iRacing® Studios NASCAR 26 is the official NASCAR game for 2026, developed and published by iRacing on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. It covers all four NASCAR National Series: the Cup Series, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, the Craftsman Truck Series and the ARCA Menards Series. You can race them in Career, Quick Race, Championship and cross-play Multiplayer, plus a new mode built around The Chase.
Our verdict: NASCAR 26 delivers the most authentic stock car racing experience available, with comprehensive career modes and competitive multiplayer that justify the premium price for serious sim racers. Casual fans and NASCAR 25 owners may want to weigh that price more carefully.
Race Day, Done Properly
NASCAR 26 knows its audience from the moment it boots, with a montage of real-world footage, slick menus and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama. Kyle Larson is the face of the game, Dale Earnhardt Jr. makes an appearance, and the rosters, liveries and driver ratings are all updated for the season.
The tracks are the star. Shared with the iRacing simulator, they’re accurate and undulating. One critic singles out Iowa Speedway, where you can feel the broken surface and mix of asphalt even on a gamepad, and the new Naval Base Coronado street circuit, which looks plain but is a real challenge to drive thanks to its bumps. Chicagoland Speedway and St. Petersburg are also new this year.
How It Drives
The handling is a clear step up from NASCAR 25. Players describe a near-perfect balance of arcade and sim, with more realism behind the wheel and noticeably better braking. One reviewer called the new handling a “massive leap forward,” the kind where, when you lose it, you feel like you could have saved it. Cars are tight by default with plenty of front-end push, which you can tune out with a looser setup, and they’re easy to tame on a controller.
A wheel is the best way to play. It’s harder work and you’ll spin more, but it’s smoother and more satisfying, and the reworked input setup is one of the best hardware configurations one reviewer has ever seen in a racing game. There’s a long list of assists for beginners, and new players say it’s a great way to learn wheel racing and how to run in a pack without wrecking everyone.
Career: From ARCA to the Cup
Career mode is where most players will spend their time. You create your own driver and team, start at the bottom in ARCA, and work your way up to the Cup Series. After each race you earn credits for parts, work points for your crew, and reputation that unlocks the next series. Parts wear across four main areas, so you’re constantly balancing repairs against upgrades. Grinding out top-20 finishes in a slow car and slowly climbing is genuinely rewarding, and it captures the real-world slog of a small team.
👍 Better Than NASCAR 25
- Dynamic track and rubber buildup
- A reworked tyre and braking model
- Smarter, more competent AI
- Peak Performance training sessions
- Better lighting and visuals
- Cross-play multiplayer
- A vastly improved hardware setup
👎 Still Missing
- A deeper career: no development paths, teammates or driver market
- Offers from established teams
- Full NASCAR flag rules as an option
- Realistic damage and consequences
- Photo mode and local split-screen
- Fuller car setup options
Where It Stumbles
Things to Know Going In
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
| The Good | The Bad | The Ugly |
|---|---|---|
| Laser-Scanned TracksAccurate, bumpy and alive, straight from iRacing’s simulator. | Shallow Career DepthNo development paths, teammates or driver market. | BugsPlenty of them, including in career mode. |
| Dynamic TrackRubber buildup and evolving grooves that the AI actually uses. | AI QuirksInvented lap times, a narrow difficulty window and predictable cautions. | Smoke and Pop-InOveractive smoke, pop-in and shadow glitches. |
| Much Better HandlingA great arcade/sim balance, with a reworked tyre and braking model. | Incomplete Rules and DamageMissing NASCAR rules and too few consequences for contact. | Premium Pricing$59.99, plus a Season Pass and DLC packs. |
| Great for NewcomersPeak Performance training, plenty of assists and pack-racing practice. | Mixed Force FeedbackLight for some, and a problem on direct-drive wheels. | — |
| All Four National SeriesCup, O’Reilly, Trucks and ARCA, plus The Chase and cross-play. | Missing BasicsNo photo mode and no local split-screen. | — |
The Verdict
NASCAR 26 is the most authentic NASCAR game you can buy. The laser-scanned tracks, dynamic rubber, reworked handling and genuinely clever pack-racing AI deliver race days that feel properly NASCAR, whether you’re grinding up from ARCA in career mode or banging doors online. The new training mode and assists make it surprisingly welcoming for newcomers, and it really sings on a wheel.
The weaknesses are just as clear. The career is long but shallow, the AI has some strange habits, NASCAR’s rules and damage aren’t fully modelled, and there are too many bugs and visual quirks for a $59.99 game. For NASCAR 25 owners in particular, it’s an upgrade, but a modest one.
The honest read: the best NASCAR game in years and a must for serious stock car fans, especially wheel owners. If you’re casual or already own NASCAR 25, a sale is your friend.
For more game reviews, check out our full reviews section.
