The NASCAR Cup Series will head to EchoPark Speedway for the 2026 Autotrader 400 this weekend. After Tyler Reddick’s big win in the Daytona 500, drivers will tackle another fast track.
The spring race tracks back to historic events at Atlanta Motor Speedway, now EchoPark Speedway. Christopher Bell won the Autotrader 400 in a photo finish that ended under a late yellow at the 1.54-mile quad-oval last season. Daniel Suárez claimed the 2024 spring race in a three-wide final sprint. And Joey Logano took the 2023 Atlanta spring victory from the pole.
This year’s spring NASCAR weekend at EchoPark will begin with qualifying for support series on Friday, February 20, followed by Bennett 250 qualifying later in the afternoon. Friday night includes Legends and Bandolero races and a camper appreciation party for fans.
The Cup Series qualifying will run mid-day on Saturday and NASCAR’s lower two national series’ FR8 208 and Bennett 250 also start on Saturday afternoon. The main race will unfold on Sunday, February 22. The Autotrader 400 green flag is scheduled for 3 pm local time. A pre-race concert and fan interaction zones are also planned around the infield. Part-time drivers J.J. Yeley and BJ McLeod are in the 2026 Autotrader 400 entry list as part of the 38 cars entered for this Sunday’s Cup race weekend running from February 20 through 22, in Hampton, Georgia.
Here is the full weekend schedule, as per Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass, for the 2026 Autotrader 400:
Friday (ET)
3:00 PM: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series qualifying on FS1
5:00 PM: NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts qualifying (CW app)
Forecast: 70s, 45% rain
Saturday (ET)
11:00 AM: NASCAR Cup Series qualifying (Prime)
1:30 PM: Trucks practice session (FS1)
4:30 PM: Cup prerace coverage (CW)
5:00 PM: O’Reilly race at night
Forecast: 60s, 60% rain
Sunday (FOX, ET)
2:00 PM: NASCAR RaceDay pregame
3:00 PM: Autotrader 400 green flag
Forecast: 50s, 15% rain
Open Entries For NASCAR Cup Series’ 2026 Autotrader 400
After missing the cut for the 2026 Daytona 500, JJ Yeley will attempt to qualify for the second race of the 2926 NASCAR Cup Series season this weekend in the No. 44 Chevrolet. He will compete for NY Racing, owned by John Cohen.
Meanwhile, BJ McLeod, who entered the Daytona 500 after Anthony Alfredo was disallowed for post-race inspection failures in Duel 2, will also drive for Live Fast Motorsports in the 2026 Autotrader 400.
Tyler Reddick currently leads the Cup standings, followed by Joey Logano and Chase Elliott in the early points after Daytona.
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