2026 BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 Returns to Las Vegas March 4th-8th
The Great American Off-Road Race returns to Las Vegas this week, as the 2026 BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 takes over the Strip on Wednesday and Thursday before two exciting days of racing in Primm on Friday and Saturday. Tickets remain available to spectate the race from the Mint 400 Midway in Primm, while pre-race events and live streaming, timing, and tracking remain free throughout the weekend.
This year’s BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 marks the second of five rounds in the unified American Off-Road Racing Championship. More than 529 entries are set to compete in this year’s race, including the return of seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson to his off-road roots in the premier Unlimited Truck class. This year’s entry list includes racing icons like off-road, NASCAR, and INDYCAR standout Robby Gordon racing alongside his son Max, two-time Formula Drift champion Vaughn Gittin Jr., UFC legend Cowboy Cerrone, and two-time defending Dakar Rally SSV winner Brock Heger, among two-time defending Unlimited Race winner Adam Householder and countless other AORC standouts.
Official festivities begin on Wednesday at 3PM with the annual Mint 400 Vehicle Parade, which takes hundreds of millions of dollars of off-road racing machinery from the south end of the Las Vegas Strip north to Fremont Street. The longest-running racing event to shut down the Strip each year, the Mint 400 Vehicle Parade sees everything from fire-breathing Unlimited Trucks and pro UTVs to motorcycles, military vehicles, and much more. The parade ends with the Mint 400 Kickoff Party at Atomic Liquors, where the public will have their first chance to meet the racers and purchase Belching Beaver Brewery’s official Mint 400 beer.
Thursday morning picks things up bright and early with the opening of the Mint 400 Off-Road Festival on Fremont Street at 8AM. As always, hundreds of the top brands in off-road racing will have vehicles and products on display at this free event that is attended by tens of thousands of people each year. The Mint 400 Off-Road Festival also serves as the home of tech and contingency for the race, with all 529 entries due to parade through the festival route before going through pre-race inspection.
Qualifying in Primm also starts on Thursday, with Limited Race qualifying kicking off at 8AM for Class 10 cars and continuing at 9:30AM for UTV Pro entries. The remainder of qualifying will take place on Friday, with Open Pro Motorcycle riders getting things started at 12:30PM before Unlimited Race entries take their turn. Last year, Cody Bradbury led all Limited Race qualifiers, while Dale Dondel was the top qualifier for the Unlimited Race.
Friday racing is headlined by the O’Reilly Auto Parts Limited Race, which goes green at 8AM and will see Heger (UTV Pro Open/overall) and Carib Potts (Class 10) look to defend last year’s victories. Limited Race live streaming will kick off at 7:30AM at themint400.com/live. Also running on Friday will be the Youth 570 race at 10:30AM and Youth 1000 race at 11:30AM.
Saturday racing kicks off at 7AM with the Mint 400 Motorcycle Race, which will see Dalton Shirey attempt to add another overall victory, followed by the Youth 170 Production and 200 race at 8AM and 170 Open and 250 race at 8:45AM. Pre-race coverage of the BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 Unlimited race will begin at 10:15AM at themint400.com/live, while the top qualifier will take the green flag at 10:45AM. Following the races, all of the weekend’s winners will be honored on Sunday morning at the Mint 400 Awards Banquet on the midway in Primm.
The Mint 400 has carried the reputation as the toughest, most spectacular off-road race in North America since 1968, when it first roared to life in the Nevada desert. What began as a clever public relations stunt to promote the Mint Hotel’s annual deer hunt quickly evolved into something far bigger. A legitimate desert race forged in dust, horsepower, and bravado. By the 1970s, the Mint wasn’t just a race. It was a cultural moment. Immortalized by Hunter S. Thompson in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, it became a symbol of American excess, grit, and wide-open desert freedom.
After decades of dormancy, the event was revived in 2008 by brothers Matthew and Joshua Martelli, who rebuilt it from the ground up with a singular mission. To restore its mythic status while elevating the professionalism, safety, and prestige of modern desert racing. Since that revival, “The Great American Off-Road Race” has only grown larger, deeper, and more competitive. The fields get stronger every year. The stakes get higher. And winning The Mint 400 remains one of the hardest achievements in off-road racing.
This year’s Mint 400 will take place from March 4th - 8th in Las Vegas. More information on the event for racers and spectators is available at TheMint400.com, or follow the event on Facebook and Instagram.
Details regarding racer registration, sponsorship packages, exhibitor vending, spectator tickets, camping, and parking passes for the American Off-Road Racing Championship are live on americanoffroadracingchampionship.com
About American Off-Road Racing Championship
About the American Off-Road Racing Championship:
The American Off-Road Racing Championship (AORC) is the premier desert off-road racing league in North America, created through the unification of Best in the Desert (BITD) and Unlimited Off-Road Racing (UNLTD).
Best in the Desert, founded in 1984 by legendary racer Casey Folks, is the longest-running and most respected off-road racing series in the U.S., with a legacy that includes iconic events like Vegas to Reno, the Silver State 300, the Parker 425, and the Laughlin Desert Classic.
Unlimited Off-Road Racing, established by the Martelli Brothers in 2023, produces world-class events such as The Mint 400, The California 300, and The Parker 400. UNLTD is recognized for its focus on innovation, storytelling, and large-scale racer participation, with events known for high car counts, challenging courses, pre-running, and family-friendly fan experiences near major markets.
Together under the AORC banner, BITD and UNLTD preserve the heritage of desert racing while building its future—offering racers, sponsors, and fans a unified championship built on clarity, consistency, and world-class competition.