The 2026 Straight Talk Wireless 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on March 8, 2026, at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. Contested over 312 laps on the oval, it was the fourth race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Ryan Blaney won the race. Christopher Bell finished 2nd, and Kyle Larson finished 3rd. Ty Gibbs and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top five, and Bubba Wallace, William Byron, Tyler Reddick, Michael McDowell, and Erik Jones rounded out the top ten.
Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race between 2020 and 2025. Phoenix Raceway has also hosted the CART, IndyCar Series, USAC and the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The raceway is currently owned and operated by NASCAR.
Straight Talk Wireless was announced as the title sponsor for the 2026 race, which became the "Desert Double" weekend with the Good Ranchers 250 NTT IndyCar Series.
Alex Bowman, the original driver of the No. 48, was sidelined for the race due to vertigo sustained at Austin a week prior.
Daniel Suárez was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 26.877 seconds and a speed of .
Joey Logano scored the pole for the race with a time of 26.561 and a speed of .
Stage One Laps: 60
Stage Two Laps: 125
Stage Three Laps: 127
Fox Sports covered the race at the Phoenix Raceway. Mike Joy, Clint Bowyer, and nine-time Phoenix winner Kevin Harvick called the race from the broadcast booth, with Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe joining for Stage 2. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side, and Larry McReynolds provided insight on-site during the race.
MRN covered the radio action for the race which was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden, Mike Bagley, and former crew chief Todd Gordon called the race when the field races past the start/finish line. Dan Hubbard called the action from turns 1 & 2, and Kurt Becker called the action from turns 3 & 4. Pit lane was manned by Lead MRN Pit Reporter Steve Post and Chris Wilner.