DuraMAX Grand Prix

Date
Sun 1st March 2026 (UTC)
Sun 1st March 2026 (Local)

Timestamp
2026-03-01T20:30:00

Time

20:30:00 UTC (14:30:00 Local)

Poster

Your Rating (Click a star below)

Star off icon

Total Rating
(0 users)

Thumb

Square Poster

League
NASCAR Cup Series

Season
2026

Round
3

Status
Match Finished

Location
Circuit of the Americas

Video Highlights

Play on YouTube

Event Statistics

Description

The DuraMAX Grand Prix marks the NASCAR Cup Series' highly anticipated return to road course racing at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA). This year, the series continues to utilize the high-speed "National Course" layout, which skips the technical loop in the stadium section, creating a 2.4-mile circuit that promotes aggressive overtaking and drafting.

The weekend narrative is dominated by Tyler Reddick, who enters Austin on a historic tear after winning the first two races of the season at Daytona and Atlanta. Reddick, a previous COTA winner, proved his dominance once again in Saturday's qualifying by leading a historic front-row sweep for 23XI Racing, edging out teammate Bubba Wallace for the pole. However, the road course masters are lurking: defending race winner Christopher Bell and the formidable Shane van Gisbergen—the odds-on favorite—are both starting in the top ten. Keep an eye on the sensational rookie Connor Zilisch, who starts 14th in his Cup debut but arrives with massive momentum after securing the pole for Saturday's Xfinity race.

Reports

Result List

01				Tyler Reddick	95 laps

Result Description

Tyler Reddick etched his name into the record books on March 1, 2026, by winning the DuraMAX Grand Prix and becoming the first driver ever to sweep the first three races of a NASCAR Cup Series season. Starting from the pole, Reddick led a staggering 58 of the 95 laps in his No. 45 Toyota. Despite an early challenge from Chase Briscoe and a persistent late-race threat from Shane van Gisbergen, Reddick’s long-run pace proved untouchable. He survived a late-race restart following a caution for Ross Chastain’s blown tire to win by a comfortable margin, marking 23XI Racing’s most dominant performance to date.

The race was characterized by a rare lack of mid-race cautions, forcing teams into a pure green-flag speed contest. Shane van Gisbergen lived up to his billing by slicing through the field from 13th to finish second, though he admitted post-race he had "nothing for the 45 car" in the final ten laps. Christopher Bell rounded out the podium in third, followed by Ty Gibbs and Michael McDowell. The event saw a major health scare for Alex Bowman, who had to be replaced mid-race by standby driver Myatt Snider due to heat exhaustion; Snider brought the car home in a respectable 36th place. Ross Chastain and Alex Bowman were the only significant front-runners to fall out of contention due to mechanical and health issues, respectively.

Collections
None found...

Popular Tweets

Fanart
No Fanart thumb