When engines roar to life this weekend in Grant Park, NASCAR will test whether a third year of racing through Chicago’s streets can match the hype without the headaches.
Crews needed just 25 days to transform the South Loop into a race-ready street course this year, nearly halving last year’s construction timeline and easing some of the disruptions that drew complaints in 2023.
The faster setup, a 42 percent reduction from last summer, meant fewer weeks of street closures and blocked sidewalks as NASCAR prepared for its third Chicago Street Race. The route itself remains unchanged, looping around the park and along South Columbus Drive, though premium hospitality areas have been consolidated near Buckingham Fountain.
The first closures began June 19, with Columbus Drive shutting down near Lake Shore Drive, not far from Columbia College Chicago’s South Loop campus. Additional street closures followed in the day.
John Carrish, who traveled from Denver, was exploring NASCAR Village ahead of the race on Friday, July 4, the day before the green flag waves for qualifying matches on Saturday morning, July 5. The village is open to the public and features local restaurants, Chicago-based retailers and interactive NASCAR attractions like racing simulators and driver appearances.
“I think that NASCAR definitely brings the hype around their events wherever they go,” Carrish said. “At least from my perspective from online social media, the Chicago Street race definitely brings more fans to the sport and more eyes on everyone who’s a part of it, and I think that’s a good thing.”
The 2025 Chicago event in the South Loop marks the final race under the city’s original three-year contract with NASCAR. With no renewal yet announced, the race’s future remains uncertain, though organizers say a deal may be reached soon.
Some portions of the street race track that are unique to Chicago are Turns 1 and 6. These corners put the drivers on a real test where they must modulate the brake, gas and throttle at the same time in order to get the car pitched around the corners.
Drivers who do not heel-toe the clutch will lose lots of time in these spots. Most of the time that can be made up on the track, especially during qualifying, is in the breaking zones.
Oftentimes, every driver takes a different approach while navigating these corners.
The Chicago NASCAR track makes it difficult for drivers to pass other cars, but in previous years, overtakes have occurred on the straight of DuSable Lake Shore Drive and the braking zones of Turns 6, 7 and 11, which are all 90 degree corners and some of the tightest bits of track in NASCAR history.
Charlie Matthews of the Rogers Park neighborhood in Chicago, had just finished a bike ride on Friday and was sitting outside the village entrance in Grant Park taking in the scene.
He described himself as a “Formula One snob.”
“I’ve never seen a NASCAR race but I have seen the Grand Prix of Monaco,” Matthews said.
He said the race track in the city would be hard to drive because NASCAR race cars are not as maneuverable as Formula One cars. While NASCAR is predominantly in the US, Formula 1 is a global series that features more technical speed and agility. NASCAR involves contact between the cars, refueling and repair cars to keep them in the right shape.
“If you were to get the honest opinions of drivers in the race, I think they probably hate this version,” he said. “NASCAR is about speed and ovals. For their sake, I just hope it doesn’t pour like it did the first two years.”
This weekend will be hot, with temperatures expected to hit in the 90s with high humidity. The highest chance for showers and thunderstorms is on Sunday, July 6, when the main event of the Chicago Street Race is the Grant Park 165 NASCAR Cup Series. It is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. The Xfinity Series race will start at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday after qualifiers earlier in the day.
Last year, bad weather delayed the start of the 75-lap Grant Park 165, which ended after 58 laps.
“I’m looking forward to seeing these NASCAR stock cars race on actual streets, something I’ve never experienced before,” Carrish said. “I’m really excited for it.”
Copy edited by Manuel Nocera
