1/22/2026, 7:30:40 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Chandler Smith will attempt to qualify for the 68th running of the Daytona 500 next month. He will pilot the No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang. FRM also has three chartered cars with locked in spots -- the No. 4 of Noah Gragson, the No. 34 of Todd Gilliland, and the No. 38 of Zane Smith.
Smith also competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with FRM. He has made two ...Keep reading
#front-row#charter
1/20/2026, 7:29:38 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
RFK Racing will bring four cars to the 68th running of the Daytona 500 in February. Alongside the charted entries of Chris Buescher (No. 17), Ryan Preece (No. 60), and team co-owner Brad Keselowski (No. 6), the team will add an additional open entry.
Corey LaJoie will drive the No. 99 Ford Mustang and will attempt to qualify for NASCAR’s biggest race. While that car number was utilized by ...Keep reading
1/20/2026, 6:50:45 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Burt Myers will be back behind the wheel of a NASCAR Cup car in the pre-season Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium. He will again drive the No. 50 Chevrolet for Team Amerivet. In 2025, he failed to advance into the main event after a crash involving Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who was humorously part of the team's 2026 announcement video.
Myers made his official Cup debut in a points-paying race when ...Keep reading
1/20/2026, 2:49:25 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
In 2025, we got accustomed to seeing the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet in Victory Lane, courtesy of Connor Zilisch and his ten wins.
For this year, it was already announced that Rajah Caruth will pilot the car in 23 of 33 NOAPS races during the 2026 season.
However, we now know who will drive the car in the other ten events. With Hendrick Motorsports taking its No. 17 full-time with ...Keep reading
1/20/2026, 2:07:59 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Beard Motorsports will be among the open cars attempting to qualify for the 68th running of the Daytona 500 next month with its No. 62 Chevrolet. Anthony Alfredo will be the driver with DUDE Wipes as the primary sponsor.
Alfredo failed to make the 500 last year, but the same duo made the cut in 2024. Alfredo started 39th and finished 27th.
“There is nothing like being in Daytona Beach in ...Keep reading
1/19/2026, 6:41:27 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
There was minimal movement throughout the NASCAR Cup Series garage during the off-season, but still enough to talk about. Beyond driver moves, there were also a couple of manufacturer changes and a flurry of crew chief swaps that will be notable stories to follow during the year.
Here's a look at what's different for 2026:
Drivers on the move
Connor Zilisch, Trackhouse Racing ...Keep reading
1/16/2026, 11:18:50 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
A massive NASCAR Rule Book update was posted on Friday and removes every instance of ‘the playoffs’ and ‘playoff points’ to reflect the return of the Chase for the Championship format this season.
Essentially, this codifies the new regulations with NASCAR also making several adjacent adjustments alongside other items that needed addressing after consideration over the ...Keep reading
1/16/2026, 4:32:09 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. was one of those present for NASCAR's announcement earlier in the month, revealing the return of The Chase and more emphasis put on points-racing.
He was a big fan of the changes, which those within the sport say adds legitimacy to the championship, even if the NASCAR Hall of Famer still prefers a full, 36-race format. He confirmed that in a recent episode of the Dale Jr ...Keep reading
1/14/2026, 7:46:59 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
NASCAR legend Greg Biffle, his wife Cristina, their son Ryder and his daughter Emma were among seven killed in a tragic plane crash on December 18th in Statesville, North Carolina. Dennis Dutton, son Jack Dutton, and Craig Wadsworth were also killed in the the accident, which remains under investigation from the NTSB.
Weeks later, WCNC Charlotte and other local outlets report that the ...Keep reading
1/14/2026, 5:16:38 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Niece Motorsports has announced Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as the driver of the No. 45 Chevrolet Silverado in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season-opener at Daytona International Speedway.
Stenhouse is a veteran of the NASCAR Cup Series with over 400 starts and four wins -- all at superspeedways. He won the summer Daytona race in 2017, but his crowning achievement came in 2023 as the winner of the ...Keep reading
1/13/2026, 6:05:17 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
NASCAR has a new championship format for 2026, and the overwhelming reaction has been positive. But what exactly has changed with this latest iteration and why is it such a good thing? Let's take a look:
Looking over the format, it is much better in regards to rewarding the best driver during each particular season. The eliminations and multiple rounds/resets are completely gone, replaced by a ...Keep reading
1/13/2026, 5:10:37 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Garett Mitchell, better known as the popular YouTuber Cleetus McFarland, began his stock car racing career last year in the ARCA Menard's Series. He did so under the guidance of NASCAR legend Greg Biffle, who became close friends with Mitchell over the past 1.5 years.
However, Biffle was among seven who lost their lives in December plane crash in Statesville, North Carolina. They were planning ...Keep reading
1/13/2026, 3:17:51 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart is back, at least for one race at the national level of NASCAR.
Stewart, who is now 54 years old but still actively racing, will pilot the 'free agent' truck for Kaulig Racing and Ram in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season-opener at Daytona International Speedway. 'Smoke' hasn't started a NASCAR race since retiring from the Cup Series at ...Keep reading
1/13/2026, 1:30:56 AMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
The return of The Chase for the Championship has immediately been pitched to NASCAR fans as a return to civility.
This of course doesn’t mean a loss of intensity or consequence but those who were part of the announcement on Monday at NASCAR Productions believe that points racing will result in a product that is a little more professional.
And in the process, everyone involved ultimately ...Keep reading
1/12/2026, 9:56:16 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
NASCAR's championship format has just undergone its latest change, but it's far from the first time the Sanctioning Body has tweaked the way it crowns a champion.
Red Byron winning the inaugural season in 1949, The King earning his first crown in 1971, Dale Earnhardt winning his seventh in 1994, Jimmie Johnson's historic run of five in-a-row in 2010, and Kyle Larson's latest triumph in 2025 -- ...Keep reading
1/12/2026, 9:01:45 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Starting in 2026, NASCAR will revert to a variation of the Chase for the Championship format it used to crown its champions from 2004-to-2013.
In other words, no more win and you’re in and no more multiple elimination rounds. Most importantly, the sample size to determine the champion is no longer a single race but a 10-race points race.
However, unlike NASCAR’s first version of a ...Keep reading
1/10/2026, 4:52:55 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
The next Cup Series star in the making is already waiting in the wings, and in stock car racing, the final two steps before the big show on Sunday are the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS) and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS)
Last year, we named Connor Zilisch as our No. 1 prospect, and it should surprise no one that he went on to dominate the season as an Xfinity Series driver ...Keep reading
1/9/2026, 3:49:53 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
On Friday, Front Row Motorsports announced some personnel changes to its organization. Of note, Noah Gragson and the No. 4 team will have a new crew chief this year.
Grant Hutchens will sit atop the pit box for Gragson this year, replacing Drew Blickensderfer, who moves into the role of Competition Director. Hutchens has worked as a Cup crew chief before, but only in a handful of races between ...Keep reading
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1/8/2026, 10:09:30 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
While Brad Keselowski continues his recovery, he will opt out of the pre-season exhibition race at Bowman Gray Stadium.
Keselowski suffered a broken leg while skiing with his family on December 18th, and underwent successful surgery soon after. The 68th running of the Daytona 500 follows takes place on February 15th, but The Clash is a full two weeks earlier.
While the 41-year-old ...Keep reading
1/8/2026, 3:35:55 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson will drive the No. 1 Toyota Tundra for Tricon Garage when NASCAR heads to Naval Base Coronado for a unique street race in San Diego, California.
Johnson, a California native, will also be attempting doubly duty that weekend as he plans to run the NASCAR Cup Series race as well. Carvana will sponsor both efforts.
While Johnson has over 700 ...Keep reading
1/7/2026, 7:36:43 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Taking advantage of the Open Exemption Provisional, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson will have a guaranteed spot in the 68th running of the Daytona 500.
The Open Exemption Provisional, which was created one year ago, can be utilized by a non-chartered team with a world-class driver to ensure them spot on the grid for any race where the field eclipses the maximum number of ...Keep reading
#charter
1/7/2026, 4:42:44 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Last month, NASCAR legend Greg Biffle was among seven killed in a tragic plane crash in Statesville, North Carolina. The veteran driver spent the majority of his career with RFK Racing, and in remembrance of him, they have put together new display at the team museum in honor of Biffle.
The new display includes the car Biffle won his 19th and final Cup race with at Michigan in 2013, which was ...Keep reading
1/7/2026, 12:05:15 AMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Longtime NASCAR executive, and formerly Daytona International Speedway president, Chip Wile is taking over as Drivers’ Advisory Council executive director.
Wile assumes the position previously held by Cup Series veteran Jeff Burton, who is remaining with the group as an advisor. From the press release announcing the organizational structure for 2026, ‘the move is part of a broader effort ...Keep reading
1/6/2026, 2:49:06 PMMotorsport.com — NASCAR Cup (News)
Steve Phelps became NASCAR's first Commissioner in March of 2025 after previously working as the president of NASCAR since 2018.
However, he will leave that position at the end of January, and NASCAR does not plan to replace the role of Commissioner for the time being. Instead, his duties will be shared by other existing executives. As for why there won't be someone else appointed to the role ...Keep reading