Chicago unveils course for new NASCAR race that will include several iconic landmarks
- NASCAR made its Chicago street race official.
- The event will be held at least three times with the first race scheduled for July 2, 2023.
Stock car racing is coming to the streets of Chicago.
On Tuesday, NASCAR made its highly anticipated street race in Chicago official with an announcement that included Mayor Lori Lightfoot and driver Bubba Wallace, who races for Chicago's favorite son, Michael Jordan, and 23XI Racing.
As part of the announcement, NASCAR and the city released their initial plans for the course. It will be 2.2 miles, have 12 turns, and will pass in front of several iconic streets and landmarks, including Lake Shore Drive, Michigan Avenue, Grant Park, and the north side of Soldier Field.
The start/finish line and pit road will be on Columbus Drive in front of Buckingham Fountain.
Here is what the scene will look like, according to an iRacing simulation.
Here is a look at the cars passing Grant Park.
And here is one view from the car.
The inaugural race will take place on July 2, 2023.
Some drivers are skeptical but want to make sure it is a big event
Chase Elliott, the 2020 NASCAR champion and current championship leader, says he's not too worried about the quality of the race itself if the production value is there.
"We need to make sure it is a good event," Elliott said before the Atlanta race. "The drivers may not like the track. It might not be ideal for us or whatever. But when you are in the middle of a city, and you have the ability to draw that kind of crowd out to your race, you better make sure it's put on well and done at a very high level, people have good spots to watch the race from, things to go do. Just make it an event. That's what it needs to be. It needs to be an event. I think as long as it's that, and it's done well, it will be a success whether the drivers like the track or not."
One of the concerns about the race itself is that the streets might not be wide enough for the new NextGen cars being used this season for the first time. William Byron made this point, comparing it to the simulated Chicago street race he participated in with iRacing.
"I'm very skeptical," Byron said. "I drove it on iRacing. iRacing does a great job with the tracks. If it is anything like that, it is very, very narrow. So we're going to have some work to do to create a passing lane.... We have to be able to get inside of somebody on the braking and not just hit the wall. There is some work to do there to get the track a little bit wider, a little more room for us to race each other."