The last time that the NASCAR Cup Series raced at the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway was in 2019. The Illinois track’s absence on the schedule since then is what has the fandom going berserk over its inclusion in the 2026 schedule. While the return is certainly something to be celebrated, how prepared is the venue to host the Cup Series?
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NASCAR’s Executive Vice President and Chief Venue & Racing Innovations Officer, Ben Kennedy, was asked in a recent interview for an update about how things stand with making it race-ready. He said, “I think the good news is it’s relatively race-ready, so we’ll probably have to replace some of the SAFER foam.
“We’ll probably have to put a fresh coat of paint on it, clean up some of the grandstands, and renovate some of the suite areas. There’s some parking areas that need to be repaved.
“We’re going to have a long list of improvements that we’ll need to make to the facility, and we’ll make that well in advance of the time that we come there in July.”
The biggest reason for Chicagoland becoming a part of the schedule again is the failure of the negotiations between NASCAR and the City of Chicago to continue holding races in the streets.
The sanctioning body has brought the track back into the fold as a means to not lose the audience in the region. This is why the haulers will go to Joliet during the July 4 weekend instead of downtown Chicago.
What does NASCAR expect from the race at Chicagoland Speedway?
NASCAR gained a lot of new fans in the three years that it raced in the streets of Chicago. Kennedy admitted that it would be great to see these fans travel to Joliet to catch the race since the event is bound to be something truly special.
He made it clear that the aim is to bring new consumers to the track and hopefully use the attention as a way to get back to racing in the streets. Kennedy said of street race, “We’ve said we’d like to potentially be back there in 2027. That remains to be seen.
“But that has been such an important event for us. It’s been great for our core fans. It’s been fantastic for engaging and bringing new fans into our sport, and a lot of partners as well.”
Hopefully, Chicagoland Speedway will live up to its reputation and be a perfect replacement for NASCAR fans in The Windy City.
