Kaulig Racing driver AJ Allmendinger describes the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium as a “cool event”—and that may be putting it mildly.
In the opening exhibition race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, drivers will battle the elements as well as each other, given that they will run Sunday’s 200-lap race at the historic quarter-mile short track in historically cold temperatures.
Weather already has taken its toll on the Clash. The imminent threat of snow has forced the cancellation of Saturday’s on-track activities and compressed the race into a one-day show, with the main event scheduled for 8 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The action on Sunday starts with practice and qualifying from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET, scheduled for broadcast on FS2. FOX picks up the coverage for the Last Chance Qualifying Race at 6 p.m.
“The Clash at Bowman Gray is just a cool event, and I had never been there in my life until last year,” said Allmendinger, who was collected in a six-car accident on Lap 65 of last season’s Last Chance Qualifier and failed to advance to the main event. “What they say is true—the Bowman Gray crowd is unique and very passionate, and it was fun to be able to see what it was all about.
“The energy was high, and you couple that with crazy racing, meaning you’re just going to beat and gouge on each other around that place. It’s full contact, so you just have to be mentally prepared for that going into it. I think it’s a fun kickoff event.”
In contrast to Allmendinger, defending race winner Chase Elliott had a relatively stress-free trip to the checkered flag. The 2020 series champion won the first of four 25-lap heat races wire-to-wire, started the main event on the pole and led twice for 171 of the 200 green-flag laps.
“It was a really smooth weekend for us, and I think that was probably the biggest takeaway,” Elliott said. “Qualifying well sets you up well for your heat race. Got us into a great position to have good track position all night.
“I don’t necessarily think that’s the end-all, be-all. I think Ryan (Blaney) debunked that with his performance in the main. But certainly, it would be nice to get off to a good start again this year, and I think we can do that.”
In the 2025 inaugural Cup race at Bowman Gray, Blaney came from last place in the 23-car field to finish second, 1.333 seconds behind Elliott.
The Clash comes three months after Kyle Larson won his second Cup Series championship under the elimination Playoff format. With the series returning to a 10-race Chase this season, Larson nevertheless is eager to get started.
“Off seasons are fun and give you the ability to refresh, but as the new season approaches, I get really antsy and ready to go,” said Larson, who raced sprint cars, micro sprints and midget race cars during the winter break.
“I look forward to being around everybody again, getting into meetings and preparing for the race weekends and all of that. We’ll see what the weather is like, but either way we’ll be ready. I’m just excited to get back to racing.”
In Sunday’s feature, only green-flag laps count toward the 200-lap total. There will be a break after 100 laps. NASCAR is monitoring weather conditions, with snow expected Saturday.
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell doesn’t expect drivers to suffer once their cars reach racing temperatures, but the performance of the vehicles themselves could be affected by the cold.
“It’s pretty wild, honestly, the forecast. From the drivers’ standpoint, it’s not really going to matter much for us inside the car,” Bell said during a Zoom meeting with reporters on Friday morning.
Cold tires, however, could be an issue, along with brakes and engine performance.
“I guess the biggest things will just be yellow flags,” Bell added. “The tires might get slick, or the track might get slick, but as we run, the temperatures inside the car are going to be really comfortable for us.”
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