NASCAR is set to hit the downtown streets of Chicago next year in a special race to celebrate its 75th season.
The race will be held July 2, 2023, with Lake Michigan and Grant Park in the background, according to a report, and will be the debut feature in a three-year deal between NASCAR and Chicago, the report noted.
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Ben Kennedy, great-grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France, led the charge for the downtown race, according to the report, and began working on getting the race organized in 2019.
The Chicago race will be held in cooperation with an International Motor Sports Association sports car race happening the day before, as well as music and entertainment options located along the course.
The course for the race will feature some of the city’s most iconic landmarks.
“Chicago’s streets are as iconic as our skyline and our reputation as a world-class sports city is indisputable,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) said in a statement. “I am thrilled to welcome our partners at NASCAR to Chicago for an event that will attract thousands of people to our city. Chicago’s world-class entertainment and hospitality industries, coupled with our city’s history as a conduit for sports talent, make us the perfect hosts for this unique event.”
Kennedy is also excited to see the city become a racetrack.
“Historically, we’ve always been short tracks, intermediates, superspeedways, eventually started getting more road courses, and then came up with the coliseum concept,” Kennedy said.
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“But the street course is something we haven’t explored a whole lot before,” he continued, “and the ability for us to get a downtown setting like his and bring racing to our fans, a street course is a perfect opportunity for it.”
