Four races left! The seventh race of The Chase — the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs – gets started this weekend at Phoenix Raceway with the Freeway Insurance 500 on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network. Chase Briscoe won last weekend’s Bank of America 400 at Charlotte, holding off Christopher Bell, who finished second. Kyle Larson leads The Chase with 2,367 points, Denny Hamlin sits in second, trailing by 49 points, and Christopher Bell is 51 back. Chase Briscoe trails by 65. Remember, there are no eliminations this year — just 10 races, a total points system, and one winner. You can stream all the racing action with Sling TV’s multitude of subscription options.

How to watch the 2026 NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500

• When: Sunday, Oct. 18 at 3 p.m. ET
• TV: Race on USA Network, practice and qualifying on truTV
• Stream: Watch with a subscription to Sling TV.
• From anywhere: Watch with a subscription to a VPN.

Everything you need to know about the 2026 Freeway Insurance 500:

What is the broadcast schedule for the 2026 NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500?

Why we like Sling TV for watching the NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500

When all you want to do is watch one live sporting event over a weekend, a live TV streaming package can make that expensive. Sling TV is still one of the most affordable options, even if they recently stopped offering their short-term Passes. There are still a bunch of ways to subscribe.

For the Freeway Insurance 500, Sling Blue is the one you want. It starts at $46 per month and includes both USA Network and truTV, which means you can watch all of practice, qualifying, and the race on Sunday without having to jump between services. It also has local ABC, NBC, and Fox stations in select markets if you want to check out any NFL games in addition to The Chase.

Save with Sling

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Sling TV

Sling TV is The Streamable’s choice for cord-cutters on a budget. Sling is a live TV streaming service with multiple channel packages. The $45.99/month Sling Orange plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $45.99/month Sling Blue plan offers about 40 channels, including ABC, Fox, and NBC in major markets.

You can combine Orange+Blue for a total of $60.99 / month. Sling also offers many channel add-on packages starting at $6/month.

Save with Sling

$19.99+ / month

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Can you watch the NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500 for free?

Free trials are great for something like this because it’s just one NASCAR race over the weekend. The tough part is figuring out what the free trial for each service actually gives you because what you think you’re getting may not be what you actually get.

DIRECTV STREAM, Hulu + Live TV, and YouTube TV all have some version of a free trial. They’re not all equal, though, and the length of the trial can change depending on when you sign up and what offer your account gets.

The most reliable free trial is DIRECTV STREAM. You pretty much always get five days free, which will cover the race weekend and a few extra days to see if the rest of the package is worth the investment. Hulu’s live TV package usually gives new subscribers three free days, which also works if you time it right.

YouTube TV is where things can get more complicated. It advertises trials of up to 10 days, but that doesn’t mean that’s what you’re definitely getting which can be frustrating if you’re only signing up for one race. So, just make sure you really read the checkout screen and know what you’re getting before you commit.

Watch a recap of last week’s NASCAR Cup Series race

How to watch the 2026 NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500 from anywhere

If you’ll be away from home and can’t watch the 2026 NASCAR Freeway Insurance 500 as you normally would, you can still catch all of the action no matter where you are in the world, with a VPN. A VPN can be used on your phone, tablet, or computer and make you appear to be back home — even when you’re not — making sure you feel at home no matter where you are. A VPN is a safe and secure way to stay protected online while streaming your favorite sports, movies, and shows on the go. Keep in mind that you will still need to be subscribed to Sling TV in order to stream the race with a VPN.

NordVPN is one of the best providers around, at one of the best prices. I use it every single day to surf the web. Currently, you can get two full years of protection for just $3.49 per month — plus you’ll get three extra months FREE. A high-speed VPN with best-in-class security that can be used on up to 10 devices at once — what more could you ask for? Simply sign up, install the software on your device of choice, and start streaming just as you would back home. It couldn’t be easier!

While NordVPN is our recommendation for the best VPN to use while you are traveling (and my preferred option), there are a number of other high-quality options available depending on what you are looking for.

• Best Features: ExpressVPN | Pro features for $7.50 per month
• Best Budget Option: Surfshark | Starting at $2.50 per month
• Best Free Option: Proton VPN | Free plan available

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