SPEEDWAY, Ind. -- For nearly a century, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the hallowed -- and exclusive -- ground of IndyCar, as its signature event of the Indianapolis 500 became one of the greatest races and traditions in international auto racing. But in the early 1990s, the gates of Gasoline Alley that were once closed off to stock cars finally opened to NASCAR: And in 1994, a new tradition and crown jewel event was born with the inaugural running of the Brickyard 400, Indianapolis' modern spectacle for stock cars.

Through three decades and a few occasional twists and turns, the Brickyard 400 has remained one of NASCAR's most esteemed events, as it gives the best stock car racers in the world their chance to enter the lore of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and forever be able to claim that they have won there. And this year, the tradition of the Brickyard 400 is renewed as the NASCAR Cup Series yet again makes its annual trip to Indianapolis.

Yet again this year, Kyle Larson returns to Indy after having run the Indianapolis 500 in May, and yet again he looks to take something back from the Speedway: After crashing out of both races in his Indy-Charlotte Double, Larson gathers himself for another try at Indianapolis as he seeks back-to-back wins in the Brickyard 400 and yet another measure of redemption at this racetrack.

NASCAR to hold street course race in San Diego at Naval Base Coronado in 2026

Steven Taranto

Where to watch the Brickyard 400

When: Sun., July 27, 2 p.m. ET
Where: Indianapolis Motor Speedway -- Speedway, Ind.
TV: TNT
Stream: fubo (try for free)

Storyline to watch

The battle for a win in the Brickyard 400 isn't the only race worth watching: Indianapolis marks the final race of NASCAR's inaugural In-Season Challenge, with two drivers -- No. 32 seed Ty Dillon and No. 6 seed Ty Gibbs -- going head-to-head for the In-Season Challenge title and a $1 million prize. As has been the case throughout the entire tournament, whichever driver is the highest finisher in the matchup will be the winner, setting up a built-in match race within the 39 car field.

The star of the In-Season Challenge thanks to his charmed run to the final round despite being the No. 32 and final seed, Ty DIllon told CBS Sports last week that he had "supreme confidence" at Indianapolis, and for very good reason: In 2014, Dillon earned his first win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Indy, and his feel for the racetrack has carried over to Cup: Dillon has two top-15 finishes in the Brickyard 400, a race in which he's never finished worse than 21st in five previous starts.

One of those starts came one year ago, when Dillon finished 19th in a one-off appearance driving for Richard Childress Racing. In the context of the In-Season Challenge, what's significant about last year's result is that Dillon had a better finish than Ty Gibbs, who wound up 23rd -- Though his car was significantly faster than that, having started sixth.

Whichever driver wins the In-Season Challenge, it will mark the richest mid-season payday that any Cup Series driver has earned in some time: The last driver to win a midseason million dollar bonus was Dale Earnhardt Jr., who earned the bonus by winning at Talladega in the fall of 2002 as part of the old No Bull 5 program.

NASCAR news of the week

• NASCAR is coming to San Diego in 2026, as it was announced Wednesday that the sport will host a street course race at Naval Base Coronado in June of next year. The San Diego race returns NASCAR to the Southern California market, and brings the sport's street course event to a new city after it was announced that the Chicago Street Race will not be on the 2026 schedule.
• NASCAR has made a rules change to allow them to base Open Car qualifications for a race on Owner's Points for a maximum of six cars, effectively ensuring that each of the 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports cars will be guaranteed a starting spot in each race even if more than 40 cars are entered in the field. The rules tweak is significant, as it comes after 23XI and Front Row lost their charters after being denied a temporary restraining order to keep NASCAR from revoking their charters as their ongoing antitrust lawsuit against the sanctioning body continues.

  U.S. District Court Judge Kenneth Bell set a hearing for Aug. 28 on the teams' motion for an injunction that would restore their charter status, writing in an order setting the court date that NASCAR has represented to the court that the teams will be guaranteed a starting spot in the field and that the sanctioning body will not sell or transfer the charters they had possessed until a ruling is made on the injunction.

• A Goodyear tire test was held this week at New Hampshire Motor Speedway as NASCAR and Goodyear try to develop a tire compound for the track's upcoming playoff race in September. Participating drivers included Ross Chastain for Chevrolet, Joey Logano for Ford and Christopher Bell for Toyota.

Pick to Win

Ryan Blaney (+750) – This race, surely, is one that has stuck in Blaney's craw for an entire year: The 2023 Cup champion was a central figure in the race for the win a year ago, and may have been in a perfect position to win on an overtime restart when he inherited the lead coming to the green flag – Only for Kyle Larson to inherit the spot held on the front row by Brad Keselowski (who had run out of fuel), moving him from third to first and leading to a mini officiating controversy.

Expect Blaney to give Indianapolis his best shot, particularly given car owner Roger Penske owns the Speedway and that the company will surely be motivated to clear their name after they were at the center of a cheating scandal in Indianapolis 500 qualifying.