NASCAR’s exhibition Clash returning to Daytona International Speedway

Nascar Season Preview Auto Racing
FILE - A sold out crowd watches as Alex Bowman, front left, and Kyle Larson, front right, lead the field to start the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023, in Daytona Beach, Fla. A new NASCAR season begins with rivals attempting to dethrone Team Penske after two years atop the Cup Series, all while a compelling off-track battle rages on over revenue sharing that threatens to overshadow the competition. (AP Photo/David Graham, File)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — NASCAR‘s exhibition Clash is returning to Daytona International Speedway for the first time in six years.

The sanctioning body announced the move Tuesday, saying the race will be held Feb. 13, 2027. It will be sponsored by Wheatley American Vodka.

The race doesn’t count for points and is the lead-up to the season-opening Daytona 500, which is set for Feb. 21.

Daytona hosted the Clash from 1979 to 2021. It was moved to a temporary track inside Los Angeles Memorial Stadium for three years in an effort to shake up the annual event and then relocated to tiny Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the last two years in a return to NASCAR’s grassroots racing.

The event was postponed twice this year because of historic winter weather in North Carolina. Snow-covered roads were too dangerous for teams and fans to get to the historic short track.