The Cutline’s 2026 Race Weekend Rankings Tier List

What’s Happening?

The Brickyard 400 has come and gone, and with that, the In-Season Challenge has concluded. Corey Heim stuns the garage by taking his second win of the season in just his 15th start, all before his first full-time season! As for the In-Season Challenge, Todd Gilliland takes down Ryan Blaney, with help from John Hunter Nemechek, to win the $1 million bonus for him and Front Row Motorsports.

So, where do these races stack up on the season? Let’s look at where all three races landed on this week’s Race Weekend Rankings!

Check out the latest episode of The Cutline, where I broke down the weekend at Indianapolis.

Brickyard 400: F-Tier

• Look, was Heim winning a great storyline? Yes. Did he hold off the best of the field to do it? Also, yes. Were there some thrilling blocks and restarts? Also, also, yes.
• That’s about all that the race had, though. When two clearly faster cars in Bell and Logano can’t get by because of 1. Dirty air, and 2. Because IMS isn’t suited for stock cars, then you get a finish that was more frustrating than exciting. I only put races in F tier if they get me upset. That finish made me upset.

Pennzoil 250 Presented by Take 5 Oil Change: C-Tier

• This race was solid. It’s always fun seeing a first-time winner, especially someone like Carson Kvapil, who finally got it done at one of NASCAR’s biggest stages. The fight between him and Allgaier at the end was also fun to watch. If there’s any series that can make NASCAR at Indy watchable, it’s the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

You can follow along with me by creating your own Race Weekend Rankings Tier List. Make sure to tag me and The Daily Downforce on X, and we’ll share your list with the rest of the NASCAR Community.