The Quaker State 400 at EchoPark Speedway on June 28, 2025, wasn’t just a race; it was also the kickoff to NASCAR’s first-ever In-Season Challenge. A head-to-head tournament with a cool $1 million prize, matching the All-Star Race haul.

Denny Hamlin, who floated the idea on his podcast a year ago, landed the No. 1 seed, facing off against Ty Dillon in the opening round. The setup’s simple: 32 drivers, paired by their seeds based on average finishes over the last three races, battle it out, with the highest finisher advancing. If Hamlin grabs fifth and Dillon limps to 25th, Hamlin moves on. But Atlanta’s high banks had other plans, as a massive 21-car wreck in the first 100 laps flipped the tournament upside down.

Top seeds like Hamlin and Ryan Blaney got knocked out early, their cars mangled in the chaos. Meanwhile, Chase Elliott powered through to win, locking his playoff spot and a second-round matchup against John Hunter Nemechek in Chicago.

The next round’s pairings are spicy: Brad Keselowski (17th seed) vs. Ty Dillon (32nd), Alex Bowman (8th) vs. Bubba Wallace (9th), Elliott (5th) vs. Nemechek (12th), Erik Jones (20th) vs. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (29th), Ty Gibbs (6th) vs. AJ Allmendinger (22nd), Chris Buescher (3rd) vs. Zane Smith (14th), Tyler Reddick (23rd) vs. Carson Hocevar (26th), and Ryan Preece (15th) vs. Noah Gragson (31st). With the tournament heating up, fans got an unexpected sideshow when RFK Racing’s social media team dropped some hilarious Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) slander that had everyone cracking up.

RFK’s memes, poking fun at HMS drivers like William Byron, went viral faster than a last-lap pass. Fans on Reddit couldn’t stop laughing, but some raised eyebrows at the timing, given the wreck’s impact on the tournament. Still, the playful jabs added a fun twist to an already chaotic weekend.

Fan reactions to RFK’s savage HMS trolling

Fans lit up a Reddit post with reactions to RFK’s meme-fest, and the takes were as wild as Atlanta’s draft. One user chuckled, “The Sabrina Carpenter is a nice troll.” RFK’s social team went all-in, weaving pop culture zingers like a “Teleflora” nod to Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter into their driver impersonations. For those unaware, there’s been a floating rumor about Byron dating Sabrina, but the HMS star came clean and stated that he wouldn’t turn down an offer to date the pop star.

Another fan pointed out, “The toilet paper should’ve said ‘bye-bye Byron.’” RFK’s Ryan Preece “toilet flush” meme, with toilet paper reading “BYE BYE WILLIAM,” took a swing at William Byron’s early exit. Fans loved the jab but felt it missed the mark by not sharpening the taunt to “bye-bye Byron” for that extra sting. The imagery landed, but a tighter punchline could’ve made it legendary.

The In-Season Challenge got some love too, “I know people are hating on this tournament (people seem to hate everything anyway). But it’s has added some fun. Ty Dillon’s ‘I beat your favorite driver’ line on Denny was great!” Ty Dillon’s cheeky post-race chant, flipping Hamlin’s own Michigan taunt, was a viral gem. Beating the No. 1 seed after the wreck gave Dillon bragging rights, and fans ate up the drama it added to the tournament’s storyline.

But not everyone was all laughs. “I think every first round matchup was decided solely on damage from a wreck. I’m sure RFK had this locked and loaded, and it’s funny but it does feel slightly off-putting given the circumstances,” one fan noted. The 21-car pileup took out big names like Byron, Blaney, and Hamlin, handing RFK’s Keselowski, Buescher, and Preece a clean path forward. The memes were ready to roll, but some felt the wreck-fest took out top contenders before they could make their bid for the win or advance further in the bracket.

Finally, a fan called out HMS strategy, “I think Byron’s team gave up on repairing it too quickly. JGR 11, 19 and 20 teams spent a half hour each working on their cars. 20 even got back on track late. 24 worked for what seemed like 5 min and said, ‘nah, we done.’” While Joe Gibbs Racing’s crews battled for 30 minutes to get Hamlin, Bell, and Busch back racing, Bell even wheel-hopped to the finish while Byron’s No. 24 team threw in the towel early. Bowman’s No. 48 followed suit, and fans noticed the contrast, questioning HMS’s grit compared to JGR’s fight.