NASCAR Cup Series driver Alex Bowman (48) during the Grant Park 165 at Chicago Street Race. Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports

Why NASCAR should return to Chicago for another street race

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Jul 12, 2024 2:52 PM ET

The 2025 NASCAR schedule won't be released until later this month, but let's hope the circuit's executives green flag another street race in Chicago.

Weather-related challenges couldn't derail the Chicago Street Race in 2023 or this season's event, which featured underdog stories and fantastic racing.

On Saturday, fans were treated to an enthralling battle in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race between Kyle Larson and Shane van Gisbergen, who took the checkered flag.

On Sunday, the rain-shortened Cup Series race was another fantastic show. Even with favorites van Gisbergen and Larson crashing out, Alex Bowman, Joey Hand and Tyler Reddick battled for the win down the stretch. The 58-lap race ended with Bowman breaking an 80-race winless streak to lock himself into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

The drivers seem to enjoy the novelty of racing in the event, the only street-course race on the NASCAR calendar.

"I'm not a big-city guy, but Chicago's great," defending NASCAR champion Ryan Blaney said. "Hopefully, (the race) is something that can continue."

Defending @NASCAR Cup Series champion @Blaney discussed his thoughts on the Chicago Street Race and the future of NASCAR street racing in general on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/Ye37lhYnas
— Samuel Stubbs (@SamMageeStubbs) July 11, 2024

TV ratings for the event were strong.

"Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Chicago Street Race averaged a 2.1 rating and 3.79 million viewers on NBC (3.87 million including additional streaming data not tracked by Nielsen), down 17% in ratings and 18% in viewership from last year’s inaugural edition (2.5, 4.6M) but still the second-largest NASCAR audience on the NBC networks in the past three years," Sports Media Watch's Jon Lewis reported.

Meanwhile, Saturday's Xfinity Series race was NBC's most-watched race in the series since 2015, drawing 1.8 million viewers.

The event was a hit with fans, too.

Although no attendance figures were released, Chicago Street Race president Julie Giese said fans from 23 countries attended the event. She also noted 60% of the fans were attending their first NASCAR race — great news for a sport looking to extend its reach.

Besides the racing, fans enjoyed entertainment from The Chainsmokers, The Black Keys, Lauren Alaina and Keith Urban.

So do the right thing, NASCAR. Let's race in Chicago again.

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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