The NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series are at Richmond Raceway this weekend. The Craftsman Truck Series Black’s Tire 250 starts off the weekend on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1. Then on Saturday night, the Cup Series Cook Out 400 begins at 6:30 p.m. ET on the USA Network.
Gen. Steven S. Nordhaus, Chief of the National Guard Bureau and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will serve as the Honorary Pace Car Driver for Saturday night’s Cook Out 400. Black’s Tire Service will serve as the entitlement partner for the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race, and will also be the primary sponsor on the No. 15 Tricon Garage Toyota with driver Tanner Gray.
The legendary Backyard Band from the DMV returns to Richmond Raceway on Saturday with the Go-Go Bus Museum for a live Fan Zone performance as part of the Richmond Takeover celebration.
Cup Series Notes for Richmond Raceway:
Only three races remain before the Chase. After Richmond (¾-mile short track), the Cup Series heads to New Hampshire Motor Speedway (1-mile flat oval) and Daytona International Speedway (2.5-mile high-banked drafting track) to decide the Chase drivers. Denny Hamlin, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney and Tyler Reddick have clinched Chase spots.
The following drivers could clinch:
- Chase Briscoe: Would clinch with 39 points
- Christopher Bell: Would clinch with 43 points
- Chase Elliott: Would clinch with 44 points
- Carson Hocevar: Would clinch with 55 points
- Chris Buescher: Would clinch with 57 points
- Kyle Larson: Would clinch with 65 points
- William Byron: Could only clinch with help
- Daniel Suarez: Could only clinch with help
- Joey Logano: Could only clinch with help
- Bubba Wallace: Could only clinch with help
Austin Dillon won the last two races, in 2024 and 2025, and eleven of Denny Hamlin’s 64 Cup Series wins came in his home state of Virginia.
A stage winner has not won in the last nine races, and the driver who led the most laps has failed to win the last nine races. Three of the last four races had a caution in the final 10 laps, and five of the last nine races ended with a pass for the win in the final 10 laps, including three of the last four.
Best average finish in the NextGen era (seven races): Kevin Harvick 4.50 (4), Denny Hamlin 5.71 (7), Kyle Larson 7.86 (7), Joey Logano 8.43 (7), Josh Berry 8.75 (4), Christopher Bell 9.29 (7), and Brad Keselowski 11.00 (7).
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Notes for Richmond Raceway:
Richmond is the fourth of six short-track races in 2026 and the third of three straight, and the 17th race of 2026, with two races to go until the Chase.
Layne Riggs, Kaden Honeycutt, Chandler Smith, Christian Eckes and Gio Ruggiero have clinched a spot in the Chase, and any driver more than 76 points above the cut line following the race will clinch a spot in the Chase.
The following drivers could clinch:
- Ty Majeski: Would clinch with 45 points
- Ben Rhodes: Would clinch with 74 points
- Grant Enfinger: Could only clinch with help
- Daniel Hemric: Could only clinch with help
- Stewart Friesen: Could only clinch with help
Last year’s race featured 13 lead changes, the second most at a race (record 17 in 1999), and the pass for the win came in the final 20 laps in six of the last seven races.
Tristan McKee is making his Truck Series debut. He has 3 career ARCA Menards Series wins, including last week at Iowa. He will also race at New Hampshire, Bristol, Phoenix and Martinsville.
The Weekend Schedule for Richmond Raceway:
FRIDAY, AUGUST 14
1:00 PM – 1:50 PM: NCTS PRACTICE TRACK HOT ON FS2
2:05 PM – 3:00 PM: NCTS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND) ON FS2
3:30 PM – 4:30 PM: NCS PRACTICE ON TRU TV
4:40 PM – 5:30 PM: NCS QUALIFYING (IMPOUND) ON TRU TV
7:10 PM: NCTS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS (TURN 1) ON FS1
7:30 PM: NCTS RACE (STAGES 70/140/250 LAPS = 187.5 MILES) ON FS1
SATURDAY, AUGUST 15
6:25 PM: NCS DRIVER INTRODUCTIONS (TURN 1) ON USA
7:00 PM: NCS RACE (STAGES 70/230/400 LAPS = 300 MILES) ON USA
*All times are Eastern. NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS)
