Gold Cup Race of Champions 2026: Preview, Form & Who to Watch
One of the oldest and richest sprint car races in the West returns: the 72nd Gold Cup Race of Champions, worth $100,072 to win on the fast Silver Dollar Speedway clay in Chico, California. The headline question — can anyone stop Corey Day, who's won the last three?
A West Coast crown jewel
First run over 70 years ago, the Gold Cup is one of the most prestigious 410 sprint car races in the western United States. For 2026 it's a Kubota High Limit Racing event (co-sanctioned with the NARC King of the West Sprints), with the winged 360s opening Wednesday and the big 410 program running Thursday through Saturday's finale. The winner banks $100,072.
The 2026 High Limit title fight
High Limit arrives with a championship separated by a whisker. As of late July, Rico Abreu led on 1,807 points — just 8 ahead of Aaron Reutzel (1,799), with Giovanni Scelzi, Tyler Courtney, Justin Peck and Brent Marks in behind.
Reutzel has been the winningest full-time driver with seven victories, while Kyle Larson — a High Limit co-founder who runs a partial schedule around NASCAR — has racked up five wins including the $100,000 Joker's Jackpot at Eldora. It's one of the deepest sprint car fields you'll see all year.
The Corey Day streak
Corey Day has owned this race: he won the Gold Cup in 2023, 2024 and 2025 — three straight, making him just the second driver ever to three-peat it, joining the legendary Steve Kinser. A fourth in a row would be historic. One caveat: like Larson, Day runs a selective sprint car schedule in 2026, so he's the man to beat if he's on the entry list.
Recent Gold Cup winners
| 2025 | Corey Day (his third straight) |
| 2024 | Corey Day (led all 40 laps) |
| 2023 | Corey Day (led all 40 laps) |
Ones to Watch
Our picks below are informed opinion based on the form above — not a crystal ball.
Leads the championship (by 8) and hails from Northern California, which makes a Chico crown jewel especially meaningful. On form and on home-region dirt, he's a top pick.
The hottest full-time driver on the tour, winning more than anyone in 2026 and sitting just 8 points off the lead. Overdue for a crown jewel like this.
A consistent front-runner all season and firmly in the title hunt. A California driver with the speed to win any given night.
Nobody has read Silver Dollar like Day, who's won this race three years running. If he adds it to his 2026 schedule, he's the driver everyone else has to beat.
How to watch: The Gold Cup streams live on FloRacing, the home of Kubota High Limit Racing. See our High Limit schedule and our dirt racing guide for more.
Full event details & how to watch →
Form and standings verified as of publication (Sunday, August 2, 2026). "Ones to watch" are our opinion — see our Editorial Policy. Start times shown in US Eastern; on the schedule they convert to your local zone.
