NASCAR Clash at Bowman Gray: Ryan Preece wins amid sleet and cautions

The 2026 NASCAR season’s opening exhibition finally ran Wednesday night after weather delays, and it ended with Ryan Preece taking the win in the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The race unfolded in near-freezing conditions with a wet surface, multiple interruptions, and a late push that turned survival and track position into the decisive factors.

NASCAR race today: who won, and what happened

Ryan Preece won the Clash on Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026 (ET), navigating a slick quarter-mile and a caution-heavy rhythm that repeatedly reset the field. The conditions forced teams into constant adjustments—tires, lane choice, and restart timing mattered as much as raw speed.

For fans asking “who won the NASCAR race today?” the answer—based on the most recent completed headline event at Bowman Gray—is Preece. It was an exhibition (non-points) race, but it offered the first real read of how teams are operating under pressure heading into the regular-season opener.

NASCAR Clash result: Ryan Preece wins at Bowman Gray

Preece’s path to victory was shaped by execution on restarts and a clean car in a race that punished mistakes. The combination of moisture, temperature, and frequent yellows made rhythm nearly impossible; the leaders needed patience to avoid spinning or getting caught in chain-reaction incidents.

The finish also reinforced why this venue has become such a draw: the short track compresses the field, magnifies contact risk, and turns every restart into a high-leverage moment. When the surface is compromised, the effect doubles—drivers can’t simply “drive away” from trouble.

Broadcast confusion and the last-minute channel shift

The weather delays and long stoppages pushed the event deep into the evening, and the end of the race was shifted off the primary broadcast feed to a secondary channel. For viewers, that meant the closing laps were easy to miss without checking listings, switching channels, or using the network’s streaming option.

If you were looking for the race on a major cable channel and it disappeared late, that mid-race move is the reason. The same broadcast group’s app carried the coverage for many viewers, but the sudden change created frustration for anyone watching casually or recording the event.

Where is Bowman Gray Stadium, and why it races differently

Bowman Gray Stadium is in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and its racing surface is a tight quarter-mile inside a football stadium footprint. The venue’s compact layout produces constant traffic, short braking zones, and minimal time to recover from even a small slide.

Address used for directions: 1250 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Winston-Salem, NC.

What makes it unique for the Clash is how quickly the track “comes to you.” On larger ovals, a driver can often search for grip and manage a fade; at Bowman Gray, the lap is so short that one small mistake can cost multiple positions immediately—especially on restarts.

NASCAR schedule: what’s next after the Clash

The Clash is an exhibition, but it sets the table. The next meaningful checkpoints are the regular-season opener and the early stretch that quickly separates clean execution from early-season chaos—pit-road errors, reliability issues, and lineup communication.

Here’s the key timing that mattered this week:

What to watch after a weather-shaped opener

A win in an exhibition doesn’t guarantee speed when points start, but it does spotlight operational sharpness: how quickly a team adapts, how a driver manages risk, and how cleanly the group communicates when plans change mid-race. This week’s conditions also put a premium on discipline—drivers who protected their cars and avoided the worst restarts gave themselves a chance late.

The immediate forward look is simple: whether teams can carry that adaptability into the first points weekend, where strategy is less improvisational and more about sustainable pace over distance.

Sources consulted: NASCAR, Associated Press, ESPN, Bowman Gray Stadium Racing