2026 Toyota/Save Mart 350: NASCAR Stays Out West at Sonoma

Corey Heim shocked the NASCAR world by securing his first Cup Series win at Naval Base Coronado in the Anduril 250. The part-time driver isn’t set to attempt his first full NASCAR Cup season until next year, but was able to capitalize on an incident that eliminated road course king Shane Van Gisbergen. Heim will not be in the field for the 2026 Toyota Save/Mart 350 as SVG looks to get back on top while the rest of the field chases.

Will we see another surprise winner as NASCAR winds through Wine Country, or can Shane Van Gisbergen avoid trouble this week?

Let’s dive in.

2026 Toyota Save/Mart 350 Entry List

NASCAR’s field at Sonoma features just the 36 chartered entries. As mentioned above, last week’s winner, Corey Heim, will not be on hand to defend his win and attempt to go back-to-back.

Unlike the relatively flat street circuit at Naval Base Coronado, Sonoma features significant elevation change. The high degree of technical difficulty makes this circuit challenging for drivers. Strategy and tire preservation will undoubtedly come to the fore once again as drivers look to gain track position at a circuit that can be difficult to complete passes at.

Of course, the most significant passing zone comes at Turn 11. The infamous hairpin turn has seen its fair share of bumps, exchanged and lost tempers.

2026 Toyota/Save Mart 350 Race Predictions

In last week’s preview, picking Shane Van Gisbergen, I mentioned that things can happen on track. Boy, did they ever, as a restart saw Austin Hill misjudge a corner and kick off an incident that collected SVG along with his Trackhouse teammate Connor Zilisch.

Both Van Gisbergen and Zilisch figure to play major roles in the race this week, though SVG is once again my race winner pick.

I expect the Spire Motorsports cars to run well this Sunday, also. Michael McDowell continues to impress on road courses, Daniel Suarez got his first win at Sonoma, and Carson Hocevar ran well last week in San Diego before getting spun by eventual race winner Corey Heim in the final stage.

Elsewhere in the field, keep an eye on Tyler Reddick and Ryan Blaney as both will likely find their way to the front as well.

One fun piece of added stakes for the weekend? NASCAR’s in-season tournament kicks off at Sonoma. You can check out the bracket on NASCAR’s official site.

Check out the schedule below so you don’t miss any on-track action this week!

Friday 06/26

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Practice – 3:00 p.m. CT on the CW App

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Qualifying – 4:05 p.m. CT on the CW App

General Tire 150 (ARCA Menards Series – West) – 5:30 p.m. CT on FloRacing and NASCAR Channel

Saturday 06/27

NASCAR Cup Series Practice – 1:00 p.m. CT on TruTV

NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying – 2:10 p.m. CT on TruTV

Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 (NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series) – 4:30 p.m. CT on the CW

Sunday 06/28

Toyota/Save Mart 350 (NASCAR Cup Series) – 2:30 p.m. on TNT and HBO Max

Stay locked into Apollo for more NASCAR and F1 coverage throughout the racing season, and check out our Instagram – Apollo NASCAR!