NASCAR Cup Series drivers Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace will face off in the second round of the In-Season Challenge at the Grant Park 165, held on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on TNT, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. The battle is crucial for both drivers, who are just above the current elimination line for the Cup Playoffs.
Bowman, the defending winner, holds a 39-point lead over Wallace, his opponent in the second round of the Challenge. Bowman advanced to this stage after a third-place finish at EchoPark Speedway outside Atlanta, while Wallace moved on by finishing 22nd and staying ahead of Daniel Suarez in the same wreck that eliminated Logano.
For both drivers, making the Playoffs is their primary goal, with eight races left in the regular season. However, failing to win any of these remaining races puts them at risk of elimination. Bowman aims to defend his Chicago Street Race victory from last year and build momentum for the Playoff push.
The field will also feature Shane van Gisbergen, who won last year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race in Chicago but crashed out of the 2024 Cup event. Van Gisbergen is confident that his team will be strong this weekend and expects to contend for a top spot.
With Ty Gibbs, Michael McDowell, and Kyle Busch as the only drivers to finish in the top 10 in both Chicago Street Races, rain tires are expected to play a role again. The outcome of the Grant Park 165 is crucial for these drivers’ Playoff hopes, making this weekend’s event an intense battle between Bowman, Wallace, and van Gisbergen.
Source: https://www.jayski.com/2025/07/03/its-alex-bowman-vs-bubba-wallace-in-chicago-in-more-ways-than-one