NASCAR Official on Chevrolet’s 2026 Body Style: “All the Boxes Have Been Checked”

What’s Happening?

NASCAR Official Elton Sawyer claimed that Chevrolet has completed the process of developing its new NASCAR Cup Series body Style for 2026 during a recent interview.

With the conclusion of Camaro production, it’s no secret that Chevrolet is looking to change its body in the NASCAR Cup Series in the future.

For the 2025 season, the OEM made minimal changes, replacing the Camaro branding with Chevrolet branding. However, rumors throughout the season have suggested that Chevrolet will debut a new body style for the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.

During an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday morning, Elton Sawyer, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition, provided an update on the new body style.

During this interview, Sawyer broke down the timeline of steps to introduce a new body at the Cup Series level and claimed that the OEM has completed all these necessary steps for the new body to be ready for the 2026 season.

“We started working back with the folks there at GM probably over a year or so ago now. . . then they started submitting the body parts, and then they go to a wind tunnel test where all the OEMs, our original equipment manufacturers, are there and watch how that test unfolds at the wind tunnel. So all the boxes have been checked and looking forward to seeing the new Chevrolet when we get to Daytona in 2026.” — Elton Sawyer

While Sawyer points to Daytona as the date for an on-track reveal of this body style, the 2026 Clash at Bowman Gray will more than likely be it’s in race debut.

But, there is a chance we could see the car at a test prior to that date. A rumor from earlier this month claimed that Chevy could debut this body at an October 20 ECU and wiring harness test at the Charlotte Roval. However, a follow-up post last week from that same user claimed the test could be cancelled.

As of press time, it is unclear what this body style will look like. Some have theorized that it could be radically different from what the OEM currently runs, while others think it might be a refinement of the current Camaro ZL1 1LE design.

One problem seemingly facing GM and Chevrolet is the lack of a suitable replacement production car, meaning they could maintain the Chevrolet-branded look for the long haul.

When Chevrolet introduces this body style, it will be the first change to the Chevrolet Cup Series body since 2020 (excluding the shift to the Next Gen in 2022), when the OEM switched from the ZL1, introduced in 2018, to the ZL1 1LE.

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