CONCORD, N.C. (May 18, 2026) – Mission accomplished. For the ninth straight year, ahead of the Coca-Cola 600 and Memorial Day Weekend, Charlotte Motor Speedway’s Mission 600 set out to honor the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces by pairing Coca-Cola Racing Family and other drivers alongside units from different branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. Defending Coca-Cola 600 winner Ross Chastain and Coca-Cola Family Racing drivers Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon, Daniel Suarez and Joey Logano visited with and trained alongside military to educate the NASCAR community about the day-to-day lives of the men and women who serve. This year’s campaign included a mix of in-person and virtual visits spanning from Arlington National Cemetery outside of Washington D.C. to military installations in North Carolina, South Carolina and as far away as Lithuania.
“Being on the eve of Memorial Day, it’s never lost on us the significance of the Coca-Cola 600 and our opportunity to honor everything that the military does,” said Charlotte Motor Speedway President and General Manager Greg Walter. “The impact we make when we bring these drivers out for Mission 600, it’s really special to see how these interactions can reshape their perspective. Drivers who may only see the military during pre-race, are able to interact with them on a more personal level and see how they work to protect our freedoms; it’s a special connection point for our sport to the military.”
Here’s a recap of the 2026 Mission 600 campaign:
April 22: Chase Elliott visited Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort
Elliott toured the flight line and was treated to an aerial demonstration of the famed F-35B. He took part in a hands-on demonstration on loading inert ordnance onto the cutting-edge machines and saw first-hand how crews work together – like a NASCAR pit crew. Following lunch with Marines in the Officers’ Club, Elliott climbed into the cockpit of a state-of-the-art F-18 simulator to try his hand at a series of maneuverability and dogfighting exercises.
April 29: Defending Coca-Cola 600 winner Ross Chastain lays a wreath of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Continuing its annual tradition for the defending Coca-Cola 600 race winner, Charlotte Motor Speedway hosted Trackhouse Racing driver Ross Chastain, team owner Justin Marks and a group of Coca-Cola partners and supporters to kick off Military Appreciation Month with a visit to Arlington National Cemetery
May 7: Austin Dillon and teammate Tyler Rader trained alongside members of the 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg
Dillon and Rader took part in live-fire exercises with a variety of weapons systems, including SIG Sauer pistols, M4 carbine rifles and an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW). They also fired an M119 Howitzer and simulated paratrooper drills at the installation’s 34-foot jump tower before testing their aviation skills in high-tech simulators used to train pilots to fly AH-64 Apache and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters.
May 12: Joey Logano connected via zoom with U.S. Army V Corps’ Project Flytrap, based in Lithuania
While separated by more than 4,800 miles – or roughly the distance of eight Coca-Cola 600 races – Logano and the unit found a lot of common ground in discussing technology, teamwork, the power of preparation and leadership.
May 14: Daniel Suarez and crew chief Ryan Sparks wrapped up this year’s Mission 600 visits with a trip to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base
During the visit, Suárez and Sparks visited the Aircraft Maintenance Qualification Program, trained on F-35 Stealth Fighter and F-22 Raptor virtual reality simulators, discussed physiology and training for fighter pilots and drove an Explosive Ordinance Disposal robot. The pair also visited with more than two dozen airmen at Seymour Johnson AFB’s USO center.
ABOUT MISSION 600:
Now in its ninth year, Mission 600 brings together NASCAR drivers with members of the U.S. Armed Forces from regional military bases and through virtual connections with units around the world to educate the NASCAR community about the day-to-day lives of the men and women who serve and to build impactful connections between the worlds of motorsports and the military. The military tributes culminate during a rousing pre-race celebration ahead of the Coca-Cola 600.
