St. Petersburg

The streets of St. Petersburg, Florida have been synonymous with open-wheel racing for two decades, the waterfront circuit serving as IndyCar's traditional season opener. In 2026, NASCAR joined the party: the Craftsman Truck Series brought stock trucks to the 1.8-mile street course for the OnlyBulls Green Flag 150 on February 28, 2026. The temporary layout is one of the most distinctive in American racing, combining downtown streets along the Tampa Bay waterfront with the runways of Albert Whitted Airport, palm trees and harbor views framing a circuit that punishes the smallest mistake with unforgiving concrete walls. The inaugural truck race delivered on the setting's promise: Layne Riggs charged from 28th on the grid to win for Front Row Motorsports, holding off Ty Majeski by 0.879 seconds after 80 laps that featured nine lead changes among four drivers and six cautions. Street racing demands a specific skill set, brake management, precision over bumps and painted surfaces, and the discipline to bank patience against aggression, and the trucks proved a natural fit for the challenge. St. Petersburg gave NASCAR a genuine festival atmosphere by the bay and a season-opening street fight unlike anything else on the Truck Series calendar.

Written by Richard R. Glover, NASCAR Reference