By Richie Murray
Speedway, Indiana (July 22, 2026)………Some call it Christmas in July. We just call it Indiana Sprint Week!
The biggest Indiana Sprint Week ever is even bigger in 2026, as the 39th annual running of USAC NOS Energy Drink Indiana Sprint Week Presented by K & N Filters consists of an all-time record nine events at nine different racetracks across a 10-night span between July 23-August 1.
The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway begins the racing feast on July 23, then the tour takes on Lincoln Park Speedway on July 24, Kokomo Speedway on July 25, Lawrenceburg Speedway on July 26 and Circle City Raceway on July 27 before a one-day breather away from the action on July 28.
The ISW tour then travels to Paragon Speedway on July 29, then it’s onward to the Terre Haute Action Track on July 30 for the Don Smith Classic. The penultimate round takes the series to Bloomington Speedway for the Sheldon Kinser Memorial on July 31, and then to the finale at Tri-State Speedway on August 1.
Since 1988, midsummer in the Hoosier State has been the focal point for drivers, teams, and the throngs of race fans from around the world who converge on Indiana for a weeklong extravaganza of sprint car racing unlike any other. A sensational slate of dirt tracks featuring drivers from across the nation, and elsewhere, will be vying to become the next to conquer one of the most grueling yet rewarding adventures of the year.
Let’s dig into some of the top storylines to keep yourself affixed to!
$25,000 ISW CHAMPIONSHIP, $50,000 POINT FUND
The 2026 edition of Indiana Sprint Week will pay $25,000 to the champion with an overall point fund of $50,000. Each and every feature event throughout ISW will pay $10,000-to-win, up from $8,000 a year ago.
The breakdown of pay for the top eight in the end-of-week ISW standings is as follows: 1) $25,000, 2) $10,000, 3) $5,000, 4) $3,000, 5) $2,200, 6) $1,800, 7) $1,600, 8) $1,400.
Throughout ISW, The Learn Lab Qualifying Challenge will reward each fast qualifier with $200, plus an extra $200 for each additional fast time. For example, a driver would collect $200 for the first fast time, $400 for the second fast qualifying award, $600 for their third quick time of the week and so on.
Parallax Group and ProSource have teamed up to present a $1,000 reward to the Passing Master – the driver advancing the most total positions throughout Indiana Sprint Week.
Rod End Supply has added a $200 hard charger bonus at each feature throughout Indiana Sprint Week. Additionally, the slowest qualifying driver who advances to the feature will be rewarded with a $100 Hard Work bonus.
Eclipse Claims Consulting has posted a $100 nightly bonus to the first non-transfer out of the semi-feature. Eclipse will also reward the driver recording the fastest lap in the feature with a $100 bonus each night.
Vogel Real Estate, Auction & Appraisals has pitched in a nightly $100 reward to the semi-feature hard charger. At the conclusion of ISW, Justis Family Racing will supply $250 to the driver who transfers from the most semi-features throughout the week.
Furthermore, as has been a tradition since 2010, the Indiana Sprint Week champion car owner will receive a custom, handcrafted Bridgeport Rocker courtesy of John Youngs from Vincennes, Indiana.
8 PAST ISW CHAMPS
Eight past USAC Indiana Sprint Week champions will be participating in 2026: Kevin Thomas Jr., J.J. Yeley, Brady Bacon, Robert Ballou, C.J. Leary, Chase Stockon, Justin Grant, and Logan Seavey.
Thomas Jr. is a three-time and defending ISW titlist (2017-2021-2025), who’ll take on the series with a new team. Thomas parted ways with Rock Steady Racing in June to join BBI Motorsports, which is participating in its first ISW this season.
Yeley will partake in at least the first three races of the series. The 1997 and 2003 ISW champ ranks fifth all-time in career ISW wins.
Bacon has been splitting his time running both with a wing and without this season but has still racked up a pair of USAC wins in 2026. The 2016 and 2023 ISW champ will run at all the events except for IMS this week.
Ballou’s most recent USAC National Sprint Car victory came during Indiana Sprint Week 2025 at Lincoln Park. He broke his back the following night in a crash at Bloomington, which sidelined him for the remainder of the year. The 2015 ISW titlist is looking for a little redemption this time around.
Speaking of redemption, Grant is fully in that department. After winning the 2025 ISW opener at IMS, Grant broke his left foot in a crash three nights later at Lawrenceburg, which forced him to sit out the last half of ISW. The 2022 ISW champion is back this year, and his next victory would be the 100th of his USAC national career.
C.J. Leary will saddle up in the Fox Brothers No. 53 for the full ISW tour. The 2019 ISW champ has bounced around a few different rides this year but will have a full run in the ride that has seen its share of ISW glory with Jon Stanbrough.
Seavey has been masterful in Indiana Sprint Week during recent years and is the only driver to win multiple features with the series in 2024 and 2025. The 2024 ISW king looks to return to USAC National Sprint Car victory lane for the first time since February.
In 2025, Stockon was spectacular in returning to ISW victory lane for the first time in nine years after winning at Terre Haute. The 2020 ISW champion has had a solid year, and now, he aims to get more good work done this coming week.
SEEKING ISW GLORY & A TITLE
However, there are several drivers in wait who are seeking the chance to earn their first USAC Indiana Sprint Week championship, four of whom currently reside inside the top five of the USAC National Sprint Car points: Kyle Cummins (1st), Mitchel Moles (2nd), Briggs Danner (4th), and Jake Swanson (5th).
USAC point leader Cummins has put together another spectacular year with seven wins and has checked off many firsts along the way. Just this year, he’s won his first USAC features at Terre Haute, Knoxville, and Eldora. Plus, in June, he collected his first Eastern Storm title. His eight wins are the most by any driver without an ISW title. He enters ISW on a streak of 25 consecutive top 10 results.
Moles has taken the checkered flag a career-high six times with the USAC National Sprint Cars this year. In three of his four ISW tries, he’s finished inside the top five in the standings, including a best of third just last year in 2025. He possesses previous success in weeklong events, capturing the 2024 Eastern Storm crown.
Danner is the only driver to win in all three USAC national divisions this season. In recent weeks, he won both his first USAC National Midget race and his first ever pavement USAC Silver Crown race. Next on the order is a potential first Indiana Sprint Week title, and Danner is currently red hot.
Swanson has been consistently among the top five and top 10 on the USAC National Sprint Car trail in 2026. He’s achieved Indiana Sprint Week success with a win at Lincoln Park in 2023. Now, he’s hungry to take his own team to the forefront.
HUNTER PERCENT BACK IN
Unquestionably, the most head turning announcement in the leadup to Indiana Sprint Week has been the return of Hunter Schuerenberg to the Rock Steady Racing team after the departure of Kevin Thomas Jr.
Schuerenberg’s most recent USAC National Sprint Car start came all the way back in November 2019, seven years ago, at Arizona Speedway during the Western World Championships. Since that point, he has run winged sprint cars regularly, but has not competed much this year, last getting behind the wheel back in March of this year.
For Schuerenberg and Rock Steady Racing team owner Hank Byram, it’s akin to getting the band back together. Together, they won six USAC National Sprint Car features between 2011-2012, including two during ISW in 2011 at Kokomo and Bloomington.
BREAKING AWAY & BREAKING THROUGH
A couple of other drivers are zeroed in on breaking through for a first career USAC Indiana Sprint Week feature triumph this week after notching at least one previous USAC National Sprint Car score: Trey Osborne and Jadon Rogers.
Osborne was the breakout story of the early part of the season after scoring his first career USAC triumph in Ocala, Florida. A little taste of Indiana Sprint Week success would be most welcome. He raced from 17th to the win at Bloomington in June and also won twice at Paragon back in 2023.
Rogers is the second winningest sprint car driver in the state of Indiana during the decade of the 2020s with 31 wins to his credit, which trails only Cummins. Rogers has won at six of the nine tracks on the 2026 ISW schedule. His lone USAC win to date came during the 2022 Haubstadt Hustler at Tri-State.
MAKING THE FIRST ONE A MEMORABLE ONE
Twenty drivers have won their first career USAC National Sprint Car feature during Indiana Sprint Week.
It’s a list that includes the likes of Brad Marvel, Brad Fox, Bill Rose, Derek Davidson, Terry Pletch, Cory Kruseman, Bud Kaeding, A.J. Anderson, Brady Short, Jeff Bland Jr., Hunter Schuerenberg, Blake Fitzpatrick, Casey Riggs, Justin Grant, Kevin Thomas Jr., Aaron Farney, Tyler Courtney, Kyle Cummins, Brent Beauchamp, and Carson Short.
It’s an occasion that hasn’t occurred in a decade, since the 2016 season, but could become a forefront storyline throughout the week if one of these names were to pop up at the top of the running order.
Cale Coons leads the USAC National Sprint Car Rookie standings and is making his Indiana Sprint Week debut this week. His father, Jerry Coons Jr., is a three-time ISW feature winner.
Hayden Reinbold has already won in USAC Silver Crown and USAC National Midget competition this year. While he’s checking off things on his list, a first USAC National Sprint Car score could be next.
Ricky Lewis has won 16 sprint car races across the nation in 2026. However, that first USAC National Sprint Car has been elusive thus far. Indiana soil has been quite friendly to him over the past several years, and perhaps, this week could prove to be the breakthrough he has desired.
Gavin Miller only has five USAC National Sprint Car starts under his belt, but in four of those five, he has finished inside the top 10. He too takes on his first Indiana Sprint Week in a ride that has had its share of ISW success, winning races in 2023 with Jake Swanson and in 2025 with C.J. Leary.
IMS WITH A TWIST
The kickoff to Indiana Sprint Week at The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a bit of an outlier. Thirty-seven drivers and cars will tackle the event this Thursday night, July 23, in an event that features an invitational field as determined by distinct parameters. Those eligible to compete in the event at the 1/5-mile dirt oval inside of turn three at the world-famous IMS must fit into one of the following categories:
(1) Finished inside the top 30 of the 2025 USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship point standings. (2) Finished inside the top 30 of the 2025 USAC Indiana Sprint Week point standings. (3) Ranks inside the top 30 of the 2026 USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship standings as of July 5. (4) Ranks inside the top 10 of the 2026 Avanti Windows & Doors USAC CRA Sprint Car standings as of July 5. (5) Any currently active driver who has previously won an Indiana Sprint Week main event. (6) Plus, two Indianapolis Motor Speedway promoters options.
The $10,000-to-win Indiana Sprint Week event at IMS will pay 50 appearance points toward the season-long USAC National Sprint Car standings. However, no points will be offered toward the 2026 Indiana Sprint Week standings.
RACE DETAILS
For more details, starting times and ticket info, please visit www.usacracing.com, go to the USAC National Sprint Car schedule and click on the Event Info tab next to each event.
All USAC Indiana Sprint Week events can be watched live and on-demand at https://flosports.link/usac2026.
USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Kyle Cummins-1814, 2-Mitchel Moles-1697, 3-Justin Grant-1697, 4-Briggs Danner-1599, 5-Jake Swanson-1473, 6-Chase Stockon-1466, 7-Logan Seavey-1447, 8-Kevin Thomas Jr.-1427, 9-Robert Ballou-1373, 10-C.J. Leary-1371.
INDIANA SPRINT WEEK CHAMPIONS
1988: Randy Kinser (Bloomington, Indiana)
1989: Chuck Amati (Freeman Spur, Illinois)
1990: Chuck Amati (Freeman Spur, Illinois) & Gary Trammell (Bloomington, Indiana)
1991: Bob Kinser (Bloomington, Indiana)
1992: Kevin Thomas (Danville, Indiana)
1993: Kevin Thomas (Danville, Indiana)
1994: Kelly Kinser (Bloomington, Indiana)
1995: Kevin Thomas (Danville, Indiana)
1996: Kevin Thomas (Danville, Indiana)
1997: J.J. Yeley (Phoenix, Arizona)
1998: Dave Darland (Lincoln, Indiana)
1999: Tony Elliott (Kokomo, Indiana)
2000: Jay Drake (Val Verde, California)
2001: Dave Darland (Lincoln, Indiana)
2002: Cory Kruseman (Ventura, California)
2003: J.J. Yeley (Phoenix, Arizona)
2004: Levi Jones (Olney, Illinois)
2005: Cory Kruseman (Ventura, California)
2006: Jon Stanbrough (Avon, Indiana)
2007: Dave Darland (Lincoln, Indiana)
2008: Levi Jones (Olney, Illinois)
2009: Levi Jones (Olney, Illinois)
2010: Jon Stanbrough (Avon, Indiana)
2011: Chris Windom (Canton, Illinois)
2012: Levi Jones (Olney, Illinois)
2013: Bryan Clauson (Noblesville, Indiana)
2014: Bryan Clauson (Noblesville, Indiana)
2015: Robert Ballou (Rocklin, California)
2016: Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, Oklahoma)
2017: Kevin Thomas Jr. (Cullman, Alabama)
2018: Chris Windom (Canton, Illinois)
2019: C.J. Leary (Greenfield, Indiana)
2020: Chase Stockon (Fort Branch, Indiana)
2021: Kevin Thomas Jr. (Cullman, Alabama)
2022: Justin Grant (Ione, California)
2023: Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, Oklahoma)
2024: Logan Seavey (Sutter, California)
2025: Kevin Thomas Jr. (Cullman, Alabama)
ALL-TIME INDIANA SPRINT WEEK WINS:
20-Dave Darland
16-Jon Stanbrough
12-Cory Kruseman
11-Justin Grant
9-Logan Seavey & J.J. Yeley
8-Kyle Cummins & C.J. Leary
7-Bryan Clauson & Kevin Thomas Jr.
6-Robert Ballou, Jay Drake & Danny Smith
5-Brady Bacon, Kevin Briscoe, Tyler Courtney, Tony Elliott, Brady Short & Kevin Thomas
4-Jack Hewitt, Levi Jones & Kelly Kinser
3-Daron Clayton, Jerry Coons Jr., Tracy Hines, Hunter Schuerenberg & Chase Stockon
2-Chuck Amati, Shane Cottle, Briggs Danner, Kevin Doty, Tim Gee, Rick Hood, Bud Kaeding, Thomas Meseraull & Chris Windom
1-A.J. Anderson, Emerson Axsom, Brent Beauchamp, Jeff Bland Jr., Chad Boat, Derek Davidson, Cary Faas, Aaron Farney, Blake Fitzpatrick, Brad Fox, Dickie Gaines, Damion Gardner, Tray House, Bob Kinser, Mike Mann, Brad Marvel, Mitchel Moles, Mat Neely, Terry Pletch, Casey Riggs, Bill Rose, Carson Short, Mickey Smith, Jake Swanson, Brad Sweet, Tanner Thorson, Brian Tyler & Cole Whitt