Anyone wanna see a car fly?
We know that there's plenty of planes around Coronado Naval Base, but we didn't necessarily expect the cars to be getting some real air too.
Fans finally got the chance to see NASCAR drivers take to the brand new street course in San Diego when Truck Series qualifying opened up this afternoon, with some drivers getting all four wheels well off the ground between Turn 1 and Turn 2.
It's certainly a spectacle, although there might be some mechanics in Cup Series garages right now having frantic meetings about whether they need to take steps to protect the floors of their Next Gen cars before practice on Saturday.
READ MORE: NASCAR confirms Cup, O'Reilly and Truck Series entry lists for San Diego race at Coronado Naval Base
Turn 1-2 stretch 'definitely a jump'
Hendrick Motorsports’ simulator and reserve driver Anthony Alfredo – who drives full-time in the O'Reilly Series – told The Athletic before the weekend that he believed the stretch between 1 and 2 contained a real chance for cars to get off the ground.
“It’s definitely a jump,” he said. “I get air in the simulator across it, for sure. You come out of Turn 1, which is also really fast and really bumpy on exit, and if you hit it right and you’re carrying enough speed, you can certainly catch air as you kind of go slightly uphill … and then you drive downhill into Turn 2, which is actually really cool.
“It’s flowy, it’s got a lot of character and it’s really fast, but the way you kind of come up as the racetrack starts to fall away from you puts the car in the air for a split second – or at least makes it light as you transition across it.”
How's that going to affect cars, drivers, and their plans for qualifying and the race? We'll have to wait to find out. For now, just...have a look at this for yourselves.
WOAH. 😳 pic.twitter.com/6tjfqTscLz
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) June 19, 2026
READ MORE: NASCAR In-Season Challenge bracket officially set
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