Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, a NASCAR Cup Series round, on Saturday 19 September 2026. The track’s official page lists a 7:30 p.m. Eastern start, with coverage on USA Network. It is a night race on a short concrete oval that the promoters call “The Last Great Colosseum”.

The published schedule is 500 laps, with stages at 125, 250 and 500 laps, or 266.5 miles. The circuit is 0.533 miles long. Grandstands sit close to the wall and laps come in quick succession: passing room is limited, so track position, pit stops and caution periods can rearrange the order in a short spell.

NASCAR placed Bristol on 19 September in the 2026 Cup calendar, among the autumn races flagged on the official schedule after Darlington and World Wide Technology Raceway. This article does not estimate who leaves the playoffs and does not name favourites. It records the round’s place on the calendar and the night-time character of the event.

The Bristol weekend also includes the Food City 300 on Friday 18 September, according to NASCAR’s track page. Spectators buying weekend packages should check which ticket covers Saturday’s Cup race and which covers the other series. Parking and gate times, the pre-race track walk and the concert before the green flag are listed on the speedway site and may be updated.

On a short oval, leaders often meet lapped traffic. A mistimed pit stop can cost places even to a fast car. Those traits are lasting features of Bristol; they are not unique to one season and they do not replace timing-and-scoring data.

Anyone travelling to the stadium should consult the official timetable for access, bag rules and weather changes. The advertised start remains 7:30 p.m. ET unless organisers say otherwise.

This is a preview. It does not forecast a winner and does not reproduce provisional standings. With publication a day ahead of the race, the reference for times and tickets remains Bristol Motor Speedway, together with the NASCAR calendar.

Image: Zach Catanzareti Photo, Bristol Motor Speedway. Flickr via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Not a photograph of the 19 September 2026 race. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Bristol Motor Speedway — Bass Pro Shops Night Race; NASCAR — Bristol Motor Speedway.