Nascar Sonoma 2025 | Schedule & Sessions | MotorSportRadar

Nascar Cup - Sonoma

Dunlaing Watches
Event Start

Sonoma

Dunlaing Watches
0 D
0 H
0 M
0 S

12 - 13 Jul

Completed
Sonoma Raceway

Sonoma Raceway

Practice
12:35 - Sat, 12 Jul
Qualifying
13:40 - Sat, 12 Jul
Race
14:30 - Sun, 13 Jul

Where To Watch Nascar in United States

Where To Watch Nascar in United States
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Upcoming in Nascar

Upcoming in Nascar
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2 - 3 May
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9 - 10 May
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16 - 17 May
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Track Info

Sonoma Raceway - Sonoma, California, USA

Hilly, technical road course in wine country - clockwise - multiple layouts including 2.52 mi Grand Prix course and 1.99 mi NASCAR “Chute” - 12 turns - ~160 ft of elevation change

First Race
Dec 1, 1968
Inaugural SCCA Enduro after the 12-turn, 2.52 mi road course was paved in Nov 1968.
Circuit Lengths
Grand Prix 2.52 mi • NASCAR 1.99 mi • Historic IndyCar 2.303–2.385 mi
Built as a 2.52 mi, 12-turn course; NASCAR has used the 1.99 mi “Chute” since 2022 after 2019–2021’s Carousel return.
Turns
12 (Grand Prix)
Signature complex includes the downhill Esses to the Turn 11 hairpin.
Lap Records
1:22.863 - Allan McNish (LMP900, 2.52 mi) • 1:37.194 - William Byron (NASCAR Cup, 2.52 mi)
Sports cars set the outright benchmarks on the long course; NASCAR’s fastest official race-lap is from 2019 on the Carousel layout.
Also On Site
NHRA dragstrip • Year-round club racing
One of North America’s busiest permanent facilities, active ~340 days a year.

When was the track built?

Ground broke in August 1968 and paving finished that November, creating a 12-turn, 2.52 mi course carved into 720 acres at Sears Point. The track hosted SCCA, NHRA and USAC events immediately and has since welcomed IndyCar, IMSA/ALMS, Trans Am and NASCAR.

When was its first race?

The venue’s first race activity was an SCCA Enduro on December 1, 1968, followed by a full slate of pro events in 1969, including USAC Indy cars and NASCAR’s Pacific Coast Late Model race.

What's the circuit like?

  • Elevation and camber: Blind crests, off-camber apexes and long-duration corners make setup compromises inevitable.
  • Two NASCAR personalities: The 1.99 mi “Chute” layout emphasizes braking and traction off Turn 7 and Turn 11, while the Carousel-era 2.52 mi added long, loaded lefts. NASCAR reverted to the Chute in 2022.
  • Benchmark pace: LMP900’s 1:22.863 and Cup’s 1:37.194 frame the spread between prototype downforce and stock-car mass on the long course.

Lap records and benchmarks (selected)

  • 2.52 mi Grand Prix - outright (qualifying): 1:20.683 - Allan McNish, Audi R8, 2000.
  • 2.52 mi Grand Prix - race lap: 1:22.041 - Marco Werner, Audi R8 (LMP1), 2005.
  • NASCAR Cup - race lap (2.52 mi): 1:37.194 - William Byron, 2019.
  • IndyCar layouts (2.303–2.385 mi): 1:17.552 - Tony Kanaan, 2007, official record on then-IndyCar circuit.

Why go?

It’s a driver’s track you can actually read from the grandstands. Sonoma delivers undercut/overcut strategy, fuel mileage gambles, and passes into the Turn 11 hairpin you’ll feel in your chest. Add vineyards, coastal drives, and NHRA thunder on the strip and you’ve got an all-weekend destination.

Where's the best place to watch?

  • Turn 2–3 hillside: Panoramic view of the climb, the Esses, and the Turn 4–7 sector.
  • Turn 7 braking: Overtakes from deep on the brakes set up the blast to Turn 11.
  • Turn 11 hairpin: Strategy comes alive as cars divebomb for the inside and fight traction on exit.

Not just one series - headline events at Sonoma

NASCAR Cup: Toyota/Save Mart 350 on the 1.99 mi layout since 2022.

Sports cars & Trans Am: Prototype and GT history on the long course with outright benchmarks from the ALMS era.

NHRA: National-event stop on the quarter-mile dragstrip keeps the calendar roaring.

Hotels & Accommodation

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