Todd Gilliland may have walked away as the winner of NASCAR's In-Season Challenge at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but he revealed that he will not personally receive the full $1 million prize after edging past Ryan Blaney at the Brickyard 400.

Speaking at the Brickyard 400 post-race press conference, Gilliland explained that the $1 million bonus is awarded to the team, with his own share yet to be determined. Even so, the 26-year-old admitted that he is expecting a significant personal payday as well. 

“I've not. I think the million dollars goes to the team. So, yeah, I honestly don't know how much I'm going to get, but I still definitely believe it's going to be the biggest biggest payday of my life so far.

"So, yeah, still should be a lot of fun going into the off week. Definitely a great time to kind of unplug and get rejuvenated going forward.”

The In-Season Challenge involves drivers competing in a head-to-head, bracket-style tournament over several races, with the higher-finishing driver in each matchup advancing to the next round. In 2025, a clarification via Bob Pockrass’s tweet confirmed that the money goes directly to the owner, rather than the driver.

While neither Gilliland nor Blaney were in contention for the race win, the battle between the two became one of the biggest storylines on the day because of the $1 million prize attached to the in-season challenge. 

In an interaction with TNT Sports' Danielle Trotta immediately after the race, Gilliland had explained that the closing laps were stressful, especially as Blaney continued to close the gap. Despite finishing well down the order, Gilliland said the pressure made the result feel far more significant than a typical mid-pack finish.

“It was nerve-wracking. Even though we were 24th, 26th, or whatever, it felt good to feel those nerves of someone chasing you down for something meaningful. It seemed like we just barely skated by every single round. It was just, yeah, we did what we had to do.”

Blaney was leading Gilliland, but contact with John Hunter Nemechek on a Lap 120 restart spun him, sending him into the wall. In the end, Gilliland finished 24th while Blaney finished 26th.

Does the Brickyard 400 deserve to be a ‘crown-jewel’ race? 

There has been a lot of chatter around the status of the Brickyard 400, and whether or not it should be treated as a crown jewel event or not.

Kyle Petty believes that it shouldn’t, as he feels that the prestige of a crown jewel is earned exclusively through the history and tradition established in the South since NASCAR's inception. 

This prompted Brad Keselowski to chime in. Ahead of the race, he spoke to Frontstretch and highlighted his criteria for tracks that qualify as a crown jewel event. He states that it must have high attendance numbers and transcend the niche NASCAR audience to gain broader attention.

Additionally, he feels that one cannot claim a race is a ‘big event’ if it does not offer a significant prize purse and a prestigious trophy, something for which he criticized many racetrack owners and organizers for failing to do.

Read more at RFK Racing Digest 

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason