2026 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Qualifying Series | Race Preview | Round 1 at Daytona

The eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series is back for Year 17 in 2026, and this year, everything kicks off at Daytona International Speedway on February 10th, but with the new Qualifying Series section of the schedule on display, and as a part of the entire Coca-Cola Series season.

In the new eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series season as a whole, the total schedule expands to a 24-races The first 11 races will be as a part of the newly reconfigured eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Qualifying Series from February to April. The remaining 13 races will be in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Championship Series, which starts in May, that part of the schedule previously being the entirety of the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series.

22 iRacing members are already locked into the Free Agency round before the Championship Series begins in May. 30 more drivers will be added to that Free Agency pool by finishing within the top-30 in the final standings by the Qualifying Series section’s end. Any iRacing member with a Class A license can take on the Qualifying Series, and splits and the Strength of Field (SoF) will be determined by each entered member’s iRating. Points will be awarded throughout each split based on the SoF.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Readies for Refreshed 2026 Season

While the focus will be on the top split, splits below that may also get screen time tonight and through the season. Coverage for the Daytona season opener begins at 8 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live and across iRacing social media channels. Tune in 15 minutes earlier to catch the Countdown to Green at 7:45 p.m. ET.

LAST RACE

The last eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series event was the eNASCAR Championship 4 event at the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Steven Wilson, Casey Kirwan, Vicente Salas, and Zack Novak all travelled to Uptown Charlotte where one would walk away $100,000 richer. While the three that didn’t win all had incredible seasons, worthy of acknowledgment by a Dale Earnhardt Jr Cup at the end of the day, it was Steven Wilson who put his name into the history books by winning his eighth race of the season enroute to his second career title, the only driver other than 4-Time Ray Alfalla with multiple titles.

LAST YEAR

At the end of the 2024 season, the final eNASCAR Contender iRacing series races were contested, and 30 drivers were put into the Free Agency pool for the start of the 2025 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series season. What would have normally happened, either on the same week or the week before or after, is that the eNASCAR Qualifying iRacing Series would kick off simultaneously, beginning a year-long stretch for hopeful drivers to make their way into consideration for the next season of the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series.

Instead, the format underwent restructuring, and what came out of that plan is what we now know as the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, a 24-race schedule with the first 11 races as a part of the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Qualifying Series section and the last 13 races as a part of the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Championship Series section.

NEW FORMAT

A Qualifying Series is not a new concept, but the way these 11 races will play out are vastly different in the sense that there will be multiple different vehicles throughout.

The NASCAR Craftsman Trucks are back in Qualifying, but only for four races. Daytona, Las Vegas, Rockingham, and Phoenix will be the four truck races to kick off the season, but in the fifth race, these hopefuls will graduate to the next step on the NASCAR ladder, the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series cars. At Homestead-Miami, Fontana, Darlington, and Bristol, the NORAPS car will be their chariot. The final three races will put these hopefuls into the last step, the top level machine, the NASCAR Cup Series Gen 7 for the races at Chicagoland, Michigan, and Texas.

While there is no official roster, as anyone can truly participate minus those already locked into Free Agency, names such as Ray Alfalla, Michael Cosey Jr, Graham Bowlin, and many more relegated drivers from previous eNASCAR seasons will be looking to make their way back to the top level. eNASCAR College iRacing Series competitor Adam Garza is among those taking part, lining up with the Kansas City Pioneers, one of the official teams in the series, to race for their Price Chopper seat. Bowlin and Michael P Frisch are also a part of that program and will wear Price Chopper colors. Another official team, eRacr, has their own race for the seat program, the Money Lap Challenge, open to all where the top drivers wearing their logo at the end of the season will have a chance to sign with them during Free Agency.

TRACK FACTS

Known as “The World Center of Racing”, Daytona International Speedway has a deep history in many facets of American motorsport, from NASCAR and their annual Daytona 500 to IMSA and their 24-hour battle for the Rolex 24. This track also hosts Bike Week’s Daytona 200, Daytona Supercross, Daytona KartWeek between Christmas and New Year’s Day, and a host of driving school, club, and other events. Last month, the Rolex 24 at Daytona traversed the 3.56-mile road course that encompasses the infield and most of the oval. For NASCAR purposes this coming weekend, we’ll see a multitude of stock cars ripping around 200 mph consistently on the 2.5-mile high banks.

NEXT RACE

After Daytona, the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Qualifying Series heads across the United States over to Las Vegas for the second round of the season. The Championship Series race at Las Vegas was won by Kollin Keister last season. Coverage for Las Vegas on February 17th begins at 8 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live and across iRacing social media channels. Tune in 15 minutes earlier to catch the Countdown to Green at 7:45 p.m. ET.

For more information on the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, visit eNASCAR.com or iRacing.com/eNASCAR.
For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit iRacing.com.­­

You may also like...

Recommended

This Week in iRacing | February 10th to February 16th, 2026

Recommended

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Readies for Refreshed 2026 Season

Recommended

THIS WEEK: iRacing Daytona 500 Special Event

Recommended

2025-26 eNASCAR College iRacing Series | Great Lakes Gauntlet | Time Attack Results