Basically, Bracket Racing is set-up so that driver skill is what wins the race, NOT the 'faster car'.
What matters in Bracket Racing is not only the drivers Reaction Time, but his ability to be consistent as well.
In a nutshell, both drivers need to figure out what Elapsed Time their car will run in the 1/4 mile, then write a 'Dial-In' time on their window. When you line up to race, the slower car will get the green light and leave the line before the faster car(For example, if you dial a 13.00 and your competitor dials a 14.40, he will get the green light 1.4 seconds before you do. Then you (hopefully) chase him down.). The driver who can come closest to their Dial-In time, without Red Lighting (Reaction Time), and without going faster(then his Dial-In), wins that race. Obviously, with each round that goes by, half of the racers are eliminated, until there is a winner.
IF everything were to go perfect for both drivers (Identical Reaction Times and perfectly consistent driving), then technically you would both cross the finish line at the same exact time down to the thousandth of a second. Though, in reality, that'll never happen.
If you go faster than your Dial-In time, you 'Break-Out'. Which basically means you lose. (Unless of course your competitor breaks-out as well, but this further complicates things, so we'll save that for another day

)
Also, as each round goes by, generally you are permitted to change your
Dial-In time. So as weather conditions improve or worsen, your vehicle can get slighty faster or slower.
There are more variables, but this is a good start.
FWIW, I've won a couple of Bracket Racing Trophies over the years, but I've also lost to 18 and 19 second Suburbans and Toyota
sh!tboxes!

It definitely takes some practice!:rock: