As part of an extended race weekend, NASCAR Cup teams got a 50-minute practice on Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
William Byron set the early pace with a 49.753s lap (180.893mph) around the historic speedway. Later, it was Hendrick Motorsports teammate went fastest of all with a 49.279s lap (182.633mph). But the Toyotas soon flexed their muscles, and Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing went fastest of all with a 49.043s lap (183.512mph).
At the end of the session, it was Toyota 1-2-3-4-5 with John-Hunter Nemechek second behind Bell, followed by Ty Gibbs, Erik Jones, and Denny Hamlin.
Larson led the way for Chevrolet in sixth, followed by Carson Hocevar, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney leading the way for Ford in ninth, and Daniel Suarez tenth. Larson was also the fastest driver in five-lap and ten-lap averages.
For those paying attention to the In-Season Challenge finals, Todd Gilliland was 32nd on the speed charts as he tries to claim a big underdog win against Blaney on Sunday, collecting the $1 million prize.
Practice setbacks
Bubba Wallace makes early contact with the wall in practice. pic.twitter.com/Kq0d7ED1e7
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 24, 2026
Early in the session, defending Brickyard 400 winner Bubba Wallace hit the wall at the exit of Turn 2 right before the end of the SAFER Barrier, causing visible damage to the right-side of the car. Not long after, Shane van Gisbergen got into the wall at corner exit as well, but not quite as hard as Wallace. Both returned to the track later in the practice.
Austin Cindric lost power on his first lap of practice, and the team had to spend a lot of time diagnosing the problem. He eventually made it back out into the track, only to lose power again with the dash shutting off, but the engine still running.
Ryan Preece suffered a flat left-rear tire in the middle of the session, but he was able to drive the car back to the pits.
| Cla | Driver | # | Manufacturer | Laps | Time | Interval | Mph | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C. BellJoe Gibbs Racing | 20 | Toyota | 27 | 49.043 |
183.512 | ||
| 2 | J. NemechekLegacy Motor Club | 42 | Toyota | 28 | +0.089 49.132 |
0.089 | 183.180 | |
| 3 | T. GibbsJoe Gibbs Racing | 54 | Toyota | 30 | +0.110 49.153 |
0.021 | 183.102 | |
| 4 | E. JonesLegacy Motor Club | 43 | Toyota | 27 | +0.183 49.226 |
0.073 | 182.830 | |
| 5 | D. HamlinJoe Gibbs Racing | 11 | Toyota | 26 | +0.219 49.262 |
0.036 | 182.697 | |
| 6 | K. LarsonHendrick Motorsports | 5 | Chevrolet | 36 | +0.236 49.279 |
0.017 | 182.634 | |
| 7 | C. HocevarSpire Motorsports | 77 | Chevrolet | 30 | +0.238 49.281 |
0.002 | 182.626 | |
| 8 | T. Reddick23XI Racing | 45 | Toyota | 26 | +0.242 49.285 |
0.004 | 182.611 | |
| 9 | R. BlaneyTeam Penske | 12 | Ford | 24 | +0.265 49.308 |
0.023 | 182.526 | |
| 10 | D. SuarezSpire Motorsports | 7 | Chevrolet | 32 | +0.341 49.384 |
0.076 | 182.245 | |
| 11 | W. ByronHendrick Motorsports | 24 | Chevrolet | 35 | +0.382 49.425 |
0.041 | 182.094 | |
| 12 | C. Heim23XI Racing | 67 | Toyota | 27 | +0.385 49.428 |
0.003 | 182.083 | |
| 13 | R. ChastainTrackHouse Racing | 1 | Chevrolet | 32 | +0.470 49.513 |
0.085 | 181.770 | |
| 14 | C. BuescherRFK Racing | 17 | Ford | 38 | +0.482 49.525 |
0.012 | 181.726 | |
| 15 | J. BerryWood Brothers Racing | 21 | Ford | 17 | +0.504 49.547 |
0.022 | 181.646 | |
| 16 | A. AllmendingerKaulig Racing | 16 | Chevrolet | 35 | +0.535 49.578 |
0.031 | 181.532 | |
| 17 | R. Herbst23XI Racing | 35 | Toyota | 31 | +0.563 49.606 |
0.028 | 181.430 | |
| 18 | A. CindricTeam Penske | 2 | Ford | 21 | +0.571 49.614 |
0.008 | 181.400 | |
| 19 | R. Stenhouse JrHyak Motorsports | 47 | Chevrolet | 28 | +0.575 49.618 |
0.004 | 181.386 | |
| 20 | B. Wallace23XI Racing | 23 | Toyota | 18 | +0.576 49.619 |
0.001 | 181.382 | |
| 21 | C. ElliottHendrick Motorsports | 9 | Chevrolet | 36 | +0.609 49.652 |
0.033 | 181.262 | |
| 22 | J. LoganoTeam Penske | 22 | Ford | 40 | +0.638 49.681 |
0.029 | 181.156 | |
| 23 | B. KeselowskiRFK Racing | 6 | Ford | 27 | +0.660 49.703 |
0.022 | 181.076 | |
| 24 | M. McDowellSpire Motorsports | 71 | Chevrolet | 31 | +0.667 49.710 |
0.007 | 181.050 | |
| 25 | S. van GisbergenTrackHouse Racing | 97 | Chevrolet | 25 | +0.674 49.717 |
0.007 | 181.025 | |
| 26 | Z. SmithFront Row Motorsports | 38 | Ford | 22 | +0.684 49.727 |
0.010 | 180.988 | |
| 27 | R. PreeceRFK Racing | 60 | Ford | 21 | +0.752 49.795 |
0.068 | 180.741 | |
| 28 | T. GillilandFront Row Motorsports | 34 | Ford | 17 | +0.760 49.803 |
0.008 | 180.712 | |
| 29 | C. BriscoeJoe Gibbs Racing | 19 | Toyota | 30 | +0.789 49.832 |
0.029 | 180.607 | |
| 30 | C. CusterHaas Factory Team | 41 | Chevrolet | 26 | +0.850 49.893 |
0.061 | 180.386 | |
| 31 | A. BowmanHendrick Motorsports | 48 | Chevrolet | 30 | +0.860 49.903 |
0.010 | 180.350 | |
| 32 | N. GragsonFront Row Motorsports | 4 | Ford | 29 | +0.931 49.974 |
0.071 | 180.094 | |
| 33 | C. ZilischTrackHouse Racing | 88 | Chevrolet | 30 | +0.966 50.009 |
0.035 | 179.968 | |
| 34 | C. WareRick Ware Racing | 51 | Chevrolet | 28 | +1.119 50.162 |
0.153 | 179.419 | |
| 35 | A. DillonRichard Childress Racing | 3 | Chevrolet | 26 | +1.123 50.166 |
0.004 | 179.404 | |
| 36 | A. HillRichard Childress Racing | 33 | Chevrolet | 24 | +1.151 50.194 |
0.028 | 179.304 | |
| 37 | T. DillonKaulig Racing | 10 | Chevrolet | 30 | +1.226 50.269 |
0.075 | 179.037 | |
| 38 | C. MearsBeard Motorsports | 62 | Chevrolet | 20 | +2.158 51.201 |
0.932 | 175.778 | |
| 39 | D. DyeLive Fast Motorsports | 78 | Chevrolet | 5 | +2.806 51.849 |
0.648 | 173.581 |
