Winners of NASCAR's 5 recent inaugural races feat. Joey Logano and more

From street circuits to newly added ovals, NASCAR's recent inaugural races have produced surprise winners between rookies and veteran drivers alike. The sport has also taken bold ventures into uncharted territories like Chicago, Mexico City, and the newly added San Diego Street Race for 2026.

That said, here are five winners who rose to the occasion during recent first-time events.

#1 Shane van Gisbergen

Three-time Australian Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen won the 2023 Chicago Street Race and made his mark as a road course ace. Following his debut win, he was tapped for a full-time ride with Trackhouse Racing for 2025.

Although he struggled to get going on the ovals, the 36-year-old rookie opened his win counter with a record-setting triumph at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. He finished a whopping 16 seconds ahead of the chasing pack in NASCAR's inaugural race outside the US. He has since reclaimed bragging rights at Chicago, followed by another win at Sonoma Raceway.

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#2 Chase Elliott

NASCAR returned to Bowman Gray Stadium this year to host its season-opening exhibition race, marking a 54-year absence from the historic quarter-mile circuit. Chase Elliott secured pole for the event and went on to win the race after a dominant 171-lap lead, including the first 96.

It wasn't until 19 rounds later that Elliott would see the top step again at EchoPark Speedway.

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#3 Ryan Blaney

Last year's Iowa Corn 350 marked the inaugural Cup race at Iowa Speedway, as well as Ryan Blaney's first race win of the season. He'd previously won at the track in the Truck and Xfinity Series, making him the only driver to achieve the feat across all three national series.

Blaney led the event on four occasions for a total of 201 laps, with Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron and Chase Elliott rounding out the podium places.

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#4 Joey Logano

Joey Logano won two inaugural races back when NASCAR's Next Gen Era was introduced in 2022. He initially won the Busch Light Clash exhibition race at the Los Angeles Coliseum, followed by a win in the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway. He held off Kyle Busch in both events despite leading fewer laps than the two-time Cup champion.

The Team Penske driver would go on to win his second Cup Series championship that year.

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#5 AJ Allmendinger

In 2021, AJ Allmendinger pulled off a dramatic win at the Indianapolis Grand Prix circuit and secured Kaulig Racing's maiden victory in the Cup Series. The 96-lap event saw NASCAR run the road course layout of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Chaos descended on the final laps when debris from a broken curb triggered multiple incidents and two caution periods.

During the overtime restart, race leader Denny Hamlin was taken out by Chase Briscoe, sending the two drivers out of contention. Allmendinger, who was running third then, grabbed the opportunity and led a mere two laps to secure his second Cup Series win.