Watkins Glen Worldwide hosts the twelfth spherical of the 2026 NASCAR Cup season, and can function all three nationwide divisions and the ARCA Menards Sequence from Friday by way of Sunday. That is additionally the earliest the monitor has ever appeared on the NASCAR schedule.
Will go back-to-back, or will one other driver seize the checkered flag at The Glen? Here is all some main storylines it’s worthwhile to regulate all through the NASCAR weekend at Watkins Glen:
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New monitor limits and their affect on the raceWatkins Glen new tire packs
Watkins Glen new tire packs
The objective is to maintain drivers on the precise racing floor, however there’s some concern surrounding how these tire packs might complicate incidents when automobiles lose management, as Shane van Gisbergen identified earlier within the week.
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A lot cooler temps than the summer season months, and there’s a likelihood of rain each day this weekend. Whereas NASCAR has rain tires, that can actually change the dynamic of all of the races. It may additionally lead to qualifying being canceled, with the beginning lineup decided by the metric. The bottom is extraordinarily gentle after the winter snow soften and spring showers, so any automobiles that go off-track may endure vital injury even with out hitting something.
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Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
All three Trackhouse Racing drivers are participating in every of the nationwide division races this weekend. Shane Van Gisbergen (#97 Trackhouse Cup; #9 JRM O’Reilly; #4 Niece Truck), (#88 Trackhouse Cup; #1 JRM O’Reilly; #71 Spire Truck), and (#1 Trackhouse Cup; #32 Jordan Anderson Racing O’Reilly; #45 Niece Truck) may have extra laps than anybody else this weekend. SVG and Zilisch are each confirmed winners at The Glen, whereas Chastain’s most up-to-date Cup pole got here on the NY highway course. Ought to any of them handle to comb the weekend, they are going to be part of elite firm as is the one driver to ever efficiently pull off the triple weekend sweep (twice at Bristol).
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An extended Cup race than earlier yearsKyle Busch, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, Michael McDowell, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Busch, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, Michael McDowell, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
NASCAR has added ten further laps to the Watkins Glen Cup race for 2026. Consequently, there shall be an extended second stage, and will change the technique a bit. The gasoline window is about 33 to 36 laps with levels of 20-30-50, in order that shall be one thing to regulate come Sunday.
Avoiding intentional wrecking penalties
Ryan Preece, RFK Racing Ford
Ryan Preece, RFK Racing Ford
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and Kyle Busch reminded drivers of one thing moderately vital this previous week in NASCAR. , however in the event you voice your intentions earlier than taking motion, that’s nearly at all times a assured penalty. The Glen is a spot the place tempers usually boil over, however a lapse in judgment may utterly alter a driver’s season if they do not maintain these feelings in examine.
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Earlier than participating within the Indianapolis 500 for the fifth time in her profession, the multi-time IMSA race winner is again behind the wheel of a NASCAR inventory automobile. Legge will drive the No. 78 Stay Quick Motorsports Chevrolet at Watkins Glen, and she or he earned the workforce its greatest non-drafting monitor end ever final 12 months when she positioned seventeenth within the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis. It is going to be attention-grabbing to see if she will enhance on that in her first begin of the 2026 season, which comes on the web site of a IMSA GTD Professional class win for Legge (in 2017).
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Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing
Sitting on the bubble in sixteenth is , simply seven factors forward of . Behind Logano is Ross Chastain, 26 factors adrift. Logano is a 3x champion whereas each Chastain and Briscoe superior into the Championship 4 below the earlier format. However the actual identify to observe this weekend is one level beneath Chastain — his teammate within the No. 97 Chevrolet. Van Gisbergen is 27 factors behind Briscoe, and Watkins Glen might be big for him in carving a path again in the direction of the highest 16.
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