About halfway through the Cook Out Clash, a snow squall hit the track. This lasted about ten minutes, but the ground became very wet. Subsequently, teams were allowed to put on wet tires. The race would end still with wet tires on.

Josh Berry and Austin Cindric claimed the final two spots in NASCAR's preseason exhibition race by finishing 1-2 in the last chance qualifying heat at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem. The Clash was originally scheduled for Sunday and twice postponed because of a snowstorm that blanketed North Carolina and pushed the non-points event to Wednesday.

After a rescheduling due to weather, the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium kicks off the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, this Wednesday at the iconic racetrack.

What a mess this has been. The NASCAR Cup Series finally got underway with the preseason Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray today after having to reschedule the race from Sunday due to a massive snowstorm that hit North Carolina over the weekend.

It was an ignominious start for NASCAR’s Cup Series ahead of the Daytona 500 on Feb. 15. The Clash was originally scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 1, but the massive snowstorm in North Carolina kicked the race to Monday and eventually to Wednesday. Yet the four-day delay didn’t even save NASCAR from the elements.

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season begins with the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray on Wednesday. See the starting lineup here for the NASCAR Clash.