One week ago, the beginning of the NASCAR playoffs was marked by a tradition old and unchanging, as the legendary Southern 500 at Darlington opened the race for the 2025 Cup Series championship. Now, with Chase Briscoe having won his second-straight Southern 500 and becoming the first driver to advance to the Round of 12, it’s on to something new for the 15 drivers still trying to ensure their playoff push goes beyond the first round.

For the very first time, World Wide Technology Raceway in St. Louis plays host to a playoff race, as the Cup Series makes its annual trip out to Gateway for the Enjoy Illinois 300. After being added to the Cup schedule in 2022, Gateway moved from an early June date to the second race of the Round of 16 for 2025, making this the first time that NASCAR’s best will challenge this unique 1.25 mile flat oval in the fall.

Three Cup races at World Wide Technology Raceway so far have yielded three different winners, two of which — 2022 winner Joey Logano and 2024 winner Austin Cindric — will hope to punch their ticket to the next round of the playoffs.

Where to watch the NASCAR playoffs at Gateway

When: Sunday, Sept. 7 at 3 p.m. ET
Where: World Wide Technology Raceway — Madison, Illinois
TV: USA | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)  

Storyline to watch

A major wrinkle in the Round of 16 is the introduction of not one, but two new tire combinations to two of the three races in the playoffs’ first round. This week, it was announced that next weekend’s Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway will feature a new, softer right side tire, adding to the intrigue that a new tire compound brings to this weekend’s race at Gateway.

Following a June tire test, Gateway will feature the same combination of left and right side tires that was used one month ago at Iowa Speedway, marking yet another variable that playoff teams will have to navigate. In regards to the playoff drivers, it should be noted that Kyle Larson was the lone playoff driver to participate in June’s tire test, doing so as the representative for Chevrolet.

NASCAR news of the weekIn another development in the 23XI Racing/Front Row Motorsports antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR, Judge Kenneth Bell has denied the teams’ request for a preliminary injunction following a legal filing from NASCAR stating that they would hold the six charters that had belonged to these teams through the results of the trial slated for Dec. 1. As the charters will be left available to be returned to the teams should they win the lawsuit, the Court ruled to deny 23XI/FRm’s motion based on the absence of irreparable harm.

As the legal battle between 23XI Racing, Front Row Motorsports, and NASCAR continues, sanctioning body commissioner Steve Phelps addressed chartered teams in a letter obtained by the Charlotte Observer, saying that teams that had signed the charter agreement would be entitled to more money — $1.5 million per charter — should 23XI and Front Row Motorsports not be granted a preliminary injunction. The two organizations had received $25,146,300 in “fixed owner’s payments and performance payments” this year after a past preliminary injunction had forced NASCAR to recognize them as chartered teams, which will now be redistributed among the 30 other chartered Cup teams.

NASCAR officials are considering changing the criteria for earning the Fastest Lap Award in each race for 2026, a discussion brought on by Josh Berry setting the fastest lap in the Southern 500 despite finishing last after a lap 1 accident. Berry set the fastest lap after spending much of the race making extended repairs in the garage area, marking the third time this season that a driver has set the Fastest Lap and earned the bonus point that comes with it despite being many laps down and out of contention.

While the Fastest Lap Award has given teams an incentive to continue racing for something even if they are taken out of contention, NASCAR managing director of communications Mike Forde said on Hauler Talk that officials have discussed a possible tweak of the rule, which may entail making it necessary to be on the lead lap to earn credit for setting the Fastest Lap.

Haas Factory Team will make a major change for the 2026 season, as they announced Friday that they will switch from Ford to Chevrolet, forming a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports that will include the use of Hendrick engines. The arrangement marks a return to Chevrolet for car owner Gene Haas, which long fielded Chevrolets in alliance with Hendrick prior to a 2017 move to Ford under the Stewart-Haas Racing banner.Cup Series playoff contender Austin Cindric will go racing Down Under during the offseason, as it was announced this week that Cindric will drive a wildcard entry for Tickford Racing in the V8 Supercars Adelaide Grand Final in late November. Cindric’s Supercars debut will mark a reversal of the NASCAR-V8 Supercars crossover trend, which has seen a number of Supercars stars — most notably Shane van Gisbergen — come to the United States to try out stock car racing.Phil Barkdoll, a longtime independent racer who became a fixture on NASCAR’s superspeedways in the 1980s and 1990s, died Tuesday at his home in Vinton, Iowa at the age of 87. Barkdoll made 23 career Cup starts between Daytona and Talladega, and is best remembered as being a fixture in attempting to make the Daytona 500 starting field. Barkdoll qualified for the Daytona 500 five years in a row from 1988 to 1992, earning a best finish of 15th in 1989. He also made the Daytona 500 field in 1997, but sold the driver’s seat to Joe Nemechek after his full-time team had failed to qualify.

“We are saddened to learn of the passing of longtime NASCAR competitor Phil Barkdoll,” read a NASCAR statement. “Phil was a familiar face at Daytona and Talladega, known for his independent spirit and love of racing. He brought passion and determination to the sport and will be remembered fondly by the NASCAR community. Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.” 

Pick to Win

Ryan Blaney (+500) — This weekend is a golden opportunity for Team Penske to feed into the idea that they’re inevitable in the playoffs, as whatever they have figured out setup-wise on flat ovals more than a mile translates perfectly to Gateway. Penske cars have won two out of three Cup races here, and this race should have belonged to Blaney one year ago — had he not run out of fuel coming to the white flag, handing the win to teammate Austin Cindric. Out of all the Penske cars, it was Blaney who entered the playoffs with the biggest vengeance after winning Daytona, and a win to move onto the Round of 12 would be massively important to the overall Penske cause of four Cup titles in a row.