This Week in Motorsports: March 16-22, 2026
NCS/NOAPS/NCTS: Darlington Raceway – March 20-22
PLANO, Texas (March 18, 2026) – NASCAR’s three national series return this weekend to one of NASCAR’s most famed and challenging tracks, Darlington Raceway, for a three-day show of stock car racing. The weekend culminates with a 293-lap, 400-mile race Sunday afternoon for the Cup Series around “The Track Too Tough to Tame.”
NASCAR National Series – NCS/NOAPS/NCTS
Toyota takes four of first five races … With Denny Hamlin’s victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last weekend, Team Toyota has now captured four victories in the first five Cup Series races in 2026. Hamlin’s victory on Sunday also moved him solely into 10th on the all-time Cup Series wins list. Along with the victories, Toyota is well-positioned in the Cup Series points standings after five races, with five drivers inside the top-10, led by Tyler Reddick (first), Bubba Wallace (second), Hamlin (fourth), Christopher Bell (sixth) and Ty Gibbs (10th).
Toyota leading the way… Toyota drivers have now led the most laps in six consecutive races for just the second time in the manufacturer’s 20-year Cup Series history. Hamlin led the most laps in the 2025 finale at Phoenix Raceway and last weekend at Las Vegas. Bubba Wallace was the lap leader in the Daytona 500, while Tyler Reddick led the most laps in back-to-back races in Atlanta and COTA while Christopher Bell paced the most circuits in Phoenix two races ago. On the season, Toyota drivers have led more laps than Ford and Chevy drivers combined, with Toyota pacing 677 of the 1145 circuits completed this year – more than 59 percent.
Toyota searches for third consecutive Darlington win … Team Toyota enters this weekend at Darlington Raceway looking for its third straight win around the South Carolina oval. Hamlin captured victory in last year’s spring race, with Chase Briscoe following up the act with a win last fall in one of NASCAR’s crown jewel events, Southern 500. Overall, Toyota is seeking its 13th Cup Series win at Darlington on Sunday as the manufacturer celebrates its 20th season in NASCAR’s top series.
Bell doing triple header … Bell will have a busy weekend at Darlington Raceway, taking on the Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Truck Series races. In the Cup Series with his normal Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) No. 20 Toyota Camry XSE team, Bell seeks his first win at Darlington after three top-fives and four top-10s in 13 career starts to-date. In the O’Reilly Series, Bell will pilot the No. 19 GR Supra for JGR, where he has a victory in 2024 and has been on the Darlington pole the last two years in the series. And in Trucks, Bell will be in the No. 62 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for Halmar-Friesen Racing, where he will make his first career Truck start at the 1.366-mile oval.
Jones seeks Darlington repeat … For the first of his two victories last season, Brandon Jones visited victory lane at Darlington Raceway last April and returns this weekend looking for a second consecutive win. Overall, Jones has two wins in 15 career starts at “The Track Too Tough to Tame,” with a win in 2020 in addition to his triumph last year. He also has three top-fives and seven top-10s at the track.
Three Tundra TRD Pros on top-10 of points … Heading to Darlington, Team Toyota holds three of the top-10 spots in the Truck Series points standings after three races in the 2026 season. Gio Ruggiero leads the Toyota brigade, sitting fourth in the standings, with Kaden Honeycutt in sixth and Stewart Friesen in eighth. Ruggiero is 54 points behind the points leader and just four points behind third position.
Sawalich and Heim take on Trucks … William Sawalich and Corey Heim are back in the Truck Series, piloting Toyota Tundra TRD Pros for TRICON Garage this weekend. Sawalich will be in the No. 1, making his series debut at Darlington and his 22nd career Trucks start. For Heim, who will be in the No. 5, this weekend will be his 91st career Trucks start and his sixth at Darlington, where he’s the defending winner after capturing victory last fall on the way to the series title.
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. for nearly 70 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our nearly 1,500 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs nearly 48,000 people in the U.S. who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of more than 35 million cars and trucks at our 11 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina began to assemble automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.
For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
