INDIANA — The highly anticipated return of the Brickyard 400 is less than two months away, but the historic oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) buzzed with engine roars on Wednesday as top NASCAR drivers took to the track for a critical multi-day Goodyear tire test.
Drivers spent the day turning laps on the famous 2.5-mile oval. The session gave teams a rare and invaluable opportunity to gather data on track-specific tire wear and car setups ahead of the official race weekend on Sunday, July 26.
For the competitors, returning to Indy’s traditional rectangular oval carries immense weight. The event marks the 30th running of NASCAR at the legendary venue, following a brief three-year stint where the Cup Series competed on the IMS road course layout.
The mid-summer test lands right in the thick of a fiercely competitive 2026 NASCAR Cup Series regular season. As drivers battle for one of the coveted 16 playoff spots, the Brickyard 400 stands tall as one of the final heavy-hitting regular-season events before the postseason cutoff in September.
The 30th running of the Brickyard 400 is scheduled for Sunday, July 26, 2026. General admission and reserved grandstand seating are available through the IMS ticket office as the speedway expects a massive crowd for the return of oval stock-car racing.
