Goodguys to Crown the 2026 Forgeline Street Machine of the Year This Weekend in Columbus
One of the most prestigious awards in the custom car world will be handed out this weekend as Goodguys crowns its 2026 Forgeline Street Machine of the Year at the 28th Summit Racing Nationals, July 10-12, at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, Ohio. The award is one of the coveted Goodguys Top 12 "Of The Year" honors and serves as the pinnacle achievement for many of the nation's finest street machine builds.
Known throughout the industry as "The Big One," the Summit Racing Nationals is Goodguys' flagship event, drawing more than 6,000 hot rods, muscle cars, trucks, customs, and specialty vehicles from across the country. The annual Forgeline Street Machine of the Year competition has become one of the most anticipated highlights of the weekend. Each July, an elite group of contenders converges on Columbus for a head-to-head evaluation that culminates with the crowning of a winner during Saturday's awards ceremony.
Unlike many traditional car show awards, Street Machine of the Year isn't simply about horsepower, paint quality, or billet accessories. The contenders are judged as complete vehicles, blending cutting-edge engineering, drivability, performance capability, attention to detail, and world-class execution into a package that pushes the boundaries of what a street machine can be.
This year's competition begins at 10:00am Friday morning, when all Street Machine of the Year contenders gather in the Cardinal Lot for initial judging. The field will then be narrowed to ten finalists, which will move into the Celeste Building for further evaluation before the judges select a winner at Saturday's Special Awards Ceremony.
As the presenting sponsor of Street Machine of the Year, Forgeline is proud to support a competition that celebrates the very best builders, fabricators, and innovators in the industry. Many of the vehicles competing for the title represent years of planning, design, fabrication, and testing, with every detail scrutinized in pursuit of excellence. The result is a collection of machines that helps define the current state of the art in the custom automotive world.
The Street Machine of the Year competition is just one of the highlights during a packed weekend in Columbus. In addition to the annual Street Rod of the Year competition, attendees can enjoy the Goodguys AutoCross Racing Series featuring the Forgeline Buckeye Shootout, a massive manufacturers midway, thousands of show vehicles, swap meet vendors, special exhibits, and the unveiling of the Goodguys 2026-2027 giveaway car.
We'll be on-site all weekend long and look forward to seeing the incredible machines assembled for this year's competition. Good luck to all of the 2026 Forgeline Street Machine of the Year contenders. We can't wait to see who takes home one of the industry's most coveted trophies.
One of the most prestigious awards in the custom car world will be handed out this weekend as Goodguys crowns its 2026 Forgeline Street Machine of the Year at the 28th Summit Racing Nationals, July 10-12, at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, Ohio. The award is one of the coveted Goodguys Top 12 "Of The Year" honors and serves as the pinnacle achievement for many of the nation's finest street machine builds.
Known throughout the industry as "The Big One," the Summit Racing Nationals is Goodguys' flagship event, drawing more than 6,000 hot rods, muscle cars, trucks, customs, and specialty vehicles from across the country. The annual Forgeline Street Machine of the Year competition has become one of the most anticipated highlights of the weekend. Each July, an elite group of contenders converges on Columbus for a head-to-head evaluation that culminates with the crowning of a winner during Saturday's awards ceremony.
Unlike many traditional car show awards, Street Machine of the Year isn't simply about horsepower, paint quality, or billet accessories. The contenders are judged as complete vehicles, blending cutting-edge engineering, drivability, performance capability, attention to detail, and world-class execution into a package that pushes the boundaries of what a street machine can be.
This year's competition begins at 10:00am Friday morning, when all Street Machine of the Year contenders gather in the Cardinal Lot for initial judging. The field will then be narrowed to ten finalists, which will move into the Celeste Building for further evaluation before the judges select a winner at Saturday's Special Awards Ceremony.
As the presenting sponsor of Street Machine of the Year, Forgeline is proud to support a competition that celebrates the very best builders, fabricators, and innovators in the industry. Many of the vehicles competing for the title represent years of planning, design, fabrication, and testing, with every detail scrutinized in pursuit of excellence. The result is a collection of machines that helps define the current state of the art in the custom automotive world.
The Street Machine of the Year competition is just one of the highlights during a packed weekend in Columbus. In addition to the annual Street Rod of the Year competition, attendees can enjoy the Goodguys AutoCross Racing Series featuring the Forgeline Buckeye Shootout, a massive manufacturers midway, thousands of show vehicles, swap meet vendors, special exhibits, and the unveiling of the Goodguys 2026-2027 giveaway car.
We'll be on-site all weekend long and look forward to seeing the incredible machines assembled for this year's competition. Good luck to all of the 2026 Forgeline Street Machine of the Year contenders. We can't wait to see who takes home one of the industry's most coveted trophies.
