Ryan Blaney’s Chicagoland assignment has given NASCAR’s In-Season Challenge its first serious bracket stress test on an oval.
NASCAR confirmed its Cup Series returns to Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday for the first time since 2019, with Round 2 of the bracket attached to a 267-lap race at the 1.5-mile Joliet oval. The official preview lists Blaney, the No.3 seed, against No.14 seed Shane van Gisbergen in one of the more volatile pairings of the weekend.
Why Blaney’s draw carries risk
On paper, Blaney should control the tie. He took part in the spring Goodyear tyre test at Chicagoland, and NASCAR’s own preview notes that the original surface is expected to put tyre conservation high on the weekend agenda.
The complication is form. NASCAR pointed out that Ford’s intermediate-track pace has lagged through 2026, with Blaney yet to finish better than seventh on traditional ovals of 1.5 miles or larger this season.
Van Gisbergen, meanwhile, arrives from a Sonoma win and has shown enough improvement away from pure road-course territory to make this a live upset rather than a novelty bracket line. His qualifying draw also gives Trackhouse a cleaner route into the race than many lower seeds receive.
Embedded media: NASCAR official previews Chicagoland’s return
The wider bracket stakes are simple: if Blaney survives, Ford keeps a frontline contender alive. If SVG removes him, NASCAR’s Challenge gets the shock result its second round has been threatening all week.
