CONCORD, N.C. - Talk about wanting to pick up right where you left off ...
For Kyle Larson, the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team and Hendrick Motorsports in general, that would be an accurate statement entering the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season. Larson enters the year as the defending champion after capping off his second career title at Phoenix Raceway in November.
The organization wouldn't mind a start like the one that came in 2025 either. Chase Elliott won last year's preseason Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium and the exhibition event will again kick off the premier series slate on Sunday, Feb. 1. William Byron followed that up with a second-straight win in the DAYTONA 500 and this year's Great American Race is set for a 2:30 p.m. start on Feb. 15.
Like any season, the 2026 campaign comes with its own set of changes. The Cup Series will return to Chicagoland Speedway for the first time since 2019. Alex Bowman won the most recent race at the 1.5-mile, D-shaped oval.
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Another return sees the Cup Series head to North Wilkesboro for a points-paying event for the first time since 1996. Jeff Gordon won the last such event at the track with Terry Labonte also picking up a victory that season en route to his second career championship.
Over July 4th weekend, all three NASCAR series will run at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego with the Cup Series event set for Sunday, July 5. And it all concludes with the championship race, which will return to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the first time since 2019.
Again, TV assignments for the 2026 schedule will be split up among Fox, FS1, Prime, TNT, NBC and USA Network.
Here's a look the full schedule with start times and channels for every race:
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Where is the NASCAR race this weekend?
(TV network in parentheses)
- Sunday, Feb. 1: The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, 8 p.m. (FOX)
- Thursday, Feb. 12: The Duel at Daytona, 7 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, Feb. 15: DAYTONA 500, 2:30 p.m. (FOX)
- Sunday, Feb. 22: Atlanta Motor Speedway, 3 p.m. (FOX)
- Sunday, March 1: Circuit of the Americas, 3:30 p.m. (FOX)
- Sunday, March 8: Phoenix Raceway, 3:30 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, March 15: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 4 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, March 22: Darlington Raceway, 3 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, March 29: Martinsville Speedway, 3:30 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, April 12: Bristol Motor Speedway, 3 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, April 19: Kansas Speedway, 2 p.m. (FOX)
- Sunday, April 26: Talladega Superspeedway, 3 p.m. (FOX)
- Sunday, May 3: Texas Motor Speedway, 3:30 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, May 10: Watkins Glen International, 3 p.m. (FS1)
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- Sunday, May 17: All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway, 3 p.m. (FS1)
- Sunday, May 24: Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, 6 p.m. (Prime)
- Sunday, May 31: Nashville Superspeedway, 7 p.m. (Prime)
- Sunday, June 7: Michigan International Speedway, 3 p.m. (Prime)
- Sunday, June 14: Pocono Raceway, 3 p.m. (Prime)
- Sunday, June 21: Naval Base Coronado, 4 p.m. (Prime)
- Sunday, June 28: Sonoma Raceway, 3:30 p.m. (TNT)
- Sunday, July 5: Chicagoland Speedway, 6 p.m. (TNT)
- Sunday, July 12: Atlanta Motor Speedway, 7 p.m. (TNT)
- Sunday, July 19: North Wilkesboro Speedway, 7 p.m. (TNT)
- Sunday, July 26: Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 2 p.m. (TNT)
- Sunday, Aug. 9: Iowa Speedway, 3:30 p.m. (USA Network)
- Saturday, Aug. 15: Richmond Raceway, 7 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Aug. 23: New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 3 p.m. (USA Network)
- Saturday, Aug. 29: Daytona International Speedway, 7:30 p.m. (NBC)
PLAYOFFS
- Sunday, Sept. 6: Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, 5 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Sept. 13: World Wide Technology Raceway, 3 p.m. (USA Network)
- Saturday, Sept. 19: Bristol Motor Speedway, 7:30 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Sept. 27: Kansas Speedway, 3 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Oct. 4: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 5:30 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Oct. 11: Charlotte ROVAL, 3 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Oct. 18: Phoenix Raceway, 3 p.m. (USA Network)
- Sunday, Oct. 25: Talladega Superspeedway, 2 p.m. (NBC)
- Sunday, Nov. 1: Martinsville Speedway, 2 p.m. (NBC)
- Sunday, Nov. 8: Homestead-Miami Speedway, 3 p.m. (NBC)