The biggest midget car racing event in the world, the Chili Bowl Nationals powered by NOS Energy Drink in Tulsa, Oklahoma, always attracts some of NASCAR’s top stars. Which means millions of eyes this week are focused on the 2026 Chili Bowl results.
Leading the charge at this year’s Chili Bowl is Kyle Larson, who is back at the SageNet Center as the event’s defending champion after he scored his third Chili Bowl victory one season ago.
Advertisement
Larson this year is joined by a number of NASCAR competitors at the Chili Bowl. They include three-time Chili Bowl winner Christopher Bell, 2025 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love, Ty Gibbs, Sheldon Creed, Corey Day, J.J. Yeley and Josh Bilicki. The NASCAR Regional level is also represented with competitors like Gavan Boschele, Jake Johnson, Brayton Laster and Ryan Roulette.
Below is more about each driver and how they’ve fared at the 2026 Chili Bowl.
Kyle Larson
Chili Bowl results: How NASCAR drivers fared at the 2026 Nationals in Tulsa
Complete Chili Bowl results:
Kyle Larson
Qualifying Night: Victory in Monday’s preliminary feature
Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson is making his 18th Chili Bowl Nationals attempt this year. A three-time (2020-21, 2025) Chili Bowl Nationals champion, Larson has made the Saturday championship feature 12 times.
Advertisement
And he’s off to a great start in 2026.
After finishing seventh in Monday night’s Race of Champions (won by Christopher Bell), Larson returned to form with a convincing victory in the Monday preliminary feature. He started fourth in the 30-lap A Main and was leading by the 10th circuit, though he faced constant pressure from Briggs Danner and Cannon McIntosh.
A few mid-race cautions, including one that was the result of contact between Larson and the lapped car of Gaige Weldon, provided Larson with the clean race track he needed to punch his ticket directly into Saturday‘s championship feature.
“My car felt good, and I was making decent decisions in traffic,” Larson said. “Then one lapper (Weldon) tried to rip back around me and then lane changed into (Turn) 3 and I tagged him. It kind of calmed the race down.
Advertisement
“It‘s good to be back in position for Saturday.”
Christopher Bell
Qualifying Night: Thursday
Christopher Bell this year is making his 13th Chili Bowl attempt. The nearby Norman, Oklahoma native won three consecutive Chili Bowl championships from 2017-19. Last year, he returned to the Chili Bowl after a two-year hiatus, finishing 10th in the Saturday finale.
Bell on Monday night began his 2026 Chili Bowl week with a flag-to-flag victory in the annual running of the O‘Reilly Auto Parts Race of Champions, an invite-only event featuring racing champions from across the motorsports world.
The driver of the No. 20 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series qualified first and started from the pole for the 25-lap feature after drawing a 0 for the invert.
Advertisement
He dominated the event despite brief challenges from eventual runner-up Shane Golobic to secure his fourth Race of Champions victory and first as an owner-driver.
“This makes everything a whole lot more stressful,” Bell said after securing his first Midget car win inside the SageNet Center in his own equipment. “I was about ready to puke before the race. I was like, ‘Is it right? Is it wrong? What are we doing?‘
“I think it just makes the triumph so much more rewarding.”
Bell returns to the track Thursday for his preliminary night action.
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – OCTOBER 25: Jesse Love, driver of the #2 Whelen Chevrolet, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Xfinity Series IAA and Ritchie Bros. 250 at Martinsville Speedway on October 25, 2025 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Jesse Love
Qualifying Night: Friday
Reigning NASCAR O‘Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love is making his return to the Chili Bowl after last competing in 2024. He’s driving a car owned by Blake Harris, crew chief for Alex Bowman in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Advertisement
Of his three previous Chili Bowl attempts, Love‘s best finish came in 2021, when he finished 13th in a B-Main on championship Saturday.
Love competed in Monday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Race of Champions and finished 16th.
Ty Gibbs
Qualifying Night: 14th-place finish in A Main on Tuesday
Ty Gibbs, the 2022 NASCAR O‘Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, is making his return to the Chili Bowl Nationals after making his debut in the event one season ago. In his first Chili Bowl attempt last year, he finished sixth in an F Main on championship Saturday.
Gibbs began his Chili Bowl week Tuesday with a second-place run in his heat race after starting ninth. He then finished fifth in his qualifier. He finished 14th in the evening’s A Main after starting seventh.
Advertisement
J.J. Yeley
Qualifying Night: 10th-place finish in A Main on Tuesday
A legend inside the SageNet Center, veteran NASCAR star J.J. Yeley returns to the Chili Bowl Nationals for his 30th attempt to capture the prestigious Golden Driller trophy. In his 29 previous attempts, Yeley has made the championship feature eight times, including a runner-up finish in 2007.
Yeley made history during the 2004 running of the event, advancing a stunning 69 positions from his F Main to finish third in the Chili Bowl championship race.
Yeley on Tuesday night finished fifth in his heat and second in his qualifier, allowing him to start the A Main on the front row. However, he faded to 10th in the feature.
Advertisement
Sheldon Creed
Qualifying Night: 24th-place finish in A Main on Tuesday
Sheldon Creed, who races in the NASCAR O‘Reilly Auto Parts Series for the Haas Factory Team, is making his Chili Bowl Nationals debut this year. No stranger to dirt racing, he’s been a regular competitor at North Carolina‘s Millbridge Speedway for years and previously competed in the Tulsa Shootout, the annual precursor to the Chili Bowl inside the SageNet Center.
Creed on Tuesday finished fourth in his heat and fifth in his qualifier. He won a B Main to advance himself to the evening’s main event, but he didn’t finish the A Main.
Corey Day
Qualifying Night: Sixth-place finish in A Main on Wednesday
Corey Day, who was recently confirmed for his first full NASCAR O‘Reilly Auto Parts Series season with Hendrick Motorsports, is back for his fifth attempt at the Chili Bowl Nationals in 2026.
Advertisement
In four previous attempts inside the SageNet Center, Day has made the championship feature three times. His best effort came in 2024, when he finished third in the Saturday night main event behind winner Logan Seavey and runner-up Buddy Kofoid.
Day competed in Monday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Race of Champions but did not finish. On his preliminary night, he won his heat race and finished fourth in his qualifier. That set him up for a seventh-place start in the A Main, and he finished sixth.
Gavan Boschele
Qualifying Night: Eighth-place finish in A Main on Tuesday
Gavan Boschele, who is joining Nitro Motorsports this year for most of the ARCA Menards Series schedule, is returning to Tulsa for his fourth Chili Bowl attempt, this time aboard a Midget car owned by two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch. His best effort inside the SageNet Center came in his debut in 2022, when he finished 14th in a B-Main on championship Saturday.
Advertisement
Boschele began his week Tuesday with a victory in his heat race followed by a sixth-place run in his qualifier. His fourth-place run in a B Main barely advanced him to the A Main, and he ran eighth in the feature after starting last.
Jake Johnson
Qualifying Night: Friday
A NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner during the 2024 season, Jake Johnson is scheduled to make his Chili Bowl debut this week driving for Cory Kruseman, a two-time Chili Bowl champion driver.
Brayton Laster
Qualifying Night: Thursday
ARCA Menards Series competitor Brayton Laster is no stranger to dirt racing, but he’s never been to the Chili Bowl. He’ll make his Chili Bowl debut this week driving a car owned by Zach Boden.
Advertisement
Ryan Roulette
Qualifying Night: Thursday
U.S. Air Force pilot Ryan Roulette will go from flying planes to piloting a midget car during the Chili Bowl this week. The ARCA Menards Series competitor will make his Chili Bowl debut aboard a car owned by Brian Buckwalter.
Josh Bilicki (40B) works through traffic entering turn four during the 2025 Chili Bowl Nationals presented by NOS Energy Drink at the Tulsa Expo Raceway in Tulsa, Oklahoma on January 18, 2025. (Shane Bevel/NASCAR)
What TV channel is the Chili Bowl on in 2026?
The 2026 Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa will be shown live in its entirety on FloRacing, the streaming home for all NASCAR Regional action. The event will not be shown on a traditional television network.
FloRacing’s race coverage begins Monday, Jan. 13 and includes all five qualifying nights as well as the championship finale on Saturday, Jan. 18.
Advertisement
Below is the breakdown of the TV and live streaming schedule for the 2026 Chili Bowl.
Chili Bowl schedule
|
Date |
Event |
How to watch |
Racing Start Time |
|
Monday, Jan. 12 |
2nd Opinion Auto Center Qualifying Night plus the ROC; Race of Champions |
5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT |
|
|
Tuesday, Jan. 13 |
Warren CAT Qualifying Night |
5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT |
|
|
Wednesday, Jan. 14 |
York Plumbing Qualifying Night |
5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT |
|
|
Thursday, Jan. 15 |
Hasty Bake Qualifying Night |
5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT |
|
|
Friday, Jan. 16 |
Hard Rock Casino Tulsa Qualifying Night |
5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT |
|
|
Saturday, Jan. 17 |
Championship Feature Events |
10 a.m. ET / 9 a.m. CT |
