NASCAR’s annual preseason exhibition event, the Cook Out Clash, will officially return to the historic 0.250-mile Bowman Gray Stadium for the 2026 season. This will mark the second consecutive year that the iconic event will take place at ‘The Madhouse’.
The preliminary on-track action leading into the 2026 edition of the event will take place on Saturday, January 31, while the 2026 Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray will be contested on Sunday, February 1.
NASCAR is proud to have The Clash return to Bowman Gray Stadium in 2026.
“We wrote a new chapter in the storied history of motorsports at Bowman Gray Stadium with the Cook Out Clash this year,” said Joey Dennewitz, Managing Director, NASCAR Regional. “As NASCAR’s first weekly racetrack, we are proud to bring the 2026 Cook Out Clash back to the original home to grassroots racing. Thanks to the City of Winston-Salem and Winston-Salem State University for their continued partnership at ‘The Madhouse’.”
In 2025, The Clash welcomed a sold-out crowd to Bowman Gray Stadium, and the expectation is that the same will be true in 2026.
“The City of Winston-Salem is deeply honored to have been chosen to host the 2026 Cook Out Clash,” said City of Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines. “The 2025 race was an immensely successful event for all parties involved. We will work hard to ensure that the 2026 Cook Out Clash is even more successful.”
The quarter-mile short track inside of Bowman Gray Stadium was built in 1937, and has served as a NASCAR Weekly Racing facility since 1949. The track would host 29 NASCAR Cup Series events from 1958 to 1971, and after a 54-year absence for the NASCAR Cup Series, Chase Elliott took the checkered flag in The Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray in 2025.
In 2024, NASCAR partnered with the city of Winston-Salem and, as part of the partnership, took over the long-term management of racing operations at Bowman Gray Stadium.
Fans looking for more information about the 2026 Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray and would like to get on the list to purchase tickets for the event are encouraged to visit NASCARClash.com.
