NASCAR in-season tournament bracket down to 8 drivers for Sonoma
CHICAGO — After Chicago, the NASCAR Cup Series in-season tournament bracket is down to eight drivers set for the third round of matchups in Sonoma.
Here are the matchups and how they got there:
Ty Dillon (No. 32) vs. Alex Bowman (No. 8)
Dillon easily defeated Brad Keselowski after a big wreck took Keselowski out of the race early on in Chicago. Dillon finished 20th of 40 drivers while Keselowski finished 37th.
Brad Keselowski (No. 17) vs. Ty Dillon (No. 32)
Alex Bowman didn’t have it as easy. With less than 10 laps to go, he battled with No. 9 seed Bubba Wallace who bumped him multiple times to get him out of the way – and then finished himself with a block gone wrong exiting turn two. Bowman cruised to an eighth-place finish while Wallace languished in 28th.
John Hunter Nemechek (No. 12) vs. Erik Jones (No. 20)
John Hunter Nemechek finished 15th, one position and one second ahead of Chase Elliott to advance in the tournament. Nemechek took advantage of fresh tires put on his No. 42 car with 30 laps to go. Elliott had issues late that shuffled him behind Nemechek and eliminated him from the tournament.
Nemechek will face Legacy Motor Club teammate Erik Jones in the third round of the NASCAR in-season tournament. Although Jones finished 25th, one lap down, he benefitted from Ricky Stenhouse Jr. hitting the tire barrier late in the race. Stenhouse finished 31st, 13 laps down.
Ryan Preece (No. 15) vs. Noah Gragson (No. 31)
Ryan Preece had another great run on a road course, finishing seventh and advancing in the tournament. Meanwhile, No. 31 seed Noah Gragson found trouble and finished 30th, seven laps down.
Preece will face Tyler Reddick, who easily eliminated No. 26 seed Carson Hocevar after he set off a massive crash on lap three that wiped out himself, Keselowski and others.
Ty Gibbs (No. 6) vs. Zane Smith (No. 14)
A slow stop for No. 22 seed A.J. Allmendinger on lap 41 helped move Gibbs forward in the NASCAR in-season tournament. Gibbs finished second while drivers on newer tires pushed Allmendinger back to finish sixth.
Gibbs will face Zane Smith, who benefitted from No. 3 seed Chris Buescher having engine issues early on in the race. Buescher showed top five pace early on – until engine issues hit and didn’t allow him to even hang with the pack. Smith finished 14th, 12 seconds ahead of Buescher – who finished 18th.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com
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