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Tuesday January, 27th 2026. Multi-time NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Bowman Gray Stadium, Modified Champion, Brandon Ward along with the other divisional Bowman Gray Champions have been tabbed to be the grand marshals for the Cookout Clash At Bowman Gray Stadium this Sunday night to kick off the season for the NASCAR Cup Series. This will be the second year for the Clash at the Madhouse as it remains the oldest NASCAR sanctioned track in history. With that comes the opportunity to share in both the short track heritage of the sport with the top stars of NASCAR on hand to race and etch their name into the history books.
For Brandon Ward, this honor comes on the heels of another championship for Kevin Powell Speed Motorsports. In 24 starts in 2025, KPSM was able to win the title with three wins, seventeen top fives, twenty one top tens with an average finish of 4.8. This opportunity is equally special for Ward. Not only will he be a grand marshal on a top-tier stage of NASCAR Cup Series racing, it will be in front of a hometown crowd for the Winston-Salem native. “It’s exciting to be one of the grand marshals for the Clash race this weekend.” Said Ward. “It’s something that I’ve never had the opportunity to do and it’s special to get that at a prestigious event like this. It’s also cool to do it at a track that I’ve had several wins and a couple of championships at and in front of our hometown fans.”
However, before he gets to say, “Gentlemen Start Your Engines!” He’ll fire up the engine of the #04 Kevin Powell Speed Motorsports modified Saturday for his chance to win the 125 lap Madhouse Classic before the Cup cars hit the track. When asked what it would mean to win the Madhouse Classic and be grand marshal in the same weekend, Ward is entering the weekend with common sense approach. “I mean, obviously we wanna win every time that’s the only goal for this race is try to win it because there’s no points and nothing else on the line.” Said Ward. “It’s a big event for us. It’s a one-off race so yeah, to get a win then be the grand marshal the next day would obviously be the best case scenario so hopefully we can pull that off. We had a good car last year. We got to the lead and cut a tire down-got back to fourth and just ran out of laps so hopefully we can complete that task and get a win in the race this year.”
The NASCAR Cookout Clash At Bowman Gray Stadium takes place Sunday February, 1st and will air at 6pm ET on Fox beginning with the last chance race. The Madhouse Classic for the Modifieds will take place the day before, Saturday January, 31st airing live on Flo Racing at 1:15pm ET. Kevin Powell Speed Motorsports extends its gratitude to its valued partners: Q104.1, iHeartRadio, Kevin Powell’s Foothill Ford, Bilstein Shocks, Simpson Race Products, Stilo, Racing Electronics, Miller Welders, Squeaky Clean Express, Robbins Sandblasting, The Driveshaft Shop, Affordable Towing and Recovery, Don and Dee Stone, Molecule, Pro System Brakes, Polaris, and kevinsaysyes.com.
