It looks like Atlantic Canada is shaping up once again to being a hotbed of stock car and motorsports action from May- to- October. Here’s the lowdown on what to expect this summer…
By Tim Terry
The 2026 Maritime racing season is upon us!
There is a lot to be excited about as the ice melts and teams prepare their cars for the upcoming year. What do race fans in the region have to look forward to? In short – lots!
Nova Scotia
In Nova Scotia, four paved and one dirt oval have plans to provide racing action in 2026. The two anchors, Scotia Speedworld and Riverside International Speedway, have similar schedules to previous seasons. In Halifax, Scotia Speedworld has slight changes to their schedule but their marquee events return. The Bay Equipment Rentals Weekly Racing Series kicks off Saturday, May 16 they will end their point season on Friday, September 25 and officially close their season with the Fourth Annual Halifax 300 on Saturday, October 10. The “300” moves back to Thanksgiving weekend this season with previous schedule changes throughout the region pushing several events back a week on the calendar.
Scotia Speedworld boasted healthy car counts in 2025, including a boom in Mini Stock competitors with over 60 drivers taking at least one lap around the 3/10-mile oval last season. The final Enduro event of the season saw over 70 drivers register and that division will see four races scattered throughout 2026. In addition to the four Fort Garry Industries Pro Stock Tour events at the track this season, three track hosted Pro Stock races will also take place throughout the calendar.
Key dates on their schedule include the Summer Clash 250 weekend presented by Superior Foundation and Atlantic Tiltload from August 6 -to- 8, FANFEST on June 5, the Shriners Classic for Sportsman on June 12, Fuelling Change: A Celebration of Women in Motorsports on July 10 and Thunder on the Hill on September 4.
Riverside International Speedway is capitalizing on the popular Enduro division with a big money show for the entry level class on Saturday, May 30 featuring $3,000 to win. The James River, Nova Scotia track plays host to the biggest motorsports event of the year in Atlantic Canada, the IWK 250 Super Race Weekend from July 15–to- 18 with the IWK 250 presented by Steve Lewis taking place on Saturday, July 18.
The NASCAR Canada Series and the Fort Garry Industries Pro Stock Tour share the card on Saturday, June 27 on the high banks. The Matt Minglewood Band will play a pre-race concert on Friday, June 26. In total, the track will host racing events on five weekends featuring several of the top racing divisions and tours in the region.
Something that began at Speedway 660 that Riverside International Speedway has picked up in recent years is that kids aged 15- and- under are admitted to each event free- of- charge! To my knowledge, these are the only two tracks in Atlantic Canada that do this.
Lake Doucette Motor Speedway and Bud’s Speedway bookend the province with racing action. Lake Doucette, outside of Yarmouth, has stock car racing hosted by the Southwest Stock Car Association every two weeks beginning on Sunday, June 14 when the Heart of a Champion Hot Rod Classics powered by Kimco visit the track to honour Paul Morris in the annual Christie’s Classic. For a third year, their season finale is a double header full of racing action on September 19- and- 20.
On the other end of Nova Scotia, Bud’s Speedway in Sydney roars back to action in June. Their season opener takes place on Saturday, June 13. The track will host two Wednesday night races on August 12 and September 16. Their two biggest shows anchor their season with the second annual Redneck Wreckfest on Saturday, September 26 and the Caper Memorial Weekend on October 16- and- 17.
The big news from the Annapolis Valley was that Greg Banks was closing Valley Raceway. Just as this issue goes to press, a group called the Valley Red Dirt Racers Association has struck a deal to produce racing on the oval in 2026. The group is the third to try and make racing work at the Melvern Square oval and we look forward to seeing what comes out of it.
New Brunswick
Speedway 660, Petty International Raceway and R&R Speedway offer oval racing action in New Brunswick this year. All three tracks are running partial schedules, with Speedway 660 and Petty Raceway fielding heavier schedules than R&R Speedway.
Petty International Raceway, outside of River Glade, begins their schedule with a double header weekend on the Victoria Day Long Weekend in May. The Saturday, May 16 show has the Easy-Kleen Super Late Model Series as the main attraction with a Monday, May 18 card also bringing the action to life from a long winter. In all, Petty Raceway will host 16 race dates from May to September with the 13th Annual Mike Stevens Memorial Weekend being the big show from September 16- to- 19.
Speedway 660 in Geary opens their season on Saturday, May 16 with the first of six Enduro events and the next weekend on May 23 with the Riverview Ford Lincoln Season Opener for stock cars. The Ricky Bobby 150 for Street Stocks will race to the track on Saturday, June 27, SpeedWeekend 2026 takes place from September 4- to- 6 with the stock car season finale the next weekend on Saturday, September 12. The Enduro finale will race on Saturday, October 17. Those are just the highlights on an 18 event schedule in 2026.
R&R Speedway in Miramichi, under new ownership in 2025 and under the watchful eye of Manager Glen Sherrard, opens on June 6 and features a healthy mix of stock cars, demolition, enduros, burnouts and tough trucks from June- to- October. Their marquee events include the Firecracker 50 for Bombers on July 25, the popular Figure 8 Trailer Race on September 12, the Very Best Fall Shootout on October 3 and the Halloween Spooktacular on October 24.
River Glade Speedway, which had been resurrected by Gary McLean and his crew in 2024 and had run several races the last two seasons, has no scheduled races in 2026. Over the Fall, a fire happened on the property, compromising the facilities hydro grid. While we anticipate seeing racing at the Centre For Speed outside of Shediac, there is no racing schedule posted as of press time.
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island’s only paved stock car oval, Oyster Bed Speedway outside of Oyster Bed Bridge, has presented another busy schedule. The season roars to life on Saturday, May 17 and will see 11 race dates, closing on Monday, September 7 with an eight division Labour Day Finale. The RE/MAX Rumble for Outlaw Four Cylinders (June 20) and the 16th Annual Piston Cup Street Stock 100 (August 22) are highlights on the calendar. The track also hosts most of the major touring series in the region throughout the summer.
Newfoundland
Over in Newfoundland, changes abound at Eastbound Park on the stock car side. The only NASCAR- sanctioned local racing series track in Atlantic Canada will shift several races to Saturday evenings from Sunday afternoons and see several rule changes and purse increases in some of their divisions in hopes of bringing back car counts to the Avondale track. Their eight- race schedule begins on Sunday, May 17 and wraps up on Saturday evening, September 19.
When it comes to touring series, the Fort Garry Industries Pro Stock Tour continues to lead the way as a fan favorite in the region. Entering their 26th season, they return for 10 races in 2026 with Ashton Tucker from Miramichi, N.B. as the reigning and defending champion. While the championship title will be hotly contested, three rookies join the series and may be the ultimate battle to watch with Colton Noble, Ayden Christensen and Owen Mahar racing for top freshman honours in 2026. Riverside International Speedway, Petty International Raceway, Oyster Bed Speedway and Scotia Speedworld host races on the series, with the latter hosting the opener on May 23 and the championship finale on September 26.
The Easy-Kleen Super Late Model Series saw Tanton Wooldridge and 01 Motorsports pick up their first touring series title in 2025 and are sure to be the benchmark on their series in 2026. The six- race series begins- and- ends at Petty International Raceway with stops in between at Speedway 660 and Oyster Bed Speedway.
INEX Racing has two tours in the Maritimes with the PiccottCare Maritime League of Legends Tour and the TCM Bandolero Road Trip. The Legends, with new title sponsor PiccottCare, races at some of the region’s biggest weekends with 11 races on their season at five different tracks. The Bandoleros race at four events at four different race tracks in their second official Tour around the Maritimes.
The Heart of a Champion Hot Rod Classics powered by Kimco has the most diverse schedule of any stock car racing touring series with seven races as seven different tracks. Featuring classic looks and old school stock car names and liveries, the series thrills fans young and young at heart from June- to- October.
Several other touring series, including the Atlantic Modified Tour and the Maritime All Stars Series Sportsman, also bring their unique brand of entertainment to various tracks across the Maritimes.
In the end, Atlantic Canada is shaping up to once again being a hotbed of stock car and motorsports action from May- to- October. Be sure to get out to a race track this summer, experience the sport, find some favorites to cheer on and be a part of the action in 2026!