The first NASCAR Cup Series points-paying event in nearly 30 years at North Wilkesboro Speedway now has a new race distance, adding to the excitement of the event on July 19, 2026.

Bob Jenkins may not have been demonstrative in his tone, but the owner of one of the plaintiff Cup Series teams had a notable flair when expressing how NASCAR treated its teams during charter negotiations.

North Wilkesboro Speedway officials announced Thursday that the Cup Series race scheduled at the revitalized track July 19 will be 50 laps longer than originally planned. The race has been named the Window World 450.

Heather Gibbs, the chief operating officer of Joe Gibbs Racing, said she's operating under the current system "with a gun to my head."

NASCAR.com reviews every Cup Series driver who finished first through 30th in the standings during the 2025 season; track each review.

Former NASCAR driver Michael Annett has died. He was 39. JR Motorsports announced Annett’s death in a social media post Friday evening. Annett drove for the team in the Xfinity Series for five seasons from 2017-21.

"Your costs aren't covered to put on their show," Denny Hamlin, co-owner of 23XI Racing, said Monday. "And there's only one side going out of business."

Next year’s 500 will mark a pair of key anniversaries. It will have been 50 years since the 1976 500, which featured arguably the most dramatic finish in NASCAR history, and 25 years since Dale Earnhardt’s death on the final lap of the 2001 500.