CHICAGO — With every bracket busted before the second round of the NASCAR in-season tournament, all that’s left is to see which team will win $1 million.

Here are the matchups for the second round of the NASCAR in-season tournament – set to take place in Chicago.

Here is a look at the second round matchups in the NASCAR in-season tournament in Chicago:

Brad Keselowski (No. 17) vs. Ty Dillon (No. 32)

The champion moniker may be a little deceiving for those favoring Brad Keselowski. The 2012 champion has struggled on road/street courses – but not nearly as badly as Ty Dillon. Here is their numbers in comparison.

• Brad Keselowski
  • 20.5 average finish in 19 NextGen road/street course starts
    • One Top-10 finish: 10th at Sonoma in 2022
    • Chicago: 24th in 2023, 18th in 2024
• Ty Dillon
  • 27.8 average finish in 14 NextGen road/street course starts
    • No Top-10 finishes
    • Chicago: 35th in 2023

Dillon has the benefit of A.J. Allmendinger being his teammate but Keselowski has momentum from some strong runs lately. Keselowski ran well at Atlanta and Pocono, in particular, and could’ve won either race if not for a couple of things going sideways. Momentum is everything in NASCAR – and Keselowski has it.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Keselowski: 15th
  • Dillon: 28th
• Mexico City
  • Keselowski: 25th
  • Dillon: 33rd

Alex Bowman (No. 8) vs. Bubba Wallace (No. 9)

As it stands, Alex Bowman is one of the best road/street course racers in the field and is coming off of a big stretch of races lately.

After tweaking his back in a hard, head-on crash at Michigan, Bowman kept Anthony Alfredo stay on the sidelines while he earned a fourth-place finish with eight stage points.

Bowman has six Top-5 finishes, eight Top-10s and an average finish of 14.2 in 18 NextGen road/street course races. He also is the defending winner in Chicago. Coincidentally, Wallace door-slammed Bowman after he won to pay him back for contact they made earlier in the race.

Despite being close enough to Bowman to flare tempers in last year’s Chicago race and certainly getting better on road/street courses, Wallace only has a Top-5, three Top-10s and an average finish of 20.6 on these tracks in the NextGen era.

Both drivers are looking for big results in Chicago, sitting on the cutline of the playoffs, but Bowman is primed to do much bigger things than Wallace.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Bowman: Ninth
  • Wallace: 20th (started second and led four laps)
• Mexico City
  • Bowman: Fourth
  • Wallace: 12th

Chase Elliott (No. 5) vs. John Hunter Nemechek (No. 12)

While John Hunter Nemechek has seen the momentum shift in his favor lately, there really is no beating Chase Elliott on road courses – especially now.

Elliott drove with all of his heart to score his first win of the 2025 season at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta. It accentuated the stellar season he has had with a career-best 10.3 average to-date this season.

In 18 NextGen road/street course races, Elliott has a win, 10 Top-5 finishes and 12 Top-10s with 147 laps led and a second-best average finish of 9.8. He’s the only driver with double-digit Top-5s in the era – among them a fourth-place finish at Circuit of the Americas in March, a third-place finish in Mexico City in June and another third-place finish in Chicago in 2023.

Nemechek is coming off of two sixth-place finishes at Pocono and Mexico City and is on a great stretch. However, up against someone like Elliott, his run in the in-season tournament likely will come to an end in Chicago.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Elliott: Fourth
  • Nemechek: 22nd
• Mexico City
  • Elliott: Third
  • Nemechek: Sixth

Erik Jones (No. 20) vs. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (No. 29)

Here is a matchup that may not be up front but will certainly be one to watch for how close it is. In 19 NextGen road/street course races, this is how Jones and Stenhouse compare:

• Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
  • 21.5 average finish, two Top-10 finishes
    • Sixth in Chicago in 2024
    • Seventh at COTA in 2023
• Erik Jones
  • 23.9 average finish, two Top-10s
    • Ninth at COTA in 2022
    • 10th at Watkins Glen in 2022

Jones finished 16th in the inaugural Chicago Street Course race despite having to come back from an early incident with the turn six wall and dealing with a Legacy Motor Club team on a downturn. Now in a season where his team is stepping up their performance, Jones is rolling and looks to be the favorite here.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Stenhouse: 18th
  • Jones: 27th
• Mexico City
  • Jones: 17th
  • Stenhouse: 27th

Ryan Preece (No. 15) vs. Noah Gragson (No. 31)

Neither Ryan Preece nor Noah Gragson is really looking forward to Chicago, if history is any indication. In fact, their Chicago stats practically mirror each other:

• Noah Gragson
  • 14th after starting 28th in 2024
  • 25th after starting 23rd in 2023
• Ryan Preece
  • 34th after starting 29th in 2024
  • 15th after starting 28th in 2023

Gragson and Preece each have one Top-10 finish in the NextGen era. Gragson has the edge with a NextGen-best eighth-place finish at Circuit of the Americas earlier this year and a 22.3 average finish – to Preece’s NextGen-best ninth at Watkins Glen last year and a 24.1 average finish.

Preece, however, has shown improvement. He started second in Mexico City and led four laps as he stayed out to win the first stage. The No. 60 team also nearly pulled off a win in Chicago in 2024.

This battle will be unpredictable. It may not be for the win but it will be one to watch.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Gragson: Eighth
  • Preece: 33rd
• Mexico City
  • Preece: 15th
  • Gragson: 30th

Tyler Reddick (No. 23) vs. Carson Hocevar (No. 26)

Referred to as “Road Course Jesus” by 23XI Racing teammate Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick comes into this matchup as the favorite.

In 19 NextGen races on road/street courses, Reddick has the fourth-best average finish – 11.2 – plus four wins, eight Top-5 finishes and 13 Top-10s. He has also led 12% of the laps he’s completed in the era – 208 of 1,691 – and has been the favorite in Chicago the last two years.

In 2024, Reddick had the speed to to pass Alex Bowman on the final lap – until he hit the wall and settled for second. In 2023, he led the first eight laps and earned 17 stage points after starting second – but finished 28th after a late wreck.

With the unpredictability of road/street course races, Reddick will need to be perfect and have perfect luck – especially with Carson Hocevar as a challenger.

Last year in Chicago, Hocevar benefitted from the rain-shuffled running order to contend for a top-10 finish. Unfortunately, contact with Christopher Bell in the wet-to-dry conditions relegated him to 24th.

Crew chief Luke Lambert knows how to put Hocevar in a great position. Although Reddick is a clear favorite in this matchup, Lambert could cook something up to pull off another upset in an upset-laden tournament.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Reddick: Second
  • Hocevar: 13th
• Mexico City
  • Reddick: 20th
  • Hocevar: 34th

Ty Gibbs (No. 6) vs. AJ Allmendinger (No. 22)

As far as the second round NASCAR in-season tournament matchups go at Chicago, this is likely the most competitive.

Gibbs is coming off of a few strong runs, even if the finishes don’t exactly show for it. At Atlanta and in Mexico City, he ran up front and led at least 27 laps in each race before finishing 14th and 11th respectively. Atlanta saw him get damage while Mexico City saw strategies shuffle him back.

Like Gibbs, Allmendinger is desperate to get a win with the cutline getting further and further away. Allmendinger has extra motivation too – to prove himself.

Allmendinger has a win, four Top-5 finishes and 10 Top-10s in 17 NextGen road course starts.

At Chicago, Allmendinger has only mustered a 17th-place finish at best – in 2023 after starting 10th and getting five stage points.

Gibbs had a similar run in 2023, finishing ninth after starting 12th and getting seven stage points. Gibbs ran better in 2024, starting third after leading a race-high 17 of 58 laps and getting eight stage points. However, a slide in performance this year makes him more unpredictable in Chicago.

Expect Allmendinger and Gibbs to be close – if not nose-to-tail – when it comes down to the checkered flag.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA (both drivers had issues late)
  • Allmendinger: 30th
  • Gibbs: 34th
• Mexico City
  • Gibbs: 11th
  • Allmendinger: 13th

Chris Buescher (No. 3) vs. Zane Smith (No. 14)

Buescher has the best average finish on road and street courses in the NextGen era. He has an average finish of 8.8, a win at Watkins Glen in 2024, four Top-5 finishes and 15 Top-10s in 19 road and street course races since 2022.

That makes Zane Smith the underdog in this matchup.

Smith has one Top-5 in nine NextGen starts on road and street courses – to Buescher at Watkins Glen no less. Strategies shuffling a race like this appear to be his one chance.

Road course matchups this year:

• COTA
  • Buescher: Seventh
  • Smith: 29th
• Mexico City
  • Buescher: 10th
  • Smith: 35th (drivetrain issue after 76 of 100 laps)

Our picks for second round of NASCAR in-season tournament

Here are our picks for the second round matchups in the NASCAR in-season tournament at Chicago:

• Ty Dillon
• Alex Bowman
• Chase Elliott
• Erik Jones
• Ryan Preece
• Tyler Reddick
• Ty Gibbs
• Chris Buescher

MORE: Every NASCAR in-season tournament bracket is busted after first round

The realms of country music and NASCAR have historically been united by a fervent and overlapping fanbase, one devoted to both high-octane races and country music’s musical traditions.

Over the years, NASCAR’s pre-race festivities have frequently spotlighted country music performers. Conversely, some NASCAR drivers have made appearances in country music videos, while at least one acclaimed country artist also pursued a career behind the wheel as a professional driver.

Further exemplifying the enduring synergy between these two iconic entertainment institutions, a few new, recent country songs have nodded to one of NASCAR’s greats, the late Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Morgan Wallen and Eric Church recorded the collaboration “No. 3 and No. 7,” which nods to Earnhardt’s iconic black No. 3 Goodwrench car, while “Said No Country Boy Ever,” recorded by a cohort of country singers (Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, Jerrod Niemann, Dallas Davidson and Rob Hatch, aka The Traler Park), also mentions Earnhardt by name. Meanwhile, Cole Swindell also recently released “Dale Jr.,” a touching tribute to fathers and sons, nodding to Earnhardt Sr. in the process.

Earnhardt was one of the most acclaimed drivers in the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) during the 1980s and 1990s. In total, he had 76 NASCAR Cup Series victories. Earnhardt won his first Winston Cup championship in 1980 and went on to earn six additional Winston Cup titles in 1986-87, 1990-91 and 1993-94, tying NASCAR legend Richard Petty’s record in the process. Known as “The Intimidator,” in the iconic black “No. 3” Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Earnhardt Sr. gained a track record as a fierce driver, one unafraid of bumping and spinning out competitors on his way to passing the checkered flag. His career also came with frustrations, as he raced 19 times in the Daytona 500 before emerging triumphant as the race’s winner in 1998.

Earnhardt’s death in February 2001 from injuries stemming from a crash during the final lap of the Daytona 500 shocked the racing world and beyond, and marked the end of an era in racing. Earnhardt was posthumously inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2006 and was named to the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 2010. The recent four-part Prime Video documentary Earnhardt offered a deep look into the racing legend’s life and career.

Earnhardt Sr. was also a fan of country music, and had several ties to the genre. In 1985, he took part in the album World Series of Country Music Proudly Presents Stock Car Racing’s Entertainers of the Year, a project that featured NASCAR drivers singing original country songs. Earnhardt appeared on the album’s concluding track, “Hard Charger.” He also appeared in the music video for Brooks & Dunn’s 1997 song “Honky Tonk Truth,” dressing up identically to the duo’s Kix Brooks and playing on the uncanny physical similarities between the two. One of his lesser-known monikers, linking Earnhardt Sr. and his car, was his nickname as “The Man in Black,” a moniker more well-known for its association with Country Music Hall of Famer Johnny Cash.

In 2003, a tribute concert to Earnhardt Sr. became the first non-racing event to be held at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Florida. The event featured performances from Kenny Chesney, Brooks & Dunn, Alabama, Sheryl Crow and more, with proceeds from the event going to the Dale Earnhardt Foundation. In the more than two decades since Earnhardt Sr.’s passing, his influence hasn’t dimmed, and numerous country songs have nodded to his competitive, award-winning career.

Of course, country music has long had ties to NASCAR in general, extending beyond simply many shared fans. Country singer Marty Robbins, known for hits including “El Paso,” was also a NASCAR racer, racing alongside NASCAR drivers such as Richard Petty, Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison, and making it to the top 5 spot during 1974’s Motor State 400 in Michigan. In 1975, the album NASCAR Goes Country featured NASCAR drivers including Richard Petty, Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough performing classic country hits such as “Hey, Good Lookin’,” and “King of the Road.”

Country music label execs have also been involved with racing. Big Machine Label Group founder/CEO/president Scott Borchetta (Lady A, Thomas Rhett, Riley Green) launched the NASCAR Xfinity Series team Big Machine Racing in 2021. In 2013, Benny Brown, founder of BBR Music Group (Jason Aldean, Lainey Wilson and Jelly Roll) sponsored Brad Keselowski Racing (BKR), supporting Brown’s grandson, NASCAR Cup Series driver Tyler Reddick.

Besides Earnhardt, other NASCAR drivers who have appeared in country music videos include Carl Edwards (Justin Moore’s “Bait a Hook” and Sara Evans’ “Slow Me Down”), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Trace Adkins’ “Rough and Ready”) and a slew of drivers, including Dale Jarrett, Mark Martin, Bill Elliott and Rusty Wallace, who appeared in Alan Jackson’s “Who’s Cheatin’ Who” video.

Meanwhile, country artists’ names and/or likenesses have shown up in several NASCAR cars. Chris Stapleton teamed with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and JR Motorsports’ first entry in the Daytona 500 with the No. 40 Traveller Whiskey Chevrolet. Luke Combs, Bailey Zimmerman and Taylor Swift have also been featured on NASCAR cars.

Fans and country artists alike continue to honor the life and legacy of “The Intimidator” and below, we highlight a handful of songs that nod to the late Dale Earnhardt Sr.

At EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta), the field of 32 was cut in half as NASCAR’s five-week in-season challenge officially got underway. Even with the expected chaos of a drafting track, no one expected a 23-car pileup that would help the No. 32 and No. 31 seeds defeat the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds.

There are many underdogs left while big names will be forced to sit on the sidelines for the rest of the competition. No fan can win the $1 million prize, as literally every bracket was busted at Atlanta, but one of the remaining 16 drivers will still go on to collect $1 million for themselves.

Round 2 takes place at the Chicago Street Course and with rain potentially impacting the event again, anything can happen.

Here’s a look at the eight matchups and who we think will advance into Round 3 at Sonoma…

Note: The NASCAR in-season challenge only offers a monetary prize and does not impact the championship

Ty Dillon, Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

The bottom seed lives to fight another day! After ousting Denny Hamlin at Atlanta, Dillon will also eliminate Keselowski at Chicago, but he won’t need a 23-car pileup this time. Dillon is a solid road racer and ran inside the top ten for a large portion of the Cup race in Mexico City. He doesn’t have as much experience as Keselowski — the 2012 NASCAR Cup champion — but Brad has struggled on road and street courses in the Next Gen era. 

Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

It’s hard to bet against the defending winner of the event. Wallace has shown clear improvement on road and street courses, but Bowman is clearly on another level at these types of tracks. Of course, Bowman won this race last year, but he also scored a top ten at COTA and a top five in Mexico City in 2025. Meanwhile, Wallace’s best result at Chicago is 13th.

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

Fresh off a big win at his home track in Atlanta, Elliott is the definitive favorite over Nemechek. While John-Hunter finished a very strong sixth in Mexico City, Elliott was on the podium. And if not for a Lap 1 incident at COTA, he could have contended for the win there. He also has a podium finish on the streets of Chicago while Nemechek placed 35th in his only start there.

Erik Jones, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota

Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images

Stenhouse has a best finish of sixth at Chicago while Jones has only reached 16th, but Jones is our pick here. It will be a bit of a toss-up as these drivers seem equally matched when it comes to skill level at road/street courses, and it may come down to who can keep their nose clean while in the middle of the pack.

Ryan Preece, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford

Photo by: Jonathan Bachman – Getty Images

Gragson is no road racer and infamously crashed several times in the rain during the inaugural Chicago Street Course race. These two drivers have shown similar speed at Chicago in the past, but Preece has really upped his game in 2025. He won a stage at COTA, qualified on the front row in Mexico City, and has been remarkably consistent this year. If both of these drivers stay out of trouble, Preece takes this battle.

Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing Toyota

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

Reddick absolutely could have won this race one year ago if he hadn’t made an unforced error and tagged the wall while pursuing Bowman. Even still, he managed to score a runner-up finish while Hocevar ended the day outside the top 20 last year. He also has a lot of enemies on track, which will make things extra difficult for him this weekend. Even if no one does anything, it’s a major distraction.

Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Photo by: Krista Jasso / Getty Images

This will be a fascinating battle. Gibbs’ 2025 season has been a struggle, but he showed incredible pace in Mexico and looked like the only driver who could even put up a fight against Van Gisbergen. And then you have Allmendinger, who is one of the best road racers in the sport. However, Chicago has not been very kind to him with a best finish of 17th. Meanwhile, of the drivers who have run both Cup races at Chicago, Gibbs is tied with Michael McDowell for the best average finish after placing ninth in 2023 and third in 2024.

Chris Buescher, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

Buescher finished tenth in the first Cup race in Chicago and then 20th last year. Smith beat Buescher in 2024 and could definitely beat him again, but Buescher is also a proven winner at road courses. He beat van Gisbergen in a head-to-head fight for the win at Watkins Glen last year, and few can claim such a feat since SVG has come over to NASCAR.

Julie Giese has become a familiar face in Chicago.

“It is funny,” Giese, the president of NASCAR’s Chicago street race told RACER. “I go to the grocery store and the first year, especially, it was like, ‘Oh, you’re the NASCAR lady.’ It’s fun to hear that. As we go into year three, people recognize it, they’re about it and they have a clear understand and are like, ‘We can’t wait to see it again.’”

It is the third consecutive year NASCAR is bringing its Xfinity Series and Cup Series teams to Chicago. The streets around Grant Park will be shut down as cars race next to high-rise buildings and past Buckingham Fountain. But it is the last year of the contract with the city of Chicago, although there are option years for the two sides to agree to keep the race on the schedule.

Giese has been there since the beginning, an integral part of the team responsible for the event. But she’s also the face of the event as someone who has been on the ground, attending meetings, answering questions and doing community outreach, having moved to Chicago to be based there.

“It’s been really rewarding,” Giese said. “It’s been a great learning experience. I’ve learned so much these three years here in Chicago whether it’s community outreach, the community engagement, the impact initiatives that we’ve been doing year-round or enjoying the city. I’ve enjoyed it. I’m from the Midwest, so it’s nice to be closer to home and that Midwest environment.”

Giese is enjoying being the “NASCAR lady” in Chicago. Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images

From the start, it was important for Giese and NASCAR to be neighbors of the residents of Chicago, not transplants that come in once a year, disrupt things and leave. Not only did NASCAR set up an office in Chicago, but there are events the sport gets involved with throughout the year that keeps them in front of locals while continuing to show off the sport.

Giese said as the event has grown over the last three years, the conversations that might have been an hour long in year one are now just a few minutes. Or a simple check-in of everyone acknowledging they are good and don’t need anything. And the education process included everything from what NASCAR is to answering questions about race cars hitting buildings.

“I was really the only voice explaining what to expect,” Giese said. “No one had seen it. I hadn’t seen it, but I was talking to these different organizations or resident buildings, and I had a computer model. That was proof of concept really. Then going from year one, everyone sees it … and going into year two, we had those same conversations we had in year one. We weren’t going to back away from any of those, so we continue to better, and in those conversations, we were hearing, ‘I watched it on television and our city looked pretty special and it looked amazing. This is great for our city.’

“Moving to this year, we’re still doing the exact same outreach that we’ve done from year one, so several 100 conversations, meetings, touch points, but they’re much more abbreviated. Everyone has a good understanding. The local residents and buildings around the footprint, they know when we come with their vehicle placards to get to their buildings easily what that means. They know what to expect.”

The Chicago course was a leap into the unknown, but both NASCAR and the city of Chicago now know what to expect. Quinn Harris/Getty Images

NASCAR also shortened the build time for the course for the third straight year. Giese said the build time this year is 42% less than it was in the first year. Some even approached the NASCAR team asking if it was going to be done in time for this weekend’s events since the build started two weeks later than previous years.

A street course also provides evolution flexibility from year to year based on feedback. One of the biggest for this year is trying to cut down the amount of walking by putting a lot of the main experiences closer together. There was also thought put into the viewing areas and fans being able to walk around the course and see the cars on track from different vantage points. Additionally, kids 12 and under are free for the entire weekend.

The future of NASCAR in Chicago – and Giese – is unknown, and those conversations will continue once the third annual event comes to a close. However, it’s arguably been a success for both sides for multiple reasons.

“It drives economic impact and tourism to the city of Chicago, as well as [being] a commercial for the entire weekend on an international television for the city,” Giese said. “Then for us, it’s bringing NASCAR to a new audience. That first year, over 80% of our attendees were at their very first NASCAR race. Last year, I believe it was close to 70. We’re tracking in and around that area again this year.

“I think those are the two big metrics. Obviously, [NASCAR] working with all the different neighborhoods across the city, the community engagement of over $5 million in initiatives over these three years from a giveback perspective. That’s something I enjoy most about NASCAR and working in NASCAR is the work done in the communities where we race. Chicago is no different.”

Ryan Blaney Doesn’t Hold Back On NASCAR, Formula 1 Rivalry originally appeared on The Spun.

The NASCAR Cup Series held the Quaker State 400 on a Saturday, opening the door for Formula 1 to have Sunday all by itself. That made things a bit interesting as far as the ratings were concerned.

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Saturday’s broadcast was the first NASCAR Cup Series race on TNT since July 2014. It turns out 1.6 million viewers tuned in for the race at EchoPark Speedway in Atlanta. Chase Elliott came out on top, edging out Brad Keselowski, Alex Bowman and the rest of the field.

Lando Norris, meanwhile, continued his excellent season with McLaren by coming in first place at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Even though Formula 1 is on the rise, NASCAR won the ratings battle. However, it wasn’t the type of victory media members were willing to celebrate.

“Ugh, Saturday night NASCAR races just can’t seem to pull numbers. NASCAR says it got an average of 1.6 million viewers for the Atlanta race,” Jeff Gluck of The Athletic wrote. “Also, if you were wondering about F1 viewership on the F1 movie’s premiere weekend, the Austria race got 1.1 million viewers (a record for that race, but only up two percent over last year).”

On Wednesday morning, Ryan Blaney responded to Gluck’s remarks about NASCAR’s TV ratings.

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“So, we got 500k more folks tuned in,” Blaney replied. “Why do people make it out to be a bad thing? We crush the parade every week, so why do we get down in the dumps by this? Nascar is currently crushing it.”

While we can’t fault Blaney for defending the Cup Series, it’s worth noting that Saturday’s ratings were way below the season average (2.88 million viewers through 18 races).

NASCAR will try to redeem itself on Sunday when the Cup Series heads over to the Chicago Street Course.

Related: NASCAR Fans Calling For Change To Cup Series Schedule

Ryan Blaney Doesn’t Hold Back On NASCAR, Formula 1 Rivalry first appeared on The Spun on Jul 2, 2025

This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jul 2, 2025, where it first appeared.

NASCAR is back in Chicago this weekend, and it brought a new broadcaster.

TNT takes over coverage of the Cup Series Chicago Street Race from NBC, which aired it the last two years. Before debuting last week in Atlanta, TNT hadn’t carried a NASCAR race since 2014. Now it has the herculean task of covering a 12-turn street race through a metropolitan area.

“This is more than a race,” TNT analyst Steve Letarte said. “It’s truly a spectacle.”

Letarte was an analyst for the race on NBC, which broadcast “radio style,” meaning commentators were positioned around the track. Letarte was part of the main booth, and that’s where he’ll be Sunday for TNT’s traditional broadcast with analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr. and play-by-play voice Adam Alexander.

“We’ll be in basically a production booth,” Letarte said. “There’s not really a location there that gives you a lot of overview, but that’s not anything new. Most road courses we call from a booth anyway.

“I think it’ll look different than NBC, as it should. I think NBC did a really nice job, but I think TNT proved at Atlanta that they also do a very nice job.”

The trio called Prime Video’s five-race package, which preceded TNT’s as part of NASCAR’s new media deal. NBC takes the baton in August.

Also new is the Cup Series’ in-season challenge, a head-to-head tournament that’s made up of TNT’s races. The Chicago race marks the Sweet 16, with drivers competing for a $1 million prize.

What isn’t changing is the course, which is a challenge for the production crew to cover.

“Our director, Steve Fiorello, is phenomenal in the prep work for each track: camera positions, blind spots,” said John O’Connor, TNT vice president and executive producer. “Talking to Dale about what can we expect, he said you’re going to have a lot of blind turns. The drivers come down, everything feels like they’re in a tunnel.

“The challenges are, can we make the viewers feel what the drivers are feeling? Can we get close enough in these areas and these corners, these blind turns with these cameras to make it feel like what the drivers are seeing and feeling.”

To do that, Fiorello will have almost 50 cameras at his disposal, including 20 manned and unmanned cameras around the track. Cranes of 55 and 60 feet will have a camera on the course. Six cars will have cameras inside, and four handheld cameras will roam the track and pits, following reporters Alan Cavanna, Danielle Trotta and Marty Snider. A helicopter, drone and the Goodyear Blimp will provide aerial coverage.

After two water-logged races, Chicago is due for a nice day. But rain is in the forecast Sunday.

“We talked about it,” O’Connor said. “We’re ready in terms of doing the broadcast because they’ll race in that rain. There’s an added excitement to it. You don’t see NASCAR cars driving in the rain very often. It’s a unique look.

“The cameras are fine, the technology is fine. There’s nothing that our tech teams can’t pull off and are prepared for in those areas. It’s just the racing and how we adapt to that.”

Like NBC did, TNT will lean into the race’s setting, showcasing the city and skyline. The pre- and post-race crew of host Shannon Spake and analysts Parker Kligerman and Jamie McMurray will appear on TNT’s set adjacent to Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park.

“As far as street courses go, the setting is as amazing as we all expected it to be, if not better,” Letarte said. “My family comes to this race. They don’t really come to any other races, but they’re coming here because it’s set in a city, you walk to the racetrack, it has concerts.

“The whole weekend is a true spectacle of sports and entertainment, and it’s our job at TNT — and I’m sure we will — to bring that event into the living room and make everybody know that they’re watching not only a race but a big event.”

Remote patrol

CW affiliate WGN 9 will carry the NASCAR Xfinity Series Chicago Street Race at 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Adam Alexander, Parker Kligerman and Jamie McMurray will call it. Pre-race coverage begins at 2:30. WGN also will air qualifying at 10:30 a.m.

• TNT Sports will air an alternate telecast of the Cup Series race on truTV that focuses on the in-season challenge. Larry McReynolds and Jeff Burton will co-host from the network’s Atlanta studio.