 2024. [14]
		77	Carson Hocevar	TBA	Hocevar signed a multi-year deal in 2024. [15]
	Trackhouse Racing	1	Ross Chastain	TBA	Chastain signed a multi-year extension in 2023. [16]
		88	Shane van Gisbergen	TBA	Van Gisbergen signed a multi-year extension in 2025. [17]
		TBA	Connor Zilisch (R)	TBA	Zilisch will replace Daniel Suárez in 2026 after signing a multi-year contract. Trackhouse has not announced if the car number will remain the No. 99 or change to another number. [18] [19]
Ford	RFK Racing	6	Brad Keselowski	TBA	Keselowski will return as he is a co-owner of the team. [20]
		17	Chris Buescher	TBA	Buescher is signed through 2026. [11]
		60	Ryan Preece	TBA	Preece is expected to return to the team. [11] [21]
	Rick Ware Racing	51	Cody Ware	TBA	Following his (disputed) purchase of RWR, T. J. Puchyr announced Cody Ware will stay in the No. 51 car. [21]
	Team Penske	2	Austin Cindric	TBA	Cindric is signed through 2026. [22]
		12	Ryan Blaney	TBA	Both Blaney and Logano signed multi-year extensions with Penske in 2022. [23] [24]
		22	Joey Logano	TBA
	Wood Brothers Racing	21	Josh Berry	TBA	Berry signed a multi-year deal in 2024. [25]
Toyota	Joe Gibbs Racing	11	Denny Hamlin	TBA	Hamlin signed a two-year extension in 2025. [26] [27]
		19	Chase Briscoe	TBA	Briscoe signed a multi-year deal in 2024. [28]
		20	Christopher Bell	TBA	Bell signed a multi-year extension in 2022. [29] [30]
		54	Ty Gibbs	TBA	Gibbs will return. [11]
	Legacy Motor Club	42	John Hunter Nemechek	TBA	Nemechek will return. [11]
		43	Erik Jones	TBA	Jones signed a multi-year extension in 2024. [31]
		TBA	TBA	TBA	Rick Ware Racing will sell a charter to LMC after their settlement to their lawsuit. [32]

Non-chartered teams

Manufacturer	Team	No.	Driver	Crew chief	Notes
Toyota	Legacy Motor Club	84	Jimmie Johnson	TBA	Johnson has stated he could run more races in 2026. [33]

TBD

For details about the ongoing antitrust lawsuit between 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports and NASCAR, and why these teams are currently non-chartered, see 23XI Racing & Front Row Motorsports vs. NASCAR antitrust lawsuit.

Manufacturer	Team	No.	Driver	Crew chief	Notes
Ford	Front Row Motorsports	4	Noah Gragson	TBA	Gragson signed a multi-year deal in 2024. [34]
		34	Todd Gilliland	TBA	Gilliland signed a multi-year extension in 2024. [35]
		38	Zane Smith	TBA	Smith signed a multi-year deal in 2025. [36]
Toyota	23XI Racing	23	Bubba Wallace	TBA	Wallace signed a multi-year extension in 2024. [37]
		35	Riley Herbst	TBA	Herbst is signed through 2026. [38]
		45	Tyler Reddick	TBA	Reddick is expected to return. [11]

Team changes

Manufacturers

• Haas Factory Team will switch from Ford to Chevrolet in 2026. ^[3]

Driver changes

Released from team

• Daniel Suárez will not return to Trackhouse Racing in the 2026 season. ^[18]

Rookies

See also: NASCAR Rookie of the Year § Cup Series

• Connor Zilisch signed a multi-year contract with Trackhouse Racing to replace Suárez in 2026. ^[19]

Schedule

The 2026 schedule was released on August 20, 2025, and consists of 31 oval races, 4 road course races, 1 street track race, and four non-championship races to be held on ovals. ^[1]

Notes: Race names and title sponsors are subject to change. Not all title sponsors/names of races have been announced for 2026. For the races where a 2026 name and title sponsor has yet to be announced, the title sponsors/names of those races in 2025 are listed. ^[1]

No	Race name	Track	Location	Date	TV	Radio
Regular Season
	Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium	O  Bowman Gray Stadium	Winston-Salem, North Carolina	February 1	Fox Sports	MRN
	The Duel at Daytona	O  Daytona International Speedway	Daytona Beach, Florida	February 12
1	Daytona 500			February 15
2	Autotrader 400 [39]	O  EchoPark Speedway	Hampton, Georgia	February 22		PRN
3	EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix	R  Circuit of the Americas	Austin, Texas	March 1
4	Shriners Children's 500	O  Phoenix Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	March 8		MRN
5	Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube	O  Las Vegas Motor Speedway	Las Vegas, Nevada	March 15		PRN
6	Goodyear 400	O  Darlington Raceway	Darlington, South Carolina	March 22		MRN
7	Cook Out 400	O  Martinsville Speedway	Martinsville, Virginia	March 29
8	Food City 500	O  Bristol Motor Speedway	Bristol, Tennessee	April 12		PRN
9	AdventHealth 400	O  Kansas Speedway	Kansas City, Kansas	April 19		MRN
10	Jack Link's 500	O  Talladega Superspeedway	Talladega, Alabama	April 26
11	Würth 400 Presented by LIQUI MOLY	O  Texas Motor Speedway	Fort Worth, Texas	May 3		PRN
12	Go Bowling at The Glen	R  Watkins Glen International	Watkins Glen, New York	May 10		MRN
	NASCAR All-Star Open	O  Dover Motor Speedway	Dover, Delaware	May 17
	NASCAR All-Star Race
13	Coca-Cola 600	O  Charlotte Motor Speedway	Concord, North Carolina	May 24	Prime	PRN
14	Cracker Barrel 400	O  Nashville Superspeedway	Lebanon, Tennessee	May 31
15	FireKeepers Casino 400	O  Michigan International Speedway	Brooklyn, Michigan	June 7		MRN
16	The Great American Getaway 400 presented by VISITPA	O  Pocono Raceway	Long Pond, Pennsylvania	June 14
17	Anduril 250 Race the Base	S  Coronado Street Course	San Diego, California	June 21
NASCAR In-Season Challenge [40]
18	Toyota/Save Mart 350	R  Sonoma Raceway	Sonoma, California	June 28	TNT	MRN
19	NASCAR Cup Series at Chicagoland Speedway	O  Chicagoland Speedway	Joliet, Illinois	July 5
20	Quaker State 400	O  EchoPark Speedway	Hampton, Georgia	July 12		PRN
21	Window World 400 [41]	O  North Wilkesboro Speedway	North Wilkesboro, North Carolina	July 19
22	Brickyard 400	O  Indianapolis Motor Speedway	Speedway, Indiana	July 26		IMS
Regular Season
23	Iowa Corn 350	O  Iowa Speedway	Newton, Iowa	August 9	NBC Sports	MRN
24	Cook Out 400	O  Richmond Raceway	Richmond, Virginia	August 15
25	Mobil 1 301	O  New Hampshire Motor Speedway	Loudon, New Hampshire	August 23		PRN
26	Coke Zero Sugar 400	O  Daytona International Speedway	Daytona Beach, Florida	August 29		MRN
NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs
Round of 16
27	Cook Out Southern 500	O  Darlington Raceway	Darlington, South Carolina	September 6	NBC Sports	MRN
28	Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter	O  World Wide Technology Raceway	Madison, Illinois	September 13
29	Bass Pro Shops Night Race	O  Bristol Motor Speedway	Bristol, Tennessee	September 19		PRN
Round of 12
30	Hollywood Casino 400 presented by ESPN BET	O  Kansas Speedway	Kansas City, Kansas	September 27	NBC Sports	MRN
31	South Point 400	O  Las Vegas Motor Speedway	Las Vegas, Nevada	October 4		PRN
32	Bank of America Roval 400	R  Charlotte Motor Speedway (Roval)	Concord, North Carolina	October 11
Round of 8
33	TBA	O  Phoenix Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	October 18	NBC Sports	MRN
34	YellaWood 500	O  Talladega Superspeedway	Lincoln, Alabama	October 25
35	Xfinity 500	O  Martinsville Speedway	Ridgeway, Virginia	November 1
Championship 4
36	NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race	O  Homestead–Miami Speedway	Homestead, Florida	November 8	NBC Sports	MRN

Notes

Bolded races indicate an event generally known as a Crown Jewel race.

 O  Oval track
 R  Road course
 S  Street course

Confirmed schedule changes

• Homestead–Miami Speedway will return to its traditional date as the season finale for all three major series. ^[42] To accommodate this change, New Hampshire Motor Speedway will be removed from the playoffs. ^[1]
• Chicago Street Course announced that the Grant Park 165 will not return in 2026. ^[43]
• The Cup Series will return to Southern California with a street race at Naval Base Coronado near San Diego. ^[44] To accomodate this change, Mexico City was dropped from the schedule due to a conflict with the 2026 FIFA World Cup. ^[45]
• The NASCAR All-Star Race will be moved from North Wilkesboro Speedway to Dover Motor Speedway, giving the former a points race, the first regular-season race held there since 1996. ^[1]
• Chicagoland Speedway will return to the schedule for the first time since 2019. ^[1]

See also

• 2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series
• 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

References

1. "NASCAR releases 2026 schedule, adding Chicagoland and shifting All-Star to Dover". NASCAR . August 20, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
2. "Cole Custer to drive for Haas Factory Team in 2025". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. July 20, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
3. Crandall, Kelly (September 5, 2025). "Haas NASCAR team reuniting with Chevrolet in '26". Racer . Retrieved September 5, 2025.
4. "Kyle Larson, HendrickCars.com extend with Hendrick Motorsports through 2026". NASCAR . September 16, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
5. "Chase Elliott signs contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. February 20, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
6. "Hendrick Motorsports, William Byron agree to four year contract extension". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. May 23, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
7. "Alex Bowman signs three year contract extension; Ally signs five year extension with Hendrick Motorsports". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. February 15, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
8. "Ricky Stenhouse Jr signs contract extension with JTG Daugherty Racing UPDATE". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. May 5, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
9. "Justin Haley on the hot seat". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 29, 2025. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
10. Christie, Toby (September 2, 2025). "Stenhouse Confirms Return to HYAK Motorsports for 2026 Season". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
11. "2026 NASCAR Cup Series Team / Driver Chart". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
12. "Kaulig Racing says A.J. Allmendinger will return to Cup next season". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 1, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
13. "Kyle Busch signs one year contract extension with Richard Childress Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. May 24, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
14. "Michael McDowell leaving Front Row Motorsports at season's end: UPDATE: Moving to Spire". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. May 8, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
15. "Carson Hocevar to drive No. 77 for Spire Motorsports next season". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. October 10, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
16. DeGroot, Nick (February 16, 2023). "Ross Chastain signs multi-year contract extension with Trackhouse". Motorsport Network . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
17. "Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing announce multiyear contract extension". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 8, 2025. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
18. "Daniel Suarez not returning to Trackhouse Racing in 2026". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. July 1, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
19. "Connor Zilisch to drive Trackhouse Chevy in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 23, 2025. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
20. "Brad Keselowski headed to Roush Fenway Racing in driver-ownership role". NASCAR . July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
21. "T.J. Puchyr agrees to buy Rick Ware Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 26, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
22. "Austin Cindric say changes in Penske IndyCar program will not impact him UPDATE". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 1, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
23. "Ryan Blaney Signs Long-Term Contract Extension with Team Penske". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 17, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
24. "NASCAR Champion Joey Logano and Team Penske Agree to Contract Extension". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 24, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
25. "Josh Berry to drive for Wood Brothers Racing next season after signing multi-year deal". Jayski's Silly Season Site . July 3, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
26. "Denny Hamlin signs contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. July 25, 2025. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
27. Weaver, Matt (July 25, 2025). "Denny Hamlin inks multi-year NASCAR extension with Joe Gibbs Racing". The Sporting News . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
28. "Chase Briscoe joining Joe Gibbs Racing in 2025". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 25, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
29. "Rheem Returning to Sponsor Christopher Bell". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. September 29, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
30. Konenski, Austin (October 14, 2022). "NASCAR: Christopher Bell signed 'long-term deal' with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2022". Sportsnaut. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
31. "Erik Jones signs multi-year contract extension with Legacy Motor Club". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. August 13, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
32. Dustin, Long (September 19, 2025). "Rick Ware Racing will sell charter to Legacy MC in resolution between two teams". NBC Sports . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
33. "Jimmie Johnson could run more races in 2026". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 25, 2025. Retrieved June 25, 2025.
34. "Noah Gragson signs multi-year deal with Front Row Motorsports". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
35. "Todd Gilliland signs extension with Front Row Motorsports". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. June 5, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
36. "Zane Smith returns to Front Row Motorsports, will drive No. 38". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. January 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
37. "Bubba Wallace signs multi-year contract extension with 23XI Racing". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. September 18, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
38. "23XI Racing expanding to three teams with Riley Herbst". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. November 20, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
39. "Autotrader 400". EchoPark Speedway . July 21, 2025.
40. "In-Season Challenge returns to Cup Series schedule in 2026". NASCAR . August 20, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
41. "Window World 400 Marks North Wilkesboro's First NASCAR Cup Series Points Race Since 1996". North Wilkesboro Speedway . Retrieved August 20, 2025.
42. "NASCAR Championship Weekend to return to Homestead in 2026". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. May 7, 2025. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
43. Crandall, Kelly (July 18, 2025). "Chicago street circuit dropped from NASCAR schedule for 2026". Racer . Retrieved July 18, 2025.
44. "San Diego to host NASCAR's latest cup series innovation with a street race at Naval Base Coronado". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media. July 23, 2025. Retrieved July 23, 2025.
45. Bianchi, Jordan (July 30, 2025). "Mexico City is out for NASCAR's 2026 schedule; Chicagoland likely in: Sources". The Athletic . New York Times . Retrieved July 30, 2025.