NASCAR Hits the Streets of San Diego: Your Preview for Sunday's Race at Naval Base Coronado
Welcome to the Happy Hour Racing Track Preview - where every Friday we get you ready for Sunday. The track, the history, the storylines, and our pick to win. This week NASCAR does something it has never done before.
The Short Version
This Sunday, June 21, the NASCAR Cup Series races the Anduril 250 at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego. It is the first Cup Series race ever held on an active United States military base, and the temporary street course that wraps the base is the longest track on the entire 2026 schedule. Stock cars on a brand-new street circuit on the edge of the Pacific. You are going to want to watch this one.
The Track: A First of Its Kind
The course is a 3.4-mile, 16-turn temporary street circuit laid out around Naval Base Coronado, weaving along the San Diego Bay between piers, runways, and the docking spots of actual aircraft carriers. At 3.4 miles it is the longest track NASCAR will visit all season. The Cup cars will run 75 laps for a total of 255 miles. A street course means concrete walls instead of open runoff, bumpy real-world pavement, and zero room for error. Brush a wall and your day is over.
Because the track is shorter than 1.5 miles in the way NASCAR classifies it, the cars run the 2026 short-track and road-course rules package: about 750 horsepower and the lower-downforce aero kit. More power and less grip on a tight, walled-in street course is a recipe for mistakes, and mistakes mean cautions, restarts, and chances for the field to shuffle.
No Past Winners Here, So Look at the Road Form
This is an inaugural race, so there is no track history and no defending winner to lean on. The next best thing is recent form on road and street courses, and that story has been dominated by one man. Here is who has won the Cup Series road and street races over the last two seasons.
The Storylines to Watch
The big question is simple: can anyone beat Shane van Gisbergen when the track turns both ways. The number 88 Trackhouse driver has turned road and street courses into his personal playground. The pushback came at COTA earlier in 2026, where Tyler Reddick led a race-high number of laps and beat him to end a long road-course win streak. Reddick proved the gap can be closed. Keep an eye on young road-course threat Connor Zilisch too, along with veterans like Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell who can win any time the schedule goes road racing.
My Pick to Win
It is hard to bet against the best street racer the Cup garage has seen in years. On a brand-new circuit where nobody has notes, the edge goes to the driver whose instincts on unfamiliar road courses are simply better than everyone else's. That is Shane van Gisbergen. He won his Cup debut on a street course, he won five of six road races last season, and a fresh 3.4-mile street layout plays directly to his greatest strength. My sleeper is Tyler Reddick, the one driver who has already beaten him straight up on a road course this year. If the 88 hits any trouble, the 45 is the car ready to pounce. This is an informed prediction, not a guarantee, but the data points hard in one direction.
The Bottom Line
A first-of-its-kind street race, on a Navy base, on the longest track of the year, with the best road racer in the sport as the favorite and a real challenger nipping at his heels. Set a reminder, grab your gear, and do not miss the green flag Sunday.
Pulling for a road-course ace Sunday? Gear up before the green flag. In stock now:
- Shane van Gisbergen #88 2025 Charlotte Roval Winner Tee
- Shane van Gisbergen #88 2025 Viva Mexico 250 Winner Tee
- Shane van Gisbergen #88 Name and Number Tee
- Christopher Bell #20 2025 COTA Winner Tee
- Tyler Reddick Trucker Hat
Shop the Shane van Gisbergen, Tyler Reddick, and Christopher Bell collections. New track previews drop every Friday.