Carson Hocevar flies over Chicagoland Speedway in helicopter, sparks calls for NASCAR return

Another fan added, “With this particular car, it makes no sense why they’re not racing there. Find a [different] street course.”

Chicagoland opened in 2001, and NASCAR Cup Series races were held at the track from 2001-2019. Kevin Harvick won the first two races, and Alex Bowman won the last. NASCAR was set to return to Chicagoland in 2020 but the race was relocated to Darlington due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Will the NASCAR Cup Series return to Chicagoland Speedway?

“The difficult decision to realign our race events was a combination of where we fell on the schedule, proximity to NASCAR’s teams and the safety and well-being of our community and larger NASCAR industry” then Chicagoland Speedway president Scott Paddock said at the time. “We will miss the roar of the engines at Chicagoland Speedway this season, but we will be rooting for and supporting our NASCAR colleagues at Darlington Raceway as competition returns on Sunday, May 17.”

The NASCAR Cup Series does compete in Chicago, but the race happens in the downtown area on a street course. The contract for that race ends this year, and Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic said it’s not clear if NASCAR would return to downtown Chicago in 2026.

“Looking at oval options, a return to the Chicagoland Speedway certainly makes sense for multiple reasons,” Bianchi wrote in April. “Although the track is located in Joliet, Illinois, it is still close enough to Chicago for NASCAR to maintain a presence in the United States’ third-largest market. That’s key. And Chicagoland, at a mile-and-a-half and with a worn surface, is an ideal fit for the Next Gen car, so the likelihood of a stellar race is high.”