Who was eliminated in Round 2 of the NASCAR In-Season Bracket Challenge?

32 drivers were cut down to 16 at Sonoma, and now only eight remain after Chicagoland in the NASCAR In-Season Bracket Challenge. The wildly unpredictable EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta) is next, with the tournament concluding with races at North Wilkesboro and the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The winner will receive a $1 million prize, and Ty Gibbs is the defending champion. Unfortunately for Gibbs, who was ranked as the No. 5 seed in 2026, he will not go back-to-back as his tournament hopes ended at Chicagoland despite an eighth-place finish. He was facing JGR teammate Chase Briscoe, who actually won the race and advanced onward.

Another big name that fell was Kyle Larson, as a mid-race spin derailed what was a strong day for the No. 6 seed. He lost to his teammate as well, No. 11 seed William Byron

No. 2 seed Denny Hamlin remains in the competition, as does No. 3 seed Ryan Blaney and No. 4 seed Chase Elliott.

The charge of the underdogs

Todd Gilliland, Front Row Motorsports Ford

At Chicagoland, five of the eight matchups were actually won by the lower-seeded driver, and two true underdogs still remain. No. 25 seed Todd Gilliland eliminated Carson Hocevar with a 16th place finish.

There’s also Alex Bowman, who was the lowest ranked driver of the entire competition as the No. 32 seed. The Hendrick Motorsports driver is deep in the standings after missing several races as he was suffering from vertigo, but finishes of tenth and fifth have vaulted him up into the third round of the In-Season Challenge.

Unfortunately, only one of these bracket-busters will continue beyond Atlanta, as Gilliland and Bowman will face each other this upcoming race weekend.

Below you can find the full chart for who beat who at Chicagoland, as well as the new matchups for Round 3 at Atlanta:

Round 2 at Chicagoland: Who advanced and who was eliminated?

Note: Driver names that are bolded advanced

Driver Name (Seed No.) vs.	Driver Name (Seed No.)
Denny Hamlin (No. 2)	Erik Jones (No. 15)
Ryan Blaney (No. 3)	Shane van Gisbergen (No. 14)
Chase Elliott (No. 4)	Michael McDowell (No. 20)
Ty Gibbs (No. 5)	Chase Briscoe (No. 12)
Kyle Larson (No. 6)	William Byron (No. 11)
Chris Buescher (No. 7)	Christopher Bell (No. 10)
Carson Hocevar (No. 9)	Todd Gilliland (No. 25)
Austin Cindric (No. 16)	Alex Bowman (No. 32)

NEW: Round 3 matchups for EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta)

Driver Name (Seed No.) vs.	Driver Name (Seed No.)
Denny Hamlin (No. 2)	Christopher Bell (No. 10)
Ryan Blaney (No. 3)	William Byron (No. 11)
Chase Elliott (No. 4)	Chase Briscoe (No. 12)
Todd Gilliland (No. 25)	Alex Bowman (No. 32)
Austin Cindric (No. 16)	Alex Bowman (No. 32)