"A road course in Northern California's wine country, open since 1968, where the Cup Series has raced since 1989 on a layout that rises and falls more than 160 feet."
Location: Just outside Sonoma, California Track Type: Paved road course Length: 1.99 miles (NASCAR layout); 2.52 miles (full road course) Surface: Paved Turns: 11 (NASCAR layout) Elevation Change: More than 160 feet, from 174 feet at its highest point to 14 feet at Turn 10 Opened: 1968, as Sears Point Raceway First NASCAR Cup Series Race: 1989 Owner: Speedway Motorsports (since 1996)
Quick Answers
How long is Sonoma Raceway? NASCAR races on a 1.99-mile, 11-turn layout. The full road course is 2.52 miles.
Where is Sonoma Raceway? Just outside Sonoma, California, in Northern California's wine country. It hosts the only NASCAR national series races in Northern California.
What makes Sonoma hard? Elevation. The course climbs and drops more than 160 feet, the most of any track NASCAR visits, so drivers brake, turn and accelerate on uphill and downhill stretches.
Who has won the most Cup races at Sonoma? Jeff Gordon, with five. Martin Truex Jr. is second with four.
Who won at Sonoma in 2026? Shane van Gisbergen won both races: the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race (NASCAR's second-tier national series) on June 27 and the Cup Series race on June 28.
When does NASCAR race at Sonoma in 2027? The O'Reilly Series races Saturday, July 10, and the Cup Series races Sunday, July 11.
Sonoma Raceway Schedule: 2027 NASCAR Dates
| Date | Day | Series |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 10 | Saturday | NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series |
| Jul 11 | Sunday | NASCAR Cup Series |
Dates are from NASCAR's 2027 national series schedule. Start times have not been announced. Confirm at sonomaraceway.com before you travel.
Overview
Sonoma Raceway is a road course and drag strip just outside Sonoma, California. It is the largest motorsports facility in Northern California and the only one in the region with NASCAR national series racing.
A road course has left and right turns instead of a single loop of left turns. Sonoma's version adds hills: the course falls from 174 feet above sea level to 14 feet, more elevation change than any other track on the NASCAR schedule. NASCAR runs a shorter 1.99-mile, 11-turn layout that uses part of the full 2.52-mile course. The 2026 Cup race was 110 laps and 218.9 miles.
The Cup Series has raced at Sonoma every season since 1989 except 2020, and the 2026 race was the 37th.
History
The track opened in 1968 as Sears Point Raceway, a 2.52-mile road course and quarter-mile drag strip. NASCAR's Cup Series arrived in 1989, and Ricky Rudd won the first race.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was added in 1995 and raced at Sonoma five times, not every year, the last in 2022.
In November 1996, Bruton Smith, founder of Speedway Motorsports, bought the track from owner Skip Berg. Speedway Motorsports still owns it.
Jeff Gordon won five Cup races at Sonoma, the track record. Martin Truex Jr. won his fourth in 2023.
Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1968 | Track opens as Sears Point Raceway |
| 1989 | First Cup Series race; Ricky Rudd wins |
| 1995 | First Truck Series race |
| 1996 | Bruton Smith of Speedway Motorsports buys the track in November |
| 2023 | Martin Truex Jr. wins his fourth Sonoma Cup race, one short of Jeff Gordon's record five |
| 2025 | Shane van Gisbergen wins the Cup race from the pole |
| 2026 | Van Gisbergen sweeps the weekend, winning the O'Reilly Series and Cup Series races |
Key Drivers
Jeff Gordon, five Cup wins, the most at Sonoma.
Martin Truex Jr., four Cup wins, second most.
Ricky Rudd, winner of the first Cup race at Sonoma in 1989.
Shane van Gisbergen, Cup winner in 2025 and 2026 and O'Reilly Series winner in 2026. Every Cup Series win of his career through June 2026 came on a road course.
2026 at Sonoma Raceway
NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 (Saturday, June 27): Shane van Gisbergen won from the pole (the first starting position), leading 66 of 79 laps, and beat Connor Zilisch by 1.324 seconds for his sixth career O'Reilly Series win. Zilisch started 30th. Brent Crews finished third.
NASCAR Cup Series, Toyota / Save Mart 350 (Sunday, June 28): Van Gisbergen beat Chase Briscoe for his eighth career Cup win. He became the first driver in Cup history whose first eight wins all came on road courses. Ty Gibbs started on the pole. The race ran 110 laps.