CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR announced Monday that it will be spicing things up in 2025 with a new 32-driver, five-race tournament with the winner bringing home $1 million.
The bracket-style tournament will be held next summer as TNT Sports returns to broadcast NASCAR events next season. All drivers will be eligible for the seeding races. The top 32 drivers from those three events, which will air on Amazon Prime Video, will qualify for the in-season tournament. Tiebreakers will be determined by next-best finish, followed by points position.
“With the launch of our new media rights partnerships in 2025, we were excited to partner with Prime Video and TNT Sports to collaborate on fan engagement concepts that drive storylines in our sport and innovation from a production perspective,” Brian Herbst, NASCAR SVP of media and productions, said in a press release.
The head-to-head tournament idea was first launched by driver/owner Denny Hamlin, whose bracket challenge drew praise from fans last season. The winner of the 2025 in-season tournament will take home a $1 million prize.
Prime Video and TNT will evenly split a series of 10 midseason Cup Series races through the 2031 season. Both companies also own the exclusive rights to select practice and qualifying sessions in the Cup Series as part of the new media rights agreement that runs through 2031.
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