Who Will Shine Brightest in North Wilkesboro?

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NASCAR

Stratta’s Six: Whose Victory Lane Path Will be Clearest in North Wilkesboro Speedway’s Window World 450?

One of NASCAR’s most hallowed grounds will write the next page in its lengthy history book on Sunday. For the first time in 30 years, a full NASCAR Cup Series field will duke it out on the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway. The Window World 450 will put all drivers to the test, pitting 37 hopeful teams against each other on a tight, quirky bullring. Here are a few favored to come out the other side seeing the checkered flag under the Sunday Night Lights.

Denny Hamlin

Coming into Wilkes County as the Cup Series points leader, the wind appears to be at Denny Hamlin’s back. The Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota was a quiet 12th-place last week in Atlanta, losing a bit of ground in his championship gap. The veteran short track ace cut his racing teeth on tracks like North Wilkesboro all across the southeast. Owning a runner-up result in 2024’s All-Star Race here, Hamlin eyes being one step better this weekend. Hamlin called North Wilkesboro’s racetrack rebirth a welcome sight in NASCAR’s modern age.

“When [Dale Jr] went on a journey to revive the racetrack it just seems like he made it happen,” Hamlin said. “There were several steps along the way that also helped. There was COVID money and stuff that factored into it, but Marcus [Smith, CEO Speedway Motorsports] and that group getting together, it feels like a full time Cup Series track when you go there. The atmosphere is fantastic, it’s great for our sport. It’s like Martinsville, one of those grassroots tracks that’s definitely part our history and needs to be part of our future as well.”

Seemingly a threat at every short track, Hamlin is the oddsmakers’ favorite for North Wilkesboro. Although Sunday is the first points race here he will run, North Wilkesboro is one of only three ovals he’s not won on. Weekly contending speed has Hamlin pinned for another possible banner Sunday ahead. Driver 11 will try to bring JGR back-to-back triumphs in the Carolina foothills.

Kyle Larson

The first All-Star Race held at North Wilkesboro Speedway three years ago was a performance deserving of $1 million by Kyle Larson. The No. 5 Chevrolet hardly put a wheel wrong that night, leading 145 of 200 laps and winning by almost five seconds. Since then, Larson’s Wilkesboro outings were fourth and 21st. One of very few drivers with multiple top-fives here, Larson eyes repeat success at a track he’s dominated.

“[North Wilkesboro] is close to home; it’s basically a home race for all of us, so I look forward to it,” Larson said. “I really believe it’s probably the best short track we have on our schedule.”

“I guess turns one and two are a little more downhill, a little shapier and more diamond-like because the momentum is carrying you into the corner. Then turns three and four are more about following the radius. I think that uniqueness is what makes it fun. Because your car doesn’t quite handle perfectly there, and it’s got progressive banking. So, it’s a cool track with a lot of history, and I’m just excited that it’s on the schedule. It was great when it was just the All-Star Race, but now to have a points-paying race at North Wilkesboro is pretty amazing. I feel like it’s one of the racier short tracks and one of the easier ones to pass on. Not that it’s easy, but it’s easier than most. So, I think it should be a great race. I hope the crowd enjoys it, and we can find ourselves toward the front.”

Back-to-back 34th-place showings the last two weeks have seen Larson fall to sixth in points. Prior to that, the No. 5 was a top-five machine with five of them in a six-race stretch. In short, team 5’s summer stretch has been very feast or famine. Having nailed the setup at North Wilkesboro before, this is another prime opportunity to end Larson’s now 44-race losing drought.

Ryan Blaney

Riding into North Wilkesboro with maximum momentum after an Atlanta domination, Ryan Blaney eyes consecutive victories. Team Penske’s No. 12 has a pair of Wilkesboro All-Star top-10s, including fifth here two years ago. Amid a potential Murderers’ Row of racetracks for the 12, Blaney has high hopes for North Wilkesboro. Hailing from the North Carolina Piedmont, Blaney touched on how huge a points race back in Wilkes County is for the entire region.

“I know when they brought [North] Wilkesboro for the All-Star Race a handful of years ago, everyone was extremely excited,” Blaney said. “Not only in that area but I think the whole garage was excited. A lot of people in this garage area, my car chief for example, he raced at North Wilkesboro and was part of a team that raced there for awhile. I think they’ve done a great job with that place. They kept a lot of history, but also revitalizing it to kind of keep up with the times. They’ve done a good combination of that stuff. I would never have thought five years ago we’d have a points race there. But now that we are, I think it’s great for the series. It’s great for that racetrack obviously, but it’s just good to be racing around there. I think it puts on a great show, and it’s going to be a fun one.”

Blaney’s active run of eight-straight top-10s is a career-best streak, and could easily extend at North Wilkesboro. Ford’s flag bearer to date in 2026, the only blue oval wins have come from Blaney’s hands. Although Atlanta and North Wilkesboro could not be any more different, do not be surprised to see the 12 in the mix again.

Christopher Bell

Last year’s All-Star Race winner from North Wilkesboro, Christopher Bell hopes to keep the moonshine still trophy in his case. May 2025 saw the Joe Gibbs Racing driver muscle his way to the point late, holding off every charge for a maiden million dollar payday. A year removed from this triumph and still nursing a wrist injury, Bell says he’s been eager for this race for a long time coming.

“It’s certainly one we had circled,” Bell said. “Especially after my injury at Michigan, we knew it was six weeks out. This was the race I was looking forward to this summer. I’m very excited about being healthy and getting back to what really I think our strength is. Going into 2026, I would have said short tracks are our bread and butter. But it seems like it’s kind of flipped to intermediates. It’s one I’m very excited for, it races really, really good and I think you can run all the way from the white line to the wall and everywhere in between. With us never having a full-field race there, I think we don’t really know what to expect. I love those kind of races where there’s no books on it and everyone is learning on the fly.”

Second the last two weeks and three-straight top-fives has the No. 20 buzzing at a season-best clip. 2026 has been the year of Toyotas so far with 12 of 20 wins. Despite that, Bell remains the last winless man at Joe Gibbs Racing. Bell already knows what it takes to conquer North Wilkesboro Speedway. Driver 20 could go back-to-back here after 450 laps.

Chase Elliott

One man is running the gauntlet at North Wilkesboro Speedway by running all four races – Chase Elliot. The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion will have maximum track time between CARS Tour, Trucks, and Cup competition on the quirky oval. A past super late model winner in Wilkes County, Elliott is eager to have so much experience coming up at such a historic venue.

“It’s a great stop on our schedule,” Elliott said. “Really, really happy to have it back. Happy to see a racetrack saved that was likely going away. And I think it’ll be really cool for the people around that area, and also those that are going to travel in, to watch a race there. Great environment, great vibe. So, I’m looking forward to it.”

Fifth and third are two of Elliott’s exhibition finishes here, showing that the 9 has a knack for this bullring. Elliott’s seen a pair of checkered flags on this season, but no top-10s since Nashville in May. This spring’s Martinsville winner, Elliott hopes to put the 9 atop the scoring pylon on another famed short track.

Joey Logano

Perhaps nobody’s been more impressive across North Wilkesboro’s three-year stint than Joey Logano. Driver 22 led all but one lap in the 2024 All-Star Race. Logano was a Christopher Bell bump away from back-to-back big money wins as well. Across those two starts alone, Logano’s led almost 350 laps around North Wilkesboro, flexing Ford muscles on the flat short oval.

“I don’t think much will change [from the previous All Star races],” Logano said. “Obviously, there will be more cars on the track. The rubber buildup may be a little bit different than what we’ve had there too. Just because there are more cars pounding the rubber into the racetrack. So that might change the lines over time, but I don’t think it will be much different. I don’t think it’s a make-or-break race. But when you have opportunity tracks like that where you typically run well, you just have to make sure you capitalize on the opportunities that are sitting there.”

Logano’s been close to unbeatable between his last two starts in Wilkes County, and eyes a turnaround run. The Penske 22’s uncharacteristically off 2026 season has the three-time champion eight points out of Chase contention. Within striking distance of making the 16-man cut in six weeks, North Wilkesboro could begin a late season surge for the 22.

No other venue on the NASCAR circuit has quite the character, aura, and challenge of North Wilkesboro Speedway. The Window World 450 will go green Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on TNT, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. 450 laps around the bullring will be a drawn out slugfest for all drivers. One team will be successful in trying to tackle one of the toughest racetracks around in a marathon show.

Written by Peter Stratta

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