NASCAR Officially Reveals 2026 National Series (Cup, O’Reilly, Craftsman Truck) Schedules

On Wednesday, NASCAR officially revealed the 2026 schedules for all three of its National Series (NASCAR Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series). Let’s break down the big changes series-by-series.

The Tide Continues to Shift for Ever-Changing NASCAR Cup Schedule in 2026

The official reveal of the NASCAR Cup Series schedule on Wednesday confirmed the first report of the schedule by Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic on Tuesday.

As previously announced, Bowman Gray Stadium will return as the venue for NASCAR’s annual preseason exhibition event, The Clash, on Sunday, February 1.

Following The Clash, NASCAR will head to Daytona International Speedway, where, for the 44th consecutive season, the Daytona 500 will serve as the season-opening points-paying race. The Great American Race will take place on Sunday, February 15.

There are a few shifts on the schedule between previously existing races as far as their placement on the schedule in 2026, which will remain 36 points-paying races, and two exhibition events, as has been the standard since the 2001 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Darlington Raceway’s Spring race has been moved from the first weekend in April and will now be contested on Sunday, March 22, next year. Kansas Speedway’s Spring date, which was race No. 12 on the 2025 schedule, will now be the ninth race of the season in 2026.

The biggest date shift, though, undoubtedly is Watkins Glen International, which moves from mid-August to Sunday, May 10.

Among the most notable changes to the NASCAR Cup Series schedule next season, that had yet to be revealed in previous announcements, is the return of the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway, which will host its first NASCAR Cup Series event since the 2019 season on Sunday, July 5.

The schedule also confirmed two highly-rumored changes to the schedule.

Dover Motor Speedway will take over as the venue of the NASCAR All-Star Race, which will take place on Sunday, May 17, 2026. With Dover moving to the All-Star venue, it will not host a points-paying NASCAR Cup Series race next season, which will break the 1-mile oval’s 56-year streak of hosting a NASCAR Cup Series points-paying race.

This paves the way for North Wilkesboro Speedway to host its first NASCAR Cup Series points race since the 1996 season, as North Wilkesboro Speedway will host the 21st race of the 2026 season on Sunday, July 19.

While there were rumors of Iowa Speedway potentially being left off the 2026 schedule, the 0.875-mile oval returns for the third season. Iowa’s race date next season will be Sunday, August 9.

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule will feature two off weekends, up from one off-weekend in 2025. The NASCAR Cup Series will once again observe an off-weekend during Easter (Sunday, April 5), and the second off-weekend will come on Sunday, August 2.

As television ratings continue to reflect that viewers prefer Sunday race dates, there will be just three races next season that will be run on a Saturday night. The first Saturday night race of the 2026 season will come at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, August 15. The Summer race at Daytona International Speedway, which will again serve as the regular-season finale, will take place on Saturday, August 29, and the Bristol Night Race, which will serve as the Playoffs Round of 16 elimination race, will be run on Saturday, September 19.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway has been moved out of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs next season, and will instead take over the 25th race in 2026.

And as previously announced, Homestead-Miami Speedway will take over from Phoenix Raceway as the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race venue in 2026. Prior to Phoenix Raceway’s six-year stretch as the finale venue, Homestead held the slot as the final race on the schedule for 18 consecutive seasons from 2002 to 2019.

Phoenix Raceway’s Fall race date has been moved to Sunday, October 18, which will make the 1-mile oval in Avondale, Arizona, the opening race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 8.

As per the seven-year media rights agreement, which began in 2025, FOX Sports will serve as the broadcast partner for the opening 15 events of the 2026 season (including The Clash, the Duels at Daytona, and All-Star). Coverage will then shift to Prime Video, beginning with the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 24.

After a five-race stretch of Prime Video race broadcasts, TNT Sports will take over for the next five races, beginning with Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 28. The final 14 races of the season, beginning with the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and concluding with the NASCAR Cup Series championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The Official 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Schedule

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Features Schedule Tweaks For 2026

The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly known as the NASCAR Xfinity Series) will again feature a 33-race schedule in 2026, with each race televised on The CW. The season will again kick off at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, February 14.

Aside from a bevy of date changes, the series doesn’t see a new track on the schedule until the 18th race of the season on Saturday, June 20, when the series heads to San Diego to battle in a street race at Naval Base Coronado in a weekend shared with the NASCAR Cup Series.

Like in the NASCAR Cup Series, Chicagoland Speedway will make its triumphant return to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series as it will host the 20th race on the schedule on Saturday, July 4.

With the addition of Naval Base Coronado, and Chicagoland comes the departure of the Chicago Street Race and Portland International Raceway from the 2026 schedule.

Darlington Raceway also expands from one race in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2025 to two races in 2026. The Fall Darlington date will take place on Saturday, September 5.

Homestead-Miami Speedway will take over as the series championship race venue as Phoenix Raceway’s Fall date has been moved to Saturday, October 17. The 2026 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship will be decided on Saturday, November 7, at the 1.5-mile speedway near Miami, FL.

The Official 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Schedule

St. Petersburg Addition Among Changes to NASCAR Truck Schedule in 2026

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will once again have a 25-race schedule for the 2026 season. And as has been the case for years, the season will kick off at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, February 13.

The first major change for the 2026 NASCAR Truck Series schedule comes in race No. 3, where the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will host its first NASCAR National Series event on Saturday, February 28. The street course in St. Petersburg, FL, has been a staple on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule for years.

The series will also join in on the San Diego Street Race weekend at Naval Base Coronado alongside the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2026. That race will be held on Friday, June 19.

Bristol Motor Speedway will be the lone track on the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series schedule that will host two races in 2026, as Martinsville Speedway will lose its Spring NASCAR Truck Series date.

The Official 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Schedule