TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE Circuit of The Americas / Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

February 28 – March 1, 2026

All three NASCAR national touring series will make the shift to left- and right-hand turns this weekend as the sport faces its first road racing event of the 2026 season.

MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race Advances Chevrolet Newsroom

For the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (NOAPS), the third stop on the schedule will take the pair to the Lonestar State to pay its annual visit to Circuit of The Americas (COTA). The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) will split off from its companion series to make their much-anticipated street course debut by accompanying the NTT INDYCAR Series at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The weekend marks the start of back-to-back crossover events as the NTT INDYCAR Series will join NASCAR once again at Phoenix Raceway next weekend, with Chevrolet boasting as the only manufacturer that will compete in both series.

A WEEKEND OF ‘FIRSTS’ FOR THE NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES For the first time in history, the streets of St. Petersburg will welcome a NASCAR-sanctioned event as the Craftsman Truck Series will make its street course debut. The series will compete alongside the NTT INDYCAR Series as they look to kick-off their 2026 season. The unique doubleheader weekend gives Chevrolet an extra boast over its competitors as the only manufacturer that will compete in both events.

Hinchcliffe Heads Back to a Familiar Place for His NASCAR Debut: Saturday’s event will feature a star-studded lineup, including former NTT INDYCAR driver, James Hinchcliffe, who will team up with Spire Motorsports to pilot the No. 77 Chevrolet entry. The venture will mark the Ontario, Canada, native’s first-ever NASCAR start, but it comes at a place he knows very well. Hinchcliffe is a six-time NTT INDYCAR Series winner, with his first-career victory coming at the St. Petersburg circuit in 2013. The driver will be well-equipped to make a strong splash into the NASCAR world with Spire Motorsports coming off a one-two finish in the NCTS last weekend at EchoPark Speedway.

BOWTIE BULLETS:·       Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Circuit of The Americas: William Byron: one win (2024) Ross Chastain: one win (2022)Chase Elliott: one win (2021)
·        In five appearances for both the NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series at Circuit of The Americas, Chevrolet leads both divisions with three NCS wins and four-straight NOAPS wins.
·        In 23 NASCAR Cup Series road racing events in the Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads the series with 17 victories – recorded by eight drivers from four different Chevrolet organizations.
·        Shane van Gisbergen, the NASCAR Cup Series most recent road course winner (Charlotte ROVAL- Oct. 2025), heads into the weekend with five-consecutive road course wins – a record that sits just behind career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon’s all-time record streak of six-straight road course triumphs.
·        Chase Elliott leads the NASCAR Cup Series’ active drivers with seven wins on road courses – a record that also ranks him third all-time behind NASCAR Hall of Famers Jeff Gordon (nine wins) and Tony Stewart (eight wins).
·        In 146 points-paying races in the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 67 victories – a winning percentage of 45.9%.
·        Chevrolet is coming off its 29th all-time sweep of the NASCAR Cup Series championship titles – capturing its 34th driver championship and 44th, and fifth consecutive, manufacturer championship in 2025.
·        With its 44 NASCAR Cup Series manufacturer championships, 34 NASCAR Cup Series driver championships, and 881 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history.

TUNE-IN:NASCAR Cup Series Circuit of The AmericasDuraMax Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyneSunday, Mar. 1, at 3:30 p.m. ETFOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts SeriesCircuit of The AmericasFocused Health 250Saturday, Feb. 28, at 3 p.m. ETCW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 NASCAR Craftsman Truck SeriesGrand Prix of St. PetersburgOnlyBulls Green Flag 150 at St. PetersburgSaturday, Feb. 28, at 12 p.m. ETFOX, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

QUOTABLE QUOTES:Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet With COTA, track limits is a storyline. How do you manage kind of understanding what that is and pushing the line?“I grew up watching stock car racing in NASCAR, where you race grass to grass. If it was paved, you were on it, aside from super speedways. And COTA is the road course where that is not the case. We make those esses as straight as we can and cut Turn 19 as much as possible. I’m good with track limits, as long as they are enforced consistently and constantly. Make a rule. Continue to enforce it and put someone there that can see it, put some sort of technology with cameras, or automated systems, or whatever it takes. Figure out how to officiate it every time, consistently, all weekend. Whether its practice, qualifying, or the race, make the calls. They’re tough calls to make, but if we mess up, make that call instantly. Don’t wait. It needs to be very black-and-white.” How do you manage the chaos of Turn 1? It’s a pretty wild corner. What’s it like from your perspective?“I don’t manage it very well. I’ve been spun out there in the O’Reilly Series race and I’ve spun people out. It’s very challenging to find your brake marker. Restarts are a different speed than the normal laps. It helps now with the restarts all being moved back towards turn 20 but definitely challenging. I’ve made more than my fair share of mistakes. The track was designed to build a lot of speed, have a ton of braking potential with the uphill elevation climb to Turn 1, and then trying to make a turn back the other way is really difficult. But when you get it right, it’s very rewarding.”

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletWhat are your thoughts on racing at Circuit of The Americas?“Racing in Austin, Texas is fun. It’s an exciting and technically challenging road course with lot of havoc created in Turn One. I feel like the key to having a good race will be having solid pit stops and keeping our Breztri Chevrolet clean.”  How tough is it to gain momentum at the start of the season?“To get going in the first part of the season is tough. You want a fast start for your team and partners, and we didn’t get that the last two weeks with the wrecks. We need to come out of this weekend with a good finish, just to feel confident that we can get back into the swing of things with points. With two drafting tracks and a road course, the meat of the schedule starts in Phoenix. That’s where you feel like more is in your control. There is a lot in your control at road courses as well, and we have put a lot of effort into COTA. I feel like our Breztri Chevrolet should be able to go out there and compete.”   Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports ChevroletWhat are your thoughts on the new layout at COTA, and how does it change the racing for both the drivers and the fans?“Man, every time we come back to COTA it just gets better. The new layout really makes the corners come alive, it’s exciting for the fans, and honestly, it’s just as exciting for me in the car. You’ve got to be aggressive, you’ve got to be precise, and that’s what makes this place special. For me, the new 20-turn layout is more technical and strategic, keeping me more focused with every lap. I am excited to get back out there.”

Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletHow excited are you coming back to Circuit of The Americas after last season’s performance?“Looking forward to COTA, I always love going there. We really had a good car last year at COTA. We were on the right side of strategy and coming to pit road when we did. We had a four second gap to the next guy behind us for the last couple laps of the race, and I don’t think they would have caught us. Unfortunately, a yellow came out and I had to try to race it out through a couple of restarts. Our two lap older tires were just enough that Christopher Bell was able to get us, so we gracefully faded to fifth.” How big of a factor do you expect tire falloff and strategy to be this weekend?“I think there will be a good amount of tire falloff and more than what we’ve seen in years past. Last year, we saw a good bit of tire falloff. I just mentioned how we only had two lap older tires than Christopher Bell, and he was able to outrace me at the end of the race. Tires are going to be more paramount this weekend. You might see guys, if there’s a late caution with 10 to go, that got three or four lap old tires might come, pit, and try to drive back through the field and hope that the front guys burn their stuff up. Fresher tires more times than not, especially with more horsepower you’re going to want them.”      Jesse Love, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletWhat are you looking forward to on the Cup side this weekend, and what will be key for you to have a successful race?“On the Cup side, I’m looking forward to the challenge of it and continue to learn from racing these Cup races. I’ve learned a lot from the ones I ran last year and I’m just excited for a new challenge and learning new things and aggressively trying to adapt to the things that I learn throughout the weekend. Obviously, it’s going to be really important to do the little things right this weekend as always with the Cup stuff. For me, I just want to control the things I can control, and it would be very cool to be in position to capitalize on some crazy restarts at the end and see what kind of finish we can get out of it.”   Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet“COTA is the first road course of the year, so we are all excited to get there. It brings you a little bit of everything, from slow speed corners to high-speed corners to big breaking zones. So, it challenges you in a lot of ways and it will be really interesting to see how the new 750 horsepower in my Chevrolet Camaro relates to the racing there and seeing how much tire fall off we get throughout the weekend. So it will be a really interesting race and hopefully my Haas Factory Team can adapt to it fast.”

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet“Atlanta was a tough one for us. Nobody likes ending their day early. We regrouped and we’re ready for COTA with Ram Self Storage on the car this week.”   Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet“Our No. 48 team is ready to get to COTA. We’ve had a tough start to the season with two drafting tracks back-to-back and being in the wrong place at the wrong time. We’ve put together some really solid races at COTA and we’re preparing to do that again to build confidence in our team early in the season.”   Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet“Road racing is where I did a lot of my growing up and learning how to race. There was a lot of back and forth between stock cars and GT cars and sportscars over the years as I found my place in NASCAR. So I’m always, ‘The more the merrier,’ when it comes to road racing. There are a lot of things you can’t really learn about a road course until you’re in a car that’s really been built to attack a road course, and the current Cup car drives a lot more like a sportscar than they ever have before. They’re somewhere in between a TA and a TA2 car in the Trans Am Series. Obviously, we have a lot more horsepower than a TA2 car, but not quite the downforce and maneuverability that a TA car has. The thing that causes a bit more chaos in our road races compared to the more traditional road-racing series is the fact that these cars are so durable, and they’re handling a lot better than the previous cars did. It’s led to a lot of beating and banging, and it’s really become a left-and-right-turn short-track race more than a road-course race.”   Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports ChevroletHow can you maximize your weekend at COTA?“I’m looking forward to going to COTA, obviously having a road course early in the season is beneficial, especially for me. The first handful of races are places we have had success, even though Daytona and Atlanta didn’t play out the way we wanted to. I am excited to get to COTA, especially with my background. We had some good speed and opportunities on the two drafting tracks so far, but now we can learn where we have improved our road-course program from last year. We had three top-five finishes on road courses and a penalty at COTA last year potentially cost us a fourth, but this weekend we will have a lot of opportunities to score some big points, and race for a win with Katz Coffee onboard.”   Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletWhat is it about Circuit of the Americas that you like so much?“COTA is just super-fun, especially since they shortened the course. I really enjoy the shortened course. It has created really good racing and has a short track type feel to it now. Except for the frontstretch you don’t really have straightaways anymore. It’s just so unique. You’ve got a new passing zone now with Turn 6A, that cut through is a great passing zone and as a driver. And as a driver you’re doing more: you’re turning more and you’re in a corner more often. It’s a lot of fun.” Comment on the chaos of the restarts entering Turn 1. “Those restarts can get pretty chaotic in Turn 1. Hopefully I’m on the better end of that this year and we can get through Turn 1 a little cleaner. Turn 1 is wild and anything can happen. You can go four, five and even six-wide but you’ve got to do your best not to put yourself in a bad spot. With that said, there’s a lot of opportunities to make moves and gain positions. It’s always crazy but you’ve got to try and stay out of the chaos and make it through there. Unfortunately, I didn’t last year, and it ended up hurting my race. The elevation changes there are crazy. It’s like going up a rollercoaster and you’re able to brake so deep because of it.” Do you notice the fans at COTA?“You can see them for sure. It’s cool to have fans everywhere, whether it’s on the hill in turn 1 or watching from the stadium section. You can watch that race from just about anywhere and see every part of the track. For the fans it’s got to be really cool to walk around and see different parts of the track and get to experience the race from a different corner each lap.” On running the NOAPS race with JR Motorsports: “I’m really looking forward to my first start this season in the Roto-Rooter Chevrolet with JR Motorsports this weekend. The race at Circuit of the Americas was such a huge one for us last year and I can’t wait to be back with that group and work with Rodney Childers this weekend. COTA is a really cool track and now that NASCAR is racing the short course it gets pretty intense and chaotic. There’s not a lot of time to rest. You’re always in a corner and it’s also unique because of the track limits. You’re having to manage that at all times through the esses and everywhere. It takes an immense amount of focus to get around there and be consistent and not make mistakes that can end your day really quickly. I’m excited to go back there.”    Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletSixth-place finish in Atlanta, your best finish to date in the Cup Series on an oval, how much momentum do you and the team have headed to COTA this weekend?“It’s always promising. These oval races, we are making big gains, and we weren’t really in position to score stage points last year very often. So now we are able to do that in Daytona and Atlanta, it’s very promising. These road courses, we just go and have fun, they are like a holiday for us. We just go and enjoy ourselves and hopefully come away with a lot of points and a great result.” Turn one at COTA is crazy. How do you play defense going into that turn?“It’s a tough one. There are so many options there for lines and protecting. It’s a hard restart to get right. Then, the next corner goes the opposite way, so you’re kind of always on defense there trying to be in the best spot before going into those esses, before it single files out. It’s very physical in that turn and there isn’t much room for error.” What does the bypass in the new COTA layout add to the race? “It just gives everyone more passing opportunities and more laps. You get to use the better part of the track more often. It was cool when they (NASCAR) first thought about doing the short cut, they wanted to do what we did in V8 Supercars in 2013, and it was terrible through there. But what they came up with, using the next cut through, made another passing zone and a pretty tough corner off the backstraight. I thought it was a good change.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series StatisticsManufacturer Championships:Total (1949-2025): 44First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)Most recent: 2025 Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 Driver Championships:Total (1949-2025): 34First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most recent: Kyle Larson (2025)Driver and Manufacturer Championship Sweeps: 29 Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021, 2025 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007) 2026 STATISTICS: Wins: 0Poles: 1Laps Led: 129Top-Fives: 5Top-10s: 6Stage Wins: 0 CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 881 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 767Laps led to date: 256,863Top-fives to date: 4,441Top-10s to date: 9,157 Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date: General Motors: 1,215 Chevrolet: 881 Pontiac: 154 Oldsmobile: 115 Buick: 65 Ford: 847 Ford: 747 Mercury: 96 Lincoln: 4 Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467 Dodge: 217 Plymouth: 191 Chrysler: 59 Toyota: 205

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCECircuit of The Americas / Grand Prix of St. PetersburgFebruary 28 – March 1, 2026

All three NASCAR national touring series will make the shift to left- and right-hand turns this weekend as the sport faces its first road racing event of the 2026 season.

MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race Advances Chevrolet Newsroom

ARP Racing News

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE Circuit of The Americas / Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

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