Following the race in Atlanta, 16 drivers have been knocked out, setting the stage for the second round of five at the Chicago Street Course. It’s important to note that a perfect bracket is unlikely, especially after the chaotic events at Echopark Speedway in Atlanta on Saturday night.
Highlighting some major surprises ahead of Round 2: top seed Denny Hamlin (No. 1) was involved in a massive 23-car crash on lap 69 and was eliminated by No. 32 seed Ty Dillon. Similarly, No. 2 seed Chase Briscoe also exited the race because of this incident.
The shocks didn’t end there—Ricky Stenhouse Jr. took out Christopher Bell, Erik Jones eliminated Ross Chastain, and Ryan Preece knocked out William Byron. Notably, no drivers from Trackhouse Racing or Team Penske remain, with only Ty Gibbs left from Joe Gibbs Racing after half of Hendrick Motorsports’ drivers were eliminated in the first round. However, all three drivers from RFK Racing advanced, alongside contenders from smaller teams like Kaulig and Legacy Motor Club.
Looking ahead to Chicago, the Round 2 matchups are as follows:
– Ty Dillon (No. 32) vs. Brad Keselowski (No. 17)
– Alex Bowman (No. 8) vs. Bubba Wallace (No. 9)
– John Hunter Nemechek (No. 12) vs. Chase Elliott (No. 5)
– Erik Jones (No. 20) vs. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (No. 29)
– Noah Gragson (No. 31) vs. Ryan Preece (No. 15)
– Carson Hocevar (No. 26) vs. Tyler Reddick (No. 23)
– AJ Allmendinger (No. 22) vs. Ty Gibbs (No. 6)
– Zane Smith (No. 14) vs. Chris Buescher (No. 3)
Fan Take: This dramatic shake-up after Atlanta’s intense crash highlights just how unpredictable NASCAR can be, keeping fans on the edge of their seats. The elimination of top contenders early in the playoffs throws open new opportunities for underdogs and smaller teams, injecting fresh excitement and unpredictability into the sport.
