This past weekend, NASCAR returned to the streets of downtown Chicago for an Xfinity/Cup Series doubleheader weekend. The Xfinity Series took place on Saturday afternoon, with the Cup race kicking off around noon local time. SVG was the story heading into both races as he swept the poles for both. He won in his debut at the track in 2023 and won the Xfinity Series race last year. He then went on to sweep the races this weekend in Chicago. But as great of a weekend SVG had, some drivers and teams were just off their game. With that in mind, here are the biggest losers out of NASCAR’s Chicago race weekend.
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Though it wasn’t the dominating performance we all expected out of SVG, still, in the end, he was the class of the field. Specifically, when it comes to this race, all eyes were on the two RedBull/WeatherTech cars of SVG and Connor Zilisch. With both being road course specialists, it was interesting to see the two of them square off for the first time. But despite Zilisch leading a handful of laps, in the end, he was no match for SVG in the number 9 car.
When it came to SVG, we all expected him to spank the field this weekend. That was more-or-less what happened. SVG won the opening stage, got cycled back, but powered his way back through the field with precision and expertise. In the end, SVG led 27 laps, which was the vast majority of the race, on his way to victory. Meanwhile, Zilisch, despite finishing 2nd, lost the Battle of the RedBull cars in somewhat thrilling fashion.
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Things got ugly on Sunday for Spire Motorsports. Going into the race, everything looked so promising. How many times have we heard that about this team this year. Michael McDowell started 2nd and powered by SVG on the opening lap to take the lead. He ended up leading 31 laps. Meanwhile, his teammate Carson Hocevar started in 3rd. Things were looking good. He was running in the top 10, battling for the top 5, when he just lost control in the opening handful of laps. He plowed hard into the wall, busting a toe link and ending his day prematurely.
McDowell, on the other hand, led the entirety of the opening stage. However, once the second stage began, he came down for an unscheduled pit stop. He told his team that his throttle was sticking. The team made adjustments but the damage was done. McDowell didn’t lead another lap. In fact, he had to go behind the wall to fix the issue, going several laps down in the process. What could have been such a promising day for Spire Motorsports ended in utter heartbreak.
To say that 2025 hasn’t been ideal for Brad Keselowski or his fan base would be a massive understatement. He’s shown some decent speed lately, but something always happens to him that lands him in the garage. This week, Carson Hocevar got out of control. He plowed into the wall, blocking the track, and Brad K didn’t have anywhere left to go.
Going into this race, it was widely understood that Brad K. was going to have to win to get into the Playoffs. But, to his credit, he was still alive in the In-Season Challenge. And, with a number of heavy hitters already eliminated, it looked like he had decent odds to win it all. For fans, sometimes all you need are bragging rights, no matter how small they seem. But it all came to an end today. With this incident, Brad K. was eliminated from the In-Season Challenge. Now, all there’s left to be hopeful for when it comes to Brad K. fans is hoping he can steal a win somewhere and get into the postseason. Otherwise, this might be a year they ought to forget.
Another driver who got eliminated Sunday from the In-Season Challenge was Bubba Wallace. But it wasn’t from a lack of trying. Late in the race, Wallace was battling hard with rival Alex Bowman for the transfer position. Things maybe got a little too heated. As Bubba tried to crowd Bowman into the wall, Bowman stood his ground. This resulted in the 23 car going around and effectively eliminating himself from advancing.
Wallace confronted Bowman after the race, but it was too little, too late. He was eliminated, and Bowman was through to the next round. To make matters worse, following this race, Wallace was only 3 points to the good above the Playoff cutline. He’ll be walking on eggshells for the rest of the regular season, unless he can get that elusive third career win.
Last week, Chase Elliott experienced the highest of highs. He not only snapped a 44 race winless streak, but he also won at his home track of EchoPark Speedway (aka Atlanta). Things were good for Elliott and his legion of fans. But perhaps they partied a little too hard. The hangover was bad for Elliott and his fans this weekend. Dare we say, mind-splitting. Typically, Elliott performs well on road courses. But it seemed today that he was out to lunch. He has issues in practice and started the race in the back. He only earned 3 stage points all race and was never really a factor for even a top 10 finish, let alone a top 5 or a win.
For an extra kick in the joints, he finished one position behind J. H. Nemechek, who he was up against in the In-Season Challenge. This eliminated Elliott from winning the one-million-dollar prize. Maybe he can get back in the wing of things next week as we head out west for Sonoma.
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