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Snowstorm forces NASCAR to postpone Clash at Bowman Gray to Wednesday

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Feb 1, 2026 2:53 PM ET

After initially postponing Sunday's scheduled Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium to Monday, winter weather in North Carolina has forced NASCAR to once again move the exhibition race to later in the week.

NASCAR has now postponed the Clash to Wednesday, Feb. 4, with all on-track activity taking place on Wednesday.

Practice and qualifying will begin at 1:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday on Fox Sports 2. No heat races will be run, with the 20 fastest drivers in qualifying locking themselves into the 200-lap main event.

The last-chance qualifier will begin at 4:30 p.m. ET on Fox, with the top-two drivers also earning their spot in the Clash. The 23rd and final spot in the race will go to the driver who finished highest in the 2025 Cup Series standings who is not locked into the race.

NEWS: Due to winter weather across the North Carolina region, NASCAR announces the @nascarclash will be held on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET on FOX. pic.twitter.com/yh4iRFcskL
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 1, 2026

The Cook Out Clash will go green shortly after 6 p.m. ET on Wednesday, with coverage on Fox, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Chase Elliott is the defending race winner.

Mother Nature wreaks havoc

After the second snowstorm in as many weeks hit North Carolina this weekend, NASCAR pushed back the race two more days, likely in an effort to ensure that teams, fans and drivers can get to Winston-Salem safely.

With snow still covering plenty of roads across the Tar Heel State, moving the race to Wednesday will give the NASCAR industry a safer travel schedule and likely put less strain on state and local resources in advance of the race.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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