NASCAR’s In-Season Challenge is set to kick off on June 28 at EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway) as TNT Sports begins its part of the broadcast schedule. The new tournament-style bracket is sure to add plenty of story lines to the summer months. Bookmark this page and refer back to it often for information on how the In-Season Challenge works:
What is the In-Season Challenge?
A 32-driver, single-elimination tournament that takes place over five races on TNT Sports. The driver with the best finish in each matchup advances to the next round.
When does it start?
The first In-Season Challenge race is June 28 at Atlanta — but there are three seeding races before that that set the bracket itself.
Which drivers have qualified?
The top 32 drivers in points following the NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville make up the In-Season Challenge field. Those drivers are:
William Byron, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace, Chase Briscoe, Alex Bowman, Austin Cindric, Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, Ryan Preece, Carson Hocevar, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., AJ Allmendinger, Josh Berry, Michael McDowell, John Hunter Nemechek, Todd Gilliland, Erik Jones, Zane Smith, Austin Dillon, Ty Gibbs, Daniel Suarez, Justin Haley, Ty Dillon, Noah Gragson and Brad Keselowski.
The four full-time drivers who did not qualify are Shane van Gisbergen, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst and Cody Ware.
How is the bracket seeded?
There are three seeding races — Michigan International Speedway (June 8), Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez (June 15) and Pocono Raceway (June 22). Drivers are seeded by their best finish in those three races.
How are ties in seeding broken?
The first tiebreaker is the next-best finish in the three seeding races. If two drivers were to finish with the exact same finishing positions over the three seeding races, the next tiebreaker is points standings following the Pocono race.
What tracks are in the In-Season Challenge?
EchoPark Speedway (32 drivers), Chicago Street Course (16), Sonoma Raceway (8), Dover Motor Speedway (4) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2).
How do drivers advance?
Simple. The driver in each head-to-head matchup that finishes higher than the other “wins” that matchup and advances to the next round.
What does the winner get?
A cool $1 million — the ultimate bragging rights.
How can I watch?
All five In-Season Challenge races air on TNT, and an alternate broadcast on truTV will focus exclusively on the In-Season Challenge matchups in real time.
IN-SEASON CHALLENGE
| DATE | LOCATION | TIME | NETWORK |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 28 | Atlanta | 7 p.m. ET | TNT, truTV |
| July 6 | Chicago | 2 p.m. ET | TNT, truTV |
| July 13 | Sonoma | 3:30 p.m. ET | TNT, truTV |
| July 20 | Dover | 2 p.m. ET | TNT, truTV |
| July 27 | Indianapolis | 2 p.m. ET | TNT, truTV |