All along, NASCAR fans have been told that the inaugural In-Season Challenge, known by some as NASCAR's latest and greatest gimmick, would be awarding a $1 million prize, similar to the annual All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
The epic showdown between two drivers named Ty (with zero career Cup Series wins combined) is set for this Sunday afternoon in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But before the fifth and final round of this 32-driver tournament, NASCAR has revealed something that probably should have been revealed at the start, at least from a PR standpoint.
The $1 million prize is for the team owner, not the driver, and they get to decide what happens with it.
I believe when the in-season tournament was first announced, the understanding of many in the garage was that the $1 million would go directly to the driver. But NASCAR says it will be paid to owner just like the purse (and depends on driver contract on how much driver gets). https://t.co/dx3xDOLYfx
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) July 22, 2025
At the end of the day, most everyday NASCAR fans really couldn't care less about a bunch of drivers who are already rich competing for another $1 million, especially when the two drivers battling for that prize happen to be two drivers whose grandfathers are also Cup Series team owners.
But what's the point of NASCAR waiting until the last race to make this news public?
I noticed that NASCAR did not make an announcement to correct the broadcast partners all year. Next Gen, inconsistent officiating, charter drama, and now this. NASCAR is turning more and more in to a clown show.
— Quietly Making Noise (@QuietlyMknNoise) July 22, 2025
This is almost as embarrassing as IndyCar's $1 million challenge (for $500,000) at Thermal Club last year, except NASCAR is rightfully taking more flak for it because of the level of publicity they have given this tournament in the build-up to this so-called million-dollar showdown on Sunday at the Brickyard.
While it may not matter to the fans who gets the extra money, that extra money is still incentive for the drivers, and that in itself enhances the on-track product, or at least it should.
As much as I've criticized the concept of this tournament for the past five weeks, the prize is one of the main reasons why the drivers actually care about random head-to-head matchups in the middle of the regular season, and it's why a good chunk of the fanbase does genuinely care about a battle between two drivers who probably won't even make the playoffs this coming weekend.
But now it's effectively just an addition to the purse, rather than an All-Star-like prize.
Was NASCAR purposely shielding fans from this fact? Did the drivers even know what, exactly, they were competing for, even if that decision was indeed made "well before the start of the tournament"? What else are they hiding?
Tune in to TNT Sports at 2:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, July 27 for the live broadcast of the Brickyard 400 from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.