NASCAR In-Season Bracket Challenge: Round 1 Matchups Set for EchoPark Speedway

The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series In-Season Bracket Challenge kicks off this Saturday night at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway, and the head-to-head matchups for Round 1 are officially set. This five-race, $1 million-to-win challenge will showcase some of the sport’s biggest names and rising stars in a unique playoff-style format embedded in the regular season.

The challenge pairs 32 drivers in seeded brackets based on performance metrics, and each winner advances until one driver claims the $1 million prize.

Here’s a look at some of the key Round 1 matchups heading into Saturday night’s Quaker State 400:

 Featured Matchups to Watch:

• (1) Denny Hamlin vs. (32) Ty Dillon
  Hamlin is fresh off a runner-up finish at Pocono and leads this bracket as the No. 1 seed. Dillon faces an uphill battle against Pocono’s all-time win leader.

• (8) Alex Bowman vs. (25) Joey Logano
  A battle of former winners at Atlanta, Bowman clings to the final Playoff spot in the overall standings while Logano is the defending race winner at EchoPark Speedway.

• (4) Christopher Bell vs. (29) Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
  Bell won the spring Atlanta race and brings strong recent form, but Stenhouse has surprised before at superspeedways.

• (5) Chase Elliott vs. (28) Austin Dillon
  Elliott is riding momentum after back-to-back top-five finishes, and the Georgia native will have the home-track crowd behind him.

• (6) Chase Briscoe vs. (27) Noah Gragson
  Briscoe enters the bracket with momentum after winning last week at Pocono. Gragson looks to play spoiler in his bracket debut.

• (10) Kyle Larson vs. (23) Tyler Reddick
  One of the most intriguing first-round duels. Larson is second in points, while Reddick remains a threat at any 1.5-mile track.

• (7) Ryan Blaney vs. (26) Carson Hocevar
  Blaney surged to third at Pocono and is a two-time winner at Atlanta. Hocevar is an underdog but capable of surprises on superspeedways.

• (11) Michael McDowell vs. (22) AJ Allmendinger
  Veteran savvy meets road-course grit. McDowell and Allmendinger both thrive in unique setups like Atlanta’s high banks.

Other Round 1 Matchups:

• (2) Kyle Busch vs. (31) Brad Keselowski

• (3) Bubba Wallace vs. (30) Daniel Suarez

• (9) Ross Chastain vs. (24) Erik Jones

• (12) John Hunter Nemechek vs. (21) Josh Berry

• (13) William Byron vs. (20) Ryan Preece

• (14) Chris Buescher vs. (19) Todd Gilliland

• (15) Zane Smith vs. (18) Austin Cindric

• (16) Ty Gibbs vs. (17) Justin Haley

The format adds high-stakes excitement to the summer NASCAR schedule. Bracket points do not impact the championship standings, but the winner of this challenge walks away with a $1 million bonus and major bragging rights heading into the final stretch of the regular season.

Catch the action Saturday night at 7 p.m. ET on TNT and PRN Radio.

Let us know which driver you're pulling for in the In-Season Bracket Challenge!