Chicago Street Course Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CHICAGO – SVG. Three letters that say it all. Shane Van Gisbergen, a three-time V8 Supercars champion from New Zealand rolled into Chicago for his first NASCAR Cup Series start and took the field to school, capping off a strong weekend by capturing the victory in the inaugural Grant Park 220 on the Chicago Street Course. “You always dream of it,” Van Gisbergen said of the possibility of winning coming into the weekend. “Thank you so much to the Trackhouse team, Enhance Health, Project91. What anRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service CHICAGO — Drenching rain and standing water on the Chicago Street Course forced NASCAR to declare Cole Custer the winner of The Loop 121 NASCAR Xfinity Series race three laps short of halfway and five laps short of the completion of Stage 2.  Custer had led all 25 laps of NASCAR’s first-ever street course race before lightning strikes in the area on Saturday caused NASCAR to red flag the race and then to postpone completion until Sunday morning. But the rain persisted, forcing NASCAR’sRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service CHICAGO — After 25 laps on Saturday, all of which were led by pole winner Cole Custer, a lightning strike within eight miles of the Chicago Lakefront halted action in The Loop 121 NASCAR Xfinity Series race on the Chicago Street Course and ultimately forced postponement until 11 a.m. ET Sunday.  Because of the continuing danger of lightning strikes, NASCAR opted to delay the race in the interest of public safety. The initial lightning strike forced the third caution of the event, with CusterRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CHICAGO – Denny Hamlin will lead the field to green for the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series street race on Sunday after snagging the pole for the Grant Park 220. Noting that the first day on the 2.2-mile, 12-turn course in downtown Chicago was “my single best day at the race track in all of my career”, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota took the top spot in the waning moments of qualifying with a lap of one minute, 28.435 seconds. Tyler Reddick,Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CHICAGO – Ross Chastain and his Trackhouse Racing team might have partied hard after winning last weekend in Nashville, but it’s back to business heading into the unknown of a first-ever street course race this weekend in Chicago. With the momentum of his first win of the season and his first victory in more than a year, the driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet noted that his team is not changing tactics mid-season and will be keeping their foot on the gas as the summer stretchRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CHICAGO – NASCAR. Fourth of July weekend. A first ever street course race. Expect fireworks. Former Formula 1 world champion Jenson Button has been able to experience street course racing in other forms of motorsports throughout his career, but even he is unsure of what will happen when the green flag drops for the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series Grant Park 220 on the Chicago Street Course. “It’s so cool – racing within a city,” Button said. “There aren’t many racing drivers that get that opportunity. I’veRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CHICAGO — The NASCAR Cup Series is heading into the unknown this weekend in Chicago. While other racing series have had street course races in their lineup for years, NASCAR is taking its first crack at racing on a non-purpose-built course on Sunday with the running of the Grant Park 220 on the streets of Chicago, Illinois. The 2.2-mile, 12-turn course will wind its way around Grant Park on the shores of Lake Michigan as the series hopes to capture the imagination of a whole newRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Nearly three months have passed since the checkered flag waved at Phoenix to close out the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season, but it’s that time of the year again when a new season beckons. After the debut of the Next Gen car last year brought about a record-tying number of winners, teams have had the offseason to get their cars ready for another lap around the country that will take them to some familiar places and some new ones as well. As we gear up forRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service For the first time in NASCAR Cup Series history, stock car’s biggest show is set to take place on the streets of downtown Chicago alongside iconic American backdrops like Lake Michigan and Grant Park. NASCAR’s top executives and driver Bubba Wallace came to sunny downtown Chicago Tuesday afternoon and alongside Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and a large contingent of local officials, formally announced the unprecedented addition to the sport’s schedule revealing the NASCAR Cup Series will make its street race debut there Sunday, JulyRead More