CHICAGO — And then there were eight.
After Sunday’s Grant Park 165 on the Chicago Street Course, the field for the NASCAR Cup Series In-Season Challenge tournament was again cut in half, leaving eight drivers still alive for the $1 million top prize that will be paid after eliminations conclude later this month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Brad Keselowski was involved in an early crash and his early exit made a winner of 32nd seed Ty Dillon in the In-Season Challenge.
Dillon, who eliminated Denny Hamlin in the opening round, will face Alex Bowman in next Sunday third-round event at Sonoma Raceway.
Bowman finished eighth at Chicago after trading shot after shot with his Chicago opponent, Bubba Wallace, until Wallace spun in the closing laps to lose the head-to-head battle.
John Hunter Nemechek finished 15th, one spot ahead of Chase Elliott, to eliminate the driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet from the In-Season Challenge.
Nemechek will face Legacy Motor Club teammate Erik Jones, who advanced when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. retired after colliding with a tire barrier.
Ryan Preece ran seventh and eliminated 30th-place finisher Noah Gragson. He’ll face Tyler Reddick, who ousted Carson Hocevar. Reddick finished third and Hocevar was eliminated in an early crash.
Gibbs brought his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota home second in Chicago to prevail over sixth-place finisher A.J. Allmendinger and will race against Zane Smith at Sonoma.
Smith came home 14th and knocked out 18th-place Chris Buescher, who ran most of the race with an engine down on power.
Sonoma Matchups
Ty Dillon vs. Alex Bowman
John Hunter Nemechek vs. Erik Jones
Ryan Preece vs. Tyler Reddick
Ty Gibbs vs. Zane Smith
