WED JULY 29TH - SUN AUGUST 2ND
PRESENTING SPONSOR OF THE 2026 SUMMER SLAM 499
Battle For the Belt & $1,750.00
PGR eSports’ second biggest race of the year returns July 29th–August 2nd for the 4th Annual Summer Slam 499 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Drivers will take on five days of high-stakes NASCAR Next Gen racing on Talladega’s 33-degree banks, battling for major cash prizes, the championship belt, and a year of bragging rights.
Last year, eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series driver Malik Ray went back-to-back as Summer Slam champion. Can anyone dethrone him, or will he make history with an unprecedented three-peat?
Race Registration
$30.00 ENTRY FEE
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN
Closes Sunday July 26th at 11:59pm est or sellout (200 max entries)
RACE IN THE SUMMER SLAM 499
Step 1: Send Payment
Step 2: Complete and Submit Form
Step 3: Join PGR iRacing League (#8087)
Payment Methods
Venmo: PGRESPORTS
Cash App: $PGRESPORTS
PayPal (friends & family): @RACEPGR
Join Our iRacing League
Search league #8087 under "My Leagues" on iRacing and APPLY. Click the FUNNEL ICON & click ALL LEAGUES if you don't see it.
When
The Summer Slam 499 will take place on Wednesday July 29th through Sunday August 2nd 2026. Heats will be ran Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evening. The LCQ's will be held Saturday along with the "Top 24 Starting Position Race." The Feature will take place on Sunday. Drivers must be flexible prior to registering. Heat selection will be based on iRating. Heats will begin on Wednesday at 9:00pm est. The feature race will be at 1:00pm est on Sunday. See more times below.
Race Purse
Drivers will battle for a $6,530 dollar purse in which 100% of all entry fees will makeup the prize pool. Payouts will scale with less than 200 entries. PGR eSports will inject $530.00 into the total purse. The top 30 in the Feature cash with the race winner taking home $1,750.00. The Top 3 in each Heat, the Winner of each LCQ and the Top 3 in the "Top 24 Race" will also cash . Oh and did we mention the race winner gets the championship belt?! Scroll down for more payout information
Format
The Next Gen car will be the primary car for the Summer Slam 499. A custom "fixed" set will be utilized for the duration of the event and will be made available on the PGR Discord. The event will be based off 200 max entries and will begin with 8 heat races over 3 days, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings. The top 3 from each heat will auto transfer to the Feature. Drivers who finish 4th-12th transfer to the LCQ's on Saturday afternoon. See more details below.
General
PGR eSports will broadcast the entire 5-day event. All heats including the LCQ's and "Top 24 Race" will be broadcasted along with the 499 on Sunday. Its encouraged to join the PGR Discord to stay up with by the minute event information. You can join our Discord here. There will be additional prizes added as we sign on with more sponsors. Stay tuned!
ALL SPECIFIC INFO BELOW
[SUMMER SLAM 499]
Wednesday through Sunday
July 29th - August 2nd, 2026
All races Broadcasted LIVE on PGR eSports and Dedicated Race Control for all Races
Based off 200 entries at $30.00 per entry
$6,000.00 purse - Payouts will scale with less than 200 entries
$1,750.00 to the race winner
(additional payout positions can be found below)
Date & Times
ALL TIMES EASTERN - LOBBIES OPEN 30 MIN PRIOR TO TIMES YOU SEE BELOW
Wednesday July 29th, 2026
Heat 1 – 9:00pm
Heat 2 – 10:00pm
Thursday July 30th, 2026
Heat 3 – 8:00pm
Heat 4 – 9:00pm
Heat 5 – 10:00pm
Friday July 31st, 2026
Heat 6 – 8:00pm
Heat 7 – 9:00pm
Heat 8 – 10:00pm
Saturday August 1st, 2026
LCQ #1 – 6:00pm
LCQ #2 – 7:30pm
Top 24 Race for Starting Positions - 9:00pm
Sunday August 2nd, 2026
Feature – 1:00pm
5-Day Race Format
Wednesday July 29th, Thursday July 30th and Friday July 31st, 2026
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[HEATS]
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8 Heats at 25 drivers per Heat based on iRating (snake format 1-8, 8-1)
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35 laps - 100% fuel - 1 G-W-C - 1 Fast Repair
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5 minute 1-lap solo Qualifying in each Heat race to set the grid
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Top 3 from each Heat advance to the Feature (24 drivers)
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4th-12th from each Heat advance to the LCQ's (72 drivers)
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13th-25th in each Heat are eliminated (104 drivers)
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Saturday August 1st, 2026
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[LCQ'S]
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2x LCQ’s at 36 drivers each
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35 laps - 100% fuel - 1 G-W-C - No Fast Repairs
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Grid set by Heat finishing positions (Heats 1-4 in LCQ #1 and Heats 5-8 in LCQ #2)
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Top 8 from each LCQ advance to Feature (16 drivers)
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9th-36th in each LCQ are eliminated (56 drivers)
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[TOP 24 RACE FOR STARTING POSITIONS]
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Top 3 from each Heat compete for their starting positions in the Feature
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35 laps - 100% fuel - 1 G-W-C - No Fast Repairs
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5 minute 1-lap solo Qualifying to set the grid
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Sunday August 2nd, 2026
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[FEATURE]
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188 laps - 100% fuel - 3 G-W-C - No Fast Repairs
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Grid set by Top 24 and LCQ finishing positions
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Payouts
$6,000.00 race entries - Payouts will scale with less than 200 entries
$530.00 - PGR injection from Fund/Sponsors etc.
Total Purse - $6,530.00
Heats
1st - $60.00
2nd - $30.00
3rd - $30.00
($960.00 total)
LCQ's
1st - $30.00
($60.00 total)
Top 24 Race
1st - $100.00
2nd - $60.00
3rd - $30.00
($190.00 total)
Feature
Total Feature Purse - $5,320.00
1st - $1,750.00 and the Championship Belt
2nd - $650.00
3rd - $500.00
4th - $300.00
5th - $250.00
6th - $200.00
7th - $180.00
8th - $160.00
9th - $150.00
10th - $130.00
11th – 13th - $100.00 each ($300 total)
14th – 15th - $75.00 each ($150 total)
16th - 20th - $60 each ($300 total)
21st – 30th - $30 each ($300 total)
Race rules and regulations will be posted to the Discord.
