The 2026 In-Season Challenge shifts to the hills of Sonoma

The five-week, head-to-head bracket battle of the NASCAR Cup Series enters its second year with a massive shift. While last year's inaugural In-Season Challenge opener at the EchoPark Speedway drafting track triggered a chaotic series of upsets, Sunday’s Round 1 moves to the winding, technical hills of Sonoma Raceway. It is a change that promises a different tactical landscape for the field.

Road course specialists like Shane van Gisbergen of Trackhouse Racing naturally headline the conversation, though the field is deep with Sonoma pedigree. Kyle Larson remains the only active driver with multiple wins here, and despite a difficult 35th-place finish last year, he showed sharp pace in San Diego. Meanwhile, Michael McDowell looks to maintain his stellar 4.0 average finish in the Next Gen car, though he faces a stiff test against a surging Bubba Wallace.

Personal animosity might steal the spotlight, however, as Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith are locked into a heated Round 1 pairing. Following a well-documented on-track incident last summer at Iowa Speedway, tensions are high between the two young stars. Elsewhere, health concerns hover over the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team as Christopher Bell battles a fractured left wrist, leaving his matchup against the consistent Ross Chastain of Trackhouse Racing as the definitive upset watch of the weekend.

The pressure is equally immense for the RFK Racing pairing of Ryan Preece and Brad Keselowski, both of whom need a strong result to stabilize their respective seasons. Preece will look to capitalize on any mistakes from van Gisbergen, while Keselowski faces off against Austin Cindric in a battle of former No. 2 car pilots that carries significant postseason weight.