Editor's note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat.
World Wide Technology Raceway will become a gateway to the NASCAR Cup Series championship as a shift in race dates on the 2025 schedule will make the Madison, Illinois-based short oval an opening-round playoff host.
The Enjoy Illinois 300 will move from its traditional June slot to Sunday, Sept. 7, in 2025 as the second race of the 10-event Cup Series Playoffs, according to a news release Thursday. The Enjoy Illinois 300, the only Cup event to be contested on a 1.25-mile oval next season, will be a 240-lap, 300-mile race.
“We can’t thank NASCAR enough for rewarding this tremendous sports market with a race of this magnitude,” World Wide Technology Raceway owner and CEO Curtis Francois said. “The St. Louis region is accustomed to great playoff event memories with the Blues, Cardinals and other sports teams over the years and now we can finally add NASCAR to that esteemed list.”
World Wide Technology Raceway sold out the Cup Series race for the third year in a row this past June. Moving Enjoy Illinois 300 to the September and making it one of 10 playoff hosts is expected to bring the region added exposure, Francois said.
“This event has become a significant platform for Illinois tourism, attracting thousands of NASCAR fans from more than 20 countries and 48 states and generating $60 million in economic impact to Illinois’ metro-east region,” said Daniel Thomas, deputy director of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Illinois Office of Tourism. “Now as a playoff race, we expect the Enjoy Illinois 300 to draw even more visitors to discover Southern Illinois’ small businesses, outdoor adventures and iconic attractions.”
The Cup Series Playoffs consist of four rounds – the opening Round of 16, Round of 12, Round of 8 and, finally, the Championship 4 Round. Each of the first three rounds consist of three races and World Wide Technology Raceway will host the second race in the Round of 16.
Sixteen drivers will qualify for the Cup Series Playoffs through the first 26 regular-season races and vie for the crown in the final 10 races. The Playoff races will continue to have full fields, with the other drivers contending for race wins but ineligible to compete for the championship.
Four drivers will be eliminated following each of those rounds and then the four remaining will contend for the title in the Championship 4 Round. That final round consists of only the season-ending race and the top finisher among that group being awarded The Bill France Cup as the Cup Series champion.
World Wide Technology Raceway has produced three Cup Series races thus far, with the first two going into overtime and Joey Logano (2022) and Kyle Busch (2023) both winning by less than .7 of a second. This season provided a different type of drama as leader Ryan Blaney ran out of fuel approaching the final lap and handed the victory to his Team Penske teammate Austin Cindric.
The Enjoy Illinois 300 race start time and full weekend schedule will be announced at a later date. The ever-popular Confluence Music Festival is scheduled to return as part of the NASCAR weekend schedule.
Read more at: https://www.bnd.com/news/local/article291673400.html#storylink=cpy
