Enjoy Illinois 300
The Enjoy Illinois 300 is the second NASCAR Cup Championship Playoffs race and the fourth to be run at World Wide Technology Raceway, formerly known as Gateway Motorsports Park. This track is in Madison, IL and is a 1.25-mile oval track. Turns 1 and 2 have 11-degree banking and Turns 3 and 4 have 9-degree banking. This race had been in June the last three seasons, but is now a playoff race.
Race 28 of 36 for the season is set for 240 laps, but the first two versions of this race required a NASCAR Overtime finish. Austin Cindric’s win last year was the first in exactly 300 miles. We’ll take a look at the updated standings, race winners, and more.
How to Watch The Enjoy Illinois 300
When: Sunday, September 7, 2025
Where: World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, IL
Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
Channel: USA
2025 NASCAR Cup Series Standings
The race winners so far are Byron (2), Larson (3), Bell (3), Hamlin (4), van Gisbergen (4), Blaney (2), Chastain, Joey Logano, Austin Cindric, Josh Berry, Briscoe (2), Elliott, Wallace, and Dillon through 27 points races. Briscoe picked up his second win of the season and it’s a huge one, as he automatically advances to the next round with that victory.
All playoff drivers had their point totals set to 2000 and then bonus points accumulated during the season were then added. The bottom four in points of the playoff drivers will be cut from contention after each round of three races.
- Chase Briscoe 2070
- Denny Hamlin 2067
- Kyle Larson 2062
- Tyler Reddick 2059
- Bubba Wallace 2049
- William Byron 2049
- Ryan Blaney 2046
- Ross Chastain 2045
- Austin Cindric 2036
- Christopher Bell 2035
- Chase Elliott 2033
- Shane van Gisbergen 2027
- Joey Logano 2024
- Austin Dillon 2019
- Alex Bowman 2008
- Josh Berry 2008
Briscoe had a clean sweep at Darlington, winning the first and second stages, plus he led the most laps and won the race. Reddick finished second and was the only other playoff driver with a top-five finish. Hamlin and Wallace were the only others with top-10 finishes.
2025 NASCAR Cup Championship Playoffs Schedule
Round of 16
Cook Out Southern 500 (Darlington) – August 31, 6 p.m. ET- Enjoy Illinois 300 (World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison) – September 7, 3 p.m. ET
- Bass Pro Shops Night Race (Bristol) – September 13, 7:30 p.m. ET
Round of 12
- USA Today 301 (New Hampshire) – September 21, 2 p.m. ET
- Hollywood Casino 400 (Kansas) – September 28, 3 p.m. ET
- Bank of America Roval 400 (Charlotte) – October 5, 3 p.m. ET
Round of 8
- South Point 400 (Las Vegas) – October 12, 5:30 p.m. ET
- YellaWood 500 (Talladega) – October 19, 2 p.m. ET
- Xfinity 500 (Martinsville) – October 26, 2 p.m. ET
Championship Race
- NASCAR Cup Championship Race (Phoenix) – November 2, 3 p.m. ET
Enjoy Illinois 300 Winners
Logano, Kyle Busch, and Cindric are the three race winners over the three years. Hamlin has finished second each of the last two years. Along with his win, Logano has two other top-five finishes, including a third-place finish two years ago. Reddick also finished in the top five last year.
Enjoy Illinois 300 Predictions
For the latest odds and VSiN’s NASCAR Best Bets, head to our NASCAR Hub to see Steve Makinen’s simulation results and more stats on the drivers.
Here is Makinen’s analysis:
The NASCAR Cup Series playoffs head to Worldwide Technology Raceway in nearby St Louis for the running of the Enjoy Illinois 300. Otherwise known as the Gateway, this track has been a tremendous one for Penske Racing, and accordingly, Ryan Blaney is the projected winner on the final simulation. However, his teammates have slipped in the projections as they didn’t have as good of practice and qualifying sessions as Blaney did. Next up on the top 5 are Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, and Christopher Bell.
Ty Gibbs (7th) and Brad Keselowski (8th) are the highest projected non-playoff competitors. Shane Van Gisbergen in 29th is the lowest projected playoff driver.
Here are my projections:
Top 5: Blaney, Hamlin, Larson, Bell, Logano
Top underdogs to consider: Gibbs, Keselowski, Berry, Smith, Busch
Favorites to struggle: Wallace, Beuscher, Bowman, Chastain
