Ty Dillon and Ty Gibbs are squaring off in the finale of NASCAR’s inaugural $1,000,000 In-Season Challenge at the Brickyard 400. The two drivers will be racing for the major prize at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 27, 2025, after a tournament that started with 32 drivers in June.
According to NASCAR, the tournament is, “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.”
Here’s what you need to know about the tournament and how it will play out at the Brickyard 400:
The In-Season Challenge Started at June 28 in Atlanta
James Gilbert/GettyThere is $1 million on the line for two drivers at the Brickyard 400 in 2025.
The In-Season Challenge started with 32 drivers in Atlanta on June 28. The top 32 drivers in the point standings at the time were included in the tournament.
According to NASCAR, those drivers were, “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.”
NASCAR added, “The four full-time drivers who did not qualify are Shane van Gisbergen, Cole Custer, Riley Herbst and Cody Ware.”
According to NASCAR, “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.
Either Ty Gibbs or Ty Dillon Will Earn ‘a Cool $1 Million’ & ‘the Ultimate Bragging Rights’
Either Gibbs or Dillon will win the tournament and take home the big prize based on how they finish at the Brickyard 400.
NASCAR explained that it’s, “simple. The driver in each head-to-head matchup that finishes higher than the other ‘wins’ that matchup and advances to the next round. 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.”
NASCAR added that the winner gets, “A cool $1 million — the ultimate bragging rights.”
Ty Dillon, Who Upset No. 1 Seed Denny Hamlin in the First Round, Said Ahead of the Brickyard 400, ‘the Last Couple Weeks Have Been a Bit of a Whirlwind’
“Dillon has taken the NASCAR world by storm over the past month-plus,” NASCAR wrote. “Entering as the 32nd and lowest seed, the No. 10 Kaulig Racing driver has upset top-seeded Denny Hamlin, 2012 champ Brad Keselowski, perennial playoff contender Alex Bowman and an upstart John Hunter Nemechek along his journey to the championship round. He and the Kaulig shop have also celebrated their weekly successes as little victories.”
Dillon, 33, told reporters, “The last couple weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind from Monday till the race, just everything that’s been going on with the in-season tournament. It’s been quite welcomed and very fun. We had a team luncheon on Tuesday, led by [Kaulig President] Chris Rice, which I appreciate. We started it with saying, like, it’s weird that we’re having a luncheon after finishing 20th. But what this has done for our team, the morale, even just talking to guys, just these are the summer months that are hard for these people — the men and women at Kaulig Racing and all the race teams — to keep finding motivation to work hard and build the best of the best each week.”
Dillon added,”“ appreciate the fact that Kaulig Racing, Chris Rice, [team owner] Matt Kaulig, aren’t afraid to pause and say, ‘Hey, this is a good thing, and let’s take this moment in because this is a lot of fun and good for everybody.’ It was a great moment on Tuesday, and we’re all excited for this weekend.”
He told reporters he has embraced the spotlight, “I hope me being a little jovial and playing will allow some more people to feel like they can have a little more personality. We have some great, wonderful race car drivers, but I think our sport’s only going to grow if the best of our best can grow into a personality and really take the moment, harness the fans and the entertainment side of what we do, too.”
Ty Gibbs, Who Started as the No. 6 Seed, Said About the Finale of the Challenge:
Gibbs, 22, is making just his second start at the Brickyard 400 with $1 million on the line. Gibbs entered the tournament as the No. 6 seed. He beat Justin Haley in the first round and then advanced past AJ Allmendinger, Zane Smith and Tyler Reddick to advance to the finals against Dillon.
Gibbs talked about the history at Indianapolis Motor Speedway before the showdown, telling reporters at his press conference ahead of the race, “This is the most historical track in the world,. Outside of Monza, I think is another one like this, I don’t think there’s anywhere like this, and I really respect and appreciate the history of this place. I’ve been able to go to the museum two times now and check everything out, and all the history back to when they first opened. It’s insane to be here. Insane to race here. I think this is race-car country — is what we would call it.”
He added about his duel with Dillon, “Hopefully we’re not bumper to bumper, and hopefully we’re going for the win, so we’ll see. But maybe we are both going for the win, so I don’t know. I feel like we’ve been really good with our strategy lately and hopefully that puts us up front.”
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