Mustang Week Put Pony Car Power To The Pavement At Charlotte Motor Speedway

Steve Turner
August 28, 2026

After three days of meets, karting, and games, Mustang Week presented by Monster Energy and Roush Performance finally put its performance cars on the racetrack. Thursday’s Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American, brought the action to Charlotte Motor Speedway from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Wheelhouse Racing School operating the event and Mustang owners taking to the ROVAL for HPDE sessions, track experiences, parade laps, and ride-alongs.

The HPDE sessions were the heart of the day, with novice, intermediate, and advanced groups putting their own Mustangs on the road course. The ROVAL demands considerably more from a car and driver than a straight-line blast. Braking, turn-in, line selection, throttle control, and consistency all matter, while tires, brakes, and cooling get a much harder workout than they do on the street.

Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American
On Thursday, Mustang Week turned up the action with the Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby. Operated by Wheelhouse Racing at the legendary Charlotte Motor Speedway, the event offered attendees a chance to drive at speed in a High Performance Driving Experience or enjoy the track with parade laps around the famed ROVAL.

For experienced drivers, the track offered room to push harder. For newcomers, it provided a controlled environment to learn the fundamentals without dealing with public-road traffic. Either way, the ROVAL gave Mustang owners a legal, high-speed workout.

Those who weren’t ready to drive their own cars had options, too. The Track Experience included parade laps on both the Charlotte Motor Speedway superspeedway and the ROVAL, while professional ride-alongs in Dark Horse Mustangs gave passengers a taste of what the circuit could deliver at a much quicker pace.

The event’s sponsor, Shelby, was on hand with several of its latest high-performance F-150 and Mustang offerings. From the GT350 to the Super Snake, it was great seeing these cars on the track and leading the parade laps behind the pace car.

With the track action complete, Mustang Week Charlotte heads into its busiest stretch today at zMAX Dragway. The Mustang Week All-Ford Meet-Up, presented by Roush Performance, runs from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and brings more than 500 Fords and more than 50 vendors together with roll racing, drag racing, True Street competition, drifting, autocross, the Dyno Challenge, and Cobra Sam’s street burnout competition.

For those who aren’t all about carving corners at speed, the Track Experience package allowed a huge group of attendees to drive their Mustangs around this historic track.
Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American
Mustang Week is about all eras of Ford’s pony car. While there was a lot of modern Mustang hardware lapping Charlotte Motor Speedway, it was great seeing a classic convertible out there during the parade laps.
Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American
It was cool seeing this S197 powered by a supercharged Three-Valve out during the HPDE. Brian West ran his Kenny Brown-prepped Roush 427R Track Pack car during the Intermediate group and carved corners in style.
Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American
Vaughn Gittin’s RTR team was on the property, and the Professional Funhaver himself was out there ripping it up in this Urban Bamboozle Mustang RTR, which definitely looked Ready To Rock on the track.

Coffee & Camshafts

Thursday morning kicked off with another unofficial gathering as Coffee & Camshafts rolled into the Carolina Ale House during Mustang Week. Presented by MAZ Muscle, the event ran from 8 to 11 a.m. with hundreds of Mustangs, breakfast, coffee, a DJ, aftermarket vendors, and more than $20,000 in performance parts, products, and experiences up for grabs.

Mustang Week Track Day, presented by Shelby American
Chris Cervenka, of Modified Muscle Marketplace, puts on the Coffee & Camshaft events. The events combine camaraderie and charity with some epic raffle prizes. This year’s Charlotte event attracted a strong turnout of Mustangs.

Hundreds of cars filled the lot as attendees moved between the show field, vendors, food, and the giveaway action. The giveaways were a major draw, but the event also featured the reveal of the MAZ Muscle widebody S650 before the raffles began.

As part of the event, Maz Muscle revealed its latest widebody kit for the S650. Designed to imbue the latest Mustang with aggressive body lines and an OEM fit and finish, the kit was a hit with the crowd.

Coffee & Camshafts also supported Make-A-Wish Central & Western NC, adding a charitable component to the gathering. When Coffee & Camshafts wrapped, we headed to the Mustang Week Track Day at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Ford’s Mustang Unleashed team brought out a special guest to Coffee & Camshafts — a 2026 Mustang Dark Horse SC. The production rides haven’t hit the streets yet, but this one turned heads during Mustang Week.