The Monster Mile Delivered a Show Worth Seeing Again Next Year

When the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series return to Dover Motor Speedway next May, championship points will once again be on the line at The Monster Mile. If the racing during NASCAR's most recent visit is any indication, there should be no shortage of action all throughout the race!

The 2026 race featured action throughout the afternoon as drivers battled hard for position, dodged multiple big crashes and searched for different lines around Dover's unpredictable and ever-changing race surface. That combination delivered one of the most appealing racing products of the entire 2026 season. By the end of 350 laps, nine different drivers had spent time out front and the lead had changed hands 23 times.

There were eight cautions over the course of the afternoon, including two big, multi-car crashes, one of which saw Ryan Preece's car burst into flames after a hard hit in Turn 1. Shane van Gisbergen spun while battling AJ Allmendinger for the lead, while Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski also had incidents of their own. Each caution set up another restart, where the field fans out entering Turn 1 and drivers fight for every inch of track position. Through it all, Denny Hamlin eventually emerged at the front and held off Chase Briscoe by just 0.887 seconds at the checkered flag.

But the thrilling racing wasn't limited to just the battle for the win. Connor Zilisch started the afternoon deep in the field and steadily raced his way forward before eventually finishing fifth. Brad Keselowski recovered from an earlier accident to finish inside the top 10. For the drivers themselves, one of the biggest takeaways was the ability to move around Dover and search for ways to make their cars handle better.

"It was definitely chaotic, but I enjoyed it, it was fun," Briscoe said after finishing second. "I thought the resin was unbelievable. We were able to move all over the place. Yeah, I had a lot of fun."

Hamlin's afternoon also required more than simply staying out front. At different points throughout the race, the eventual winner found himself working through traffic and having to find his way back toward the lead.

"It challenged us to have to go through traffic," Hamlin said. "Otherwise, I mean, you could go out there, and you could lead a bunch of laps."

Hamlin added that a key to his success was "the ability to pass when we're behind someone."

Those opportunities produced an afternoon with plenty happening throughout the field. Different strategies and changing track conditions put drivers in different positions throughout the race, while Dover's high-banked corners gave them room to search for grip as the laps added up. The result was the kind of racing fans have come to expect at a track that has challenged NASCAR's best for nearly six decades.

Hamlin, who has experienced plenty of success at Dover throughout his career, had high praise for The Monster Mile following the race.

"There's no other track like this on our schedule," Hamlin said. "It is so unique, and it requires such a unique style of driving, far different from any oval we go to."

And next May, those points are back on the line.

The NASCAR Cup Series returns to its traditional 400-mile, points-paying format at Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 16, 2027. The race will mark the 58th consecutive year NASCAR's premier series has competed at The Monster Mile, continuing one of the longest-running traditions on the Cup Series schedule.

Hamlin will return with an opportunity to add another chapter to his recent run of success at Dover. The 2026 victory was his third consecutive Cup-level win at The Monster Mile, following victories in Dover's 2024 and 2025 points races. No driver has ever won four races in a row at Dover Motor Speedway.

The weekend begins Saturday, May 15 with the BetRivers 200 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race, followed by 400 laps of NASCAR Cup Series racing on Sunday.

Tickets for Dover Motor Speedway's May 15-16, 2027 NASCAR weekend are available at DoverMotorSpeedway.com or by calling 1-800-441-RACE. Kids 12 and under receive FREE admission to Saturday's BetRivers 200 with a ticketed adult, while Sunday NASCAR Cup Series tickets for kids 12 and under start at just $10 with a ticketed adult.