For the first time ever, NASCAR is having an In-Season Tournament in 2025. The concept is a single-elimination bracket with 32 drivers and a $1 million prize. This tournament is designed to shake up the midseason schedule, with all races on TNT and Max.
Seeding was based on driver performance in three qualifying races at Michigan, Mexico City and Pocono. Top finishers in those races, as well as race winners, made the field. One notable missing entrant is Shane van Gisbergen. He won the race at Mexico City but did not qualify for the bracket because he was not ranked among the top 32 in points when the seeding began.
Denny Hamlin is the number one seed after a strong run during the seeding period. The tournament pairings are head-to-head each round, with the better performer surviving. The whole bracket consists of 16 opening-round matchups. Fun matches include Kyle Busch vs Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson vs Tyler Reddick.
The tournament will work like this: in each round, it’s one against one, and the stronger finisher proceeds to the next round. This format is all about beating one guy. Unlike the typical NASCAR races where the drivers are racing for points and position within the overall field.
The Round of 32 starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway on June 28. Then Chicago Street Course, Sonoma Raceway and Dover Motor Speedway. The tournament finale is July 27 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where the final two drivers will race directly for the $1 million prize. The In-Season Tournament also marks TNT’s return to NASCAR. The qualifying races took place at Amazon Prime Video earlier this month, with the tournament continuing to air live on TNT as part of its summer lineup.
This falls in line with a larger media plan because NASCAR is embarking on a new era of broadcasting sports with a seven-year media contract deal. The tournament idea was actually thrown out by Denny Hamlin during his podcast ”Actions Detrimental“ back in 2023. Two years later, it has become a reality (and Hamlin is kidding that he deserves a share).
It creates some new rivalries, a need for strategy, and adds another dimension to the Cup Series. Will this become a permanent schedule? Time will tell. But as it stands now, the match-ups are set and one man will walk out of Indianapolis with $1 million.
