Blaney, Gilliland the final two for NASCAR's in-season challenge prize

Ford drivers Ryan Blaney and Todd Gilliland will battle it out this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the $1 million prize in the finals of the In-Season Challenge.

Blaney, from Team Penske, made the final round from the No. 3 seed. He advanced after finishing 11th on Sunday night at North Wilkesboro Speedway in a matchup against Christopher Bell, who finished 19th.

“Ford is going to get it, so that’s good,” Blaney said. “The Blue Oval is going to win the In-Season Challenge. It’ll be a good race. That group at FRM does a really good job, and Todd is a really talented race car driver, so it’ll be a tough one. Indy, a lot of strategy goes on there, and a lot of things can happen, so we’re going to have to be on top of our game like every week. But it’s nice that a couple of Blue Ovals have a shot at it.”

The path for Blaney to the finals:

- A defeat of Josh Berry at Sonoma Raceway.

- A defeat of Shane van Gisbergen at Chicagoland Speedway.

- A defeat of William Byron at EchoPark Speedway.

- A defeat of Bell at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

Alex Bowman (left) was one of the drivers Todd Gilliland defeated along the way. Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

Gilliland, of Front Row Motorsports, is carrying the banner for the underdogs from the No. 25 seed. On Sunday night, he advanced with an eighth-place finish while challenger Chase Elliott finished 17th.

“The (No.) 12 is pretty good. That’s for sure,” said Gilliland. “That’s the reason why they’re at this point in the bracket, so I’m excited about it. That’s the crazy thing is that anything can happen. We have to do what’s best for the (No.) 34 team and race all the way to the checkered flag because you never really know. We’ll keep grinding away. It’s pretty wild. I’m pretty excited.”

The path for Gilliland to the finals:

- A defeat of Daniel Suarez at Sonoma Raceway.

- A defeat of Carson Hocevar at Chicagoland Speedway.

- A defeat of Alex Bowman at EchoPark Speedway.

- A defeat of Elliott at North Wilkesboro.

The prize money will be distributed based on contracts between the team and driver. It is the second year that NASCAR has held the tournament.

The final round occurs at Indianapolis (Sunday, 2 p.m. ET) in the Brickyard 400. It leads into the final off weekend of the season.