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- It's official. Dodge doubles down on American performance, returning to NASCAR Cup Series racing.
Tim Kuniskis, head of American Brands, SRT Performance and Direct Connection division, Stellantis North America, shared the news during a sneak preview of the Stellantis display at the 2026 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show. For Dodge, the message is simple: gasoline-powered performance is back at the center of the brand, and Dodge is heading back to NASCAR Cup Series racing.
"Everyone said it was impossible to get back in one year. We said, 'watch this,'" said Kuniskis. "Sure, we could spend three years planning, testing and perfecting ... or we could do all three in real time, on the track. It's going to be exponentially harder this way. But slow has never been part of Dodge DNA. LFG."
Dodge's storied history in NASCAR Cup has helped shape, mold and push the series forward, from the first Dodge NASCAR Cup win in 1953 to a championship for the No. 2 Blue Deuce Dodge Charger in 2012, the brand's final year in Cup. Today, that story begins a new chapter.
That new chapter builds on momentum already underway across Stellantis' North American motorsports portfolio. Ram's return to NASCAR competition with Kaulig Racing, which will now serve as Dodge and Ram's anchor team, has reestablished a factory-backed presence at the track and created a foundation for the next phase of the company's commitment to American motorsports. Now, Dodge is preparing to carry that momentum back to NASCAR Cup Series racing.
Spearheading the Dodge return to the NASCAR Cup Series is Dodge SRT Racing, which leads all North American motorsports efforts, including NASCAR, NHRA and additional motorsports series.
The road back to NASCAR Cup Series racing will include several key moments leading into the 2027 season:
- During NASCAR Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Kaulig Racing will announce its driver lineup for the 2027 season
- The next stop will be the 59th annual Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida, where Dodge will hold The Dodge Sno-Brawl. Celebrity drivers will take to the track in a head-to-head challenge in equally prepared Dodge Charger late-model stock cars for some friendly competition. Additional race details will be announced at a later date. Dodge will also reveal the race car that will wear the brand's livery in NASCAR Cup Series competition
Fans can watch the reveal of the new Dodge stock car at the 59th annual Snowball Derby via livestream on FloRacing and on the NASCAR Channel courtesy of Flo Racing on Dec. 4.
The wait is over. Dodge is back.
Snowball Derby
First held in 1968, the Snowball Derby is one of short-track racing's most prestigious events. The annual 300-lap Super Late Model race at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida, has attracted generations of top short-track competitors and NASCAR stars.
Dodge
For 112 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Today, that legacy roars louder than ever in the lineup of Dodge, America's performance brand.
The arrival of the new 600-horsepower 2027 Dodge Charger Super Bee Launch Edition - the quickest, fastest and most powerful SIXPACK Charger and the highest specific horsepower muscle car ever - is the newest addition to the award-winning Dodge Charger lineup, which also features:
- SIXPACK-powered 420-horsepower Dodge Charger R/T with the most standard horsepower of any muscle car
- 550-horsepower Dodge Charger Scat Pack, powered by the 3.0L twin-turbo SIXPACK high-output (H.O.) engine - the most powerful Hurricane engine in production
Every Charger comes standard with all-wheel drive and offers two-door coupe or four-door sedan configurations - because with performance comes choice.
The Dodge lineup is also fueled by the most powerful gas SUV ever, the 710-horsepower Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, powered by the legendary supercharged HEMI V-8 engine. The Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak breaks free from convention with the three-row SUV, unlocking more than 20 million potential customization combinations. The Dodge Durango R/T 392 delivers the most horsepower per dollar for a gas SUV, and the 360-horsepower 5.7-liter Durango GT HEMI AWD remains the most affordable AWD V-8 in the industry.
The purchase of a SIXPACK-powered Dodge Charger Super Bee Launch Edition, Charger Scat Pack or Durango SRT Hellcat model includes one day of performance driving instruction at Radford Racing School, the official Dodge//SRT high-performance driving school.
Follow Dodge and company news and video on:
Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com
Dodge brand: dodge.com
Direct Connection: DCPerformance.com
Facebook: facebook.com/dodge
Instagram: @dodgeofficial
X: @dodge and @StellantisNA
YouTube: youtube.com/dodge, youtube.com/StellantisNA
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SOURCE Stellantis
