NASCAR Close to Deal With Major City for 2027 Street Race
What’s Happening? NASCAR is working towards a deal to race on the streets of Chicago for a fourth time during the…
A NASCAR executive claimed that the sport could feature both Chicagoland and the Chicago Street Course on the 2027 schedule. The comments came during a recent interview that’s gaining attention for the potential implications of this move on a traditional NASCAR race weekend.
NASCAR’s future seemingly took a turn this past weekend when Chicagoland, despite rumors of poor ticket sales and weather that plagued the track’s return to the schedule, put on a great race before a packed crowd.
Since rumors first spread that NASCAR was deep in talks on a return to downtown Chicago’s street circuit in 2027, fans had mostly given up hope that Chicagoland’s time on the schedule would last beyond 2026.
What’s Happening? NASCAR is working towards a deal to race on the streets of Chicago for a fourth time during the…
Still, late last week, more rumors spread about NASCAR’s plans for Chicago in 2027, though this time these rumors claimed that NASCAR was considering doubling up weekends in the market, racing at both tracks next season.
What’s Happening? NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. says that a race at both Chicagoland Speedway and the Chicago Street Course is…
This could be a dramatic move for NASCAR for a number of reasons, though at the time, these were just rumors.
But, during a recent interview, NASCAR COO Ben Kennedy acknowledged this idea, telling Robert Channick of the Chicago Tribune, “It’s a market that’s strong enough that absolutely we could have two events there in the future.”
Of course, the biggest problem with having both races in 2027 would be the limitations of the current 36-race schedule.
While most assumed that Chicago would take Chicagoland’s spot on the calendar, the idea of two races means the sport would have to find a date from an existing race to give to the street race.
One option could be the San Diego street race at Naval Base Coronado, while NASCAR officials, including Kennedy, have spoken about returning, nothing is set in stone.
Another option fans online suggest is to take a similar 1.5-mile race off the calendar from Chicagoland’s sister track, Kansas Speedway, which has hosted two race weekends a year since 2011.
Still, those in the online NASCAR community who read the report from Channick are now pointing out a much greater flaw in this plan.
What’s Happening? Throughout 2026, NASCAR will announce dates for its 2027 schedule. Though the sport drops the full schedule in bulk,…
Memorial Day weekend is one of NASCAR’s most important race weekends, traditionally hosting the Coca-Cola (or World) 600 since the 1960s. The race also plays into a major holiday for American Motorsports, as a follow-up to IndyCar’s Indianapolis 500.
But fans are pointing out that in his report on Chicagoland, Channick addressed a June 2 report from reporters A.D. Quig and Jake Sheridan, which claimed that the Chicago Street Race could return on Memorial Day weekend 2027.
Now, it is extremely unlikely that one of NASCAR’s Crown Jewel races is going anywhere for Chicago, but that doesn’t mean the sport isn’t open to shifting its date.
After all, it would be far from the first Crown Jewel race to have its date changed, but in those cases where that happened, such as moving the Southern 500 to the spring, the move left a bad taste in fans’ mouths.
While Ben Kennedy addressed this in his interview, telling Channick that there is no set date for a 2027 street race, fans in the online NASCAR community have taken this somewhat personally, with many suggesting that even the idea of moving the 600 away from its traditional weekend is a step in the wrong direction.
As of press time, a few dates are confirmed for the 2027 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, including those revolving around the Coca-Cola 600 and races in the Chicago market.
What’s Happening? With rumors of NASCAR’s return to the streets of Chicago picking up, the race could also face a major…
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