It is time for Spherical 2 of the 2026 In-Season Problem because the NASCAR Cup Sequence heads to Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday (6 p.m. ET, TNT Sports activities, truTV, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) for its first go to to the Joliet, Illinois, facility since 2019. With how Spherical 1 performed out, the expectations are even increased for the one 1.5-mile observe on this 12 months’s bracket.
Whereas your entire proper aspect of the bracket was chalk at Sonoma Raceway, the left aspect featured three upsets — together with top-seeded Tyler Reddick shedding to No. 32 Alex Bowman after an early mechanical problem. So as to add insult to harm, Reddick misplaced the collection factors lead for the primary time all season. No. 25 Todd Gilliland additionally upset No. 8 Daniel Suárez regardless of ending outdoors the highest 25, and artful highway racer Michael McDowell defeated No. 13 Bubba Wallace. Three of the 16 Spherical 1 matchups had been determined by two spots or fewer.
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This week includes a handful of matchups between heavy hitters that would finally make or break your bracket. Chicagoland actually has unknowns from sitting dormant for seven years, however usually, anticipate the cream to rise to the highest identical to a typical intermediate race.
RELATED: Examine your bracket! | In-Season Problem hub
ROUND 2 MATCHUPS:
(No. 2) Denny Hamlin vs. (No. 15) Erik Jones
(No. 3) Ryan Blaney vs. (No. 14) Shane van Gisbergen
(No. 4) Chase Elliott vs. (No. 20) Michael McDowell
(No. 5) Ty Gibbs vs. (No. 12) Chase Briscoe
(No. 6) Kyle Larson vs. (No. 11) William Byron
(No. 7) Chris Buescher vs. (No. 10) Christopher Bell
(No. 9) Carson Hocevar vs. (No. 25) Todd Gilliland
(No. 16) Austin Cindric vs. (No. 32) Alex Bowman
TRACK BREAKDOWN
It is tough to foretell precisely how Chicagoland will play out, however anticipate important tire conservation efforts. The revived speedway options its authentic racing floor since opening in 2001, and Cup Sequence groups could have 12 units of Goodyear rubber for the weekend.
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Races the place tires are at a premium are inclined to favor veteran drivers, so look no additional than Denny Hamlin. He is the very best remaining seed and faces No. 15 Erik Jones, who’s on an upswing over the summer time months. However Hamlin has a whopping 2.5 common end on intermediates this season with a median operating place of three.89. Hamlin additionally participated in a Goodyear tire take a look at at Chicagoland this spring with Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney. And talking of Larson, he owns the very best common end in six begins on the observe (6.17), with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott proper behind him (8.75) in 4 begins.
Sunday might be busy on pit highway over 267 laps, however all traits appear to favor Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports. 23XI Racing also needs to be robust, however not one of the Hamlin-co-owned automobiles stay within the bracket.
MATCHUP OF THE WEEK: (No. 6) Kyle Larson vs. (No. 11) William Byron
This matchup has some critical star energy, and yeah, they’re teammates, too. A pair of the very best on intermediate tracks, Larson and Byron will sq. off in Spherical 2 at Chicagoland — each coming off comparatively decisive wins at Sonoma Raceway. Larson stomped Riley Herbst in Spherical 1, ending fourth whereas the 23XI Racing driver positioned thirtieth. In the meantime, Byron completed twelfth on the highway course in comparison with twenty first for opponent Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
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Hendrick Motorsports is seemingly off on tempo at bigger ovals this season, at the very least in comparison with Toyota — this 12 months’s benchmark. However each Larson and Byron confirmed loads of life in latest weeks at Michigan Worldwide Speedway and Pocono Raceway. Larson’s using a streak of 5 prime fives within the final six races. With a third-place end at Pocono, the “Tough Triangle” served as arguably Byron’s greatest race of the season.
In order the 2026 marketing campaign inches towards The Chase, this head-to-head battle might function an vital marker for Hendrick with each drivers in search of their first wins of the season. On paper, Larson has the benefit, with extra momentum and a stronger document at Chicagoland — a observe dormant since 2019 — however this matchup might be a nailbiter.
MORE: Recap Spherical 1 motion
a break up picture graphic that includes kyle larson and william byron, NASCAR.com
KEY MATCHUP: (No. 5) Ty Gibbs vs. (No. 12) Chase Briscoe
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One other teammate matchup, this time inside Joe Gibbs Racing — and it must be simply as entertaining because the Hendrick drivers. Gibbs is having fun with a career-best season, sitting fourth within the collection ranks with a win at Bristol Motor Speedway this spring and the fifth-best common end (13.17). Then again, Briscoe is lastly starting to surge after a brutal spring stretch, recording prime 10s in 4 of the final seven races and almost outgunning Shane van Gisbergen final weekend at Sonoma.
Neither driver has raced within the Cup Sequence at Chicagoland, and Gibbs hasn’t raced on the facility in any respect. Briscoe has 4 earlier begins in decrease collection, together with an ARCA Menards Sequence win in 2016. That have actually won’t be related within the Subsequent Gen automobile, however it’s at the very least one thing. General, Gibbs has proven extra consistency in 2026 and has prime 10s in three of the primary 4 1.5-mile races this 12 months. That is as huge a toss-up as you will get, however with the No. 19 workforce not off course, Briscoe might have a slight edge — and he might hand Gibbs his first-ever In-Season Problem loss.
KEY MATCHUP: (No. 7) Chris Buescher vs. (No. 10) Christopher Bell
This battle is perhaps much less heralded than the others, however it might very properly come right down to the wire. Buescher is likely one of the most constant drivers within the collection, incomes 9 prime 10s via 18 races and ending outdoors the highest 20 simply thrice. Bell is kind of the alternative in a season outlined by feast or famine, with three finishes outdoors the highest 20 in simply the final 4 weeks. However when the No. 20 JGR workforce has a clear race, he is virtually all the time a contender.
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Bell has earned six top-five finishes this season and continues to nurse a damaged wrist — though his P5 effort at Sonoma exhibits it is not inhibiting him from logging marquee finishes. His ceiling is mostly increased than Buescher’s on a week-to-week foundation, and with Toyota’s stellar intermediate velocity in 2026, Bell must be the favourite on this matchup. But when his day begins to unravel, Buescher will virtually actually take benefit.
UPSET WATCH: (No. 3) Ryan Blaney
Blaney has knowledge from the spring tire take a look at in his again pocket, however faces No. 14 van Gisbergen in Spherical 2, who’s recent off a victory final weekend at Sonoma Raceway. SVG is clearly improved throughout the board in 2026, as evidenced by his +5.6 achieve in common end in comparison with this time final 12 months.
However particularly, van Gisbergen has proven a capability to carry out properly at bigger tracks when he has a good qualifying draw. This weekend, he’ll be the fifth-to-last driver to roll out for a scorching lap. The qualifying metric is weighted between the workforce’s end within the prior race and homeowners’ factors. After ending second at Circuit of The Americas in March, he earned a good draw and finally completed eleventh. He then received at Watkins Glen Worldwide in Might, adopted by a pair of top-10 qualifying outcomes at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Nashville Superspeedway. He completed eleventh and fifth in these occasions, respectively.
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In the meantime, Blaney is third in factors, but Ford’s tempo stays off at intermediates. The No. 12 Crew Penske driver is normally the very best of the bunch, however he hasn’t completed higher than seventh all 12 months at conventional ovals 1.5 miles or bigger. Blaney is favored right here, however it’s a harmful matchup for the 2023 Cup champ.
