65th Knoxville Nationals 2026: Preview, Form & Who to Watch
There's the rest of the sprint car season, and then there's this. The 65th running of the Knoxville Nationals — "The Granddaddy of 'Em All" — is the biggest and richest sprint car race on Earth, with $200,000 going to whoever wins Saturday's A-main on the half-mile Knoxville Raceway clay. Here's the form guide for the week that defines the season.
Sprint car racing's biggest week
The Knoxville Nationals isn't one race — it's a four-day tournament. Preliminary nights run Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (August 12–14), where 100-plus entrants earn points that set the lineup for Saturday's championship finale (August 15). Win the whole thing and you collect $200,000 from a total purse of more than $1 million. Every big name in winged 410 sprint car racing shows up; making Saturday's main event at all is an achievement.
The 2026 World of Outlaws title fight
The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series arrives with a championship in full swing. As of late July, David Gravel led on 5,636 points, 150 clear of Sheldon Haudenschild (5,486), with Michael Kofoid (5,484), Carson Macedo (5,450), Logan Schuchart (5,374) and nine-time Knoxville king Donny Schatz (5,274) filling out the top six.
Gravel is the story of 2026: the points leader and the hottest driver on tour, capped by a win in June's record-payday $250,000 Huset's High Bank Nationals. If form counts for anything, he arrives as the man to beat.
Recent Knoxville Nationals champions
| 2025 | Ryan Timms (led every lap, age 18 — his first WoO win) |
| 2024 | Kyle Larson |
| 2023 | Kyle Larson |
Donny Schatz holds the all-time record with nine Knoxville Nationals titles. Kyle Larson, the back-to-back winner in 2023–24, now runs a limited sprint car schedule around his NASCAR commitments.
Ones to Watch
Our picks below are informed opinion based on the form above — not a crystal ball.
Leads the championship by 150 and has been the winningest driver on tour, including June's record $250,000 Huset's payday. The clear favorite on current form.
Led every lap to win the 2025 Nationals at 18, and has kept winning 410 features at Knoxville in 2026. Nobody has a stronger recent record at this specific track among the young guns.
Second in the standings and winning consistently through the summer. He has the speed to peak at exactly the right time for the sport's biggest week.
Still sixth in the 2026 points, and no driver in history has read this place like Schatz. Track pedigree alone keeps him a threat whenever the Nationals roll around.
How to watch: Every night of the Knoxville Nationals streams live on DIRTVision, the World of Outlaws' home. For more on dirt streaming, see our How to Watch Dirt Track Racing in 2026 guide.
Full event details & how to watch →
Form and standings verified as of publication (Sunday, July 26, 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.
