NASCAR will make history on Sunday. The drivers are in Chicago to take part in the Grant Park 220. It will be the first street race in NASCAR Cup Series history and start at 5 p.m. ET. Fans can watch the event on NBC, Peacock and the NBC Sports App.
The race was officially announced a year ago, and the drivers will compete through Grant Park along with approaching the northern edge of Soldier Field which is home to the Chicago Bears. This will be the second time in NASCAR history a Cup Series race will take place in downtown Chicago as the first was held at Soldier Field in 1956.
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“Welcoming yet another NASCAR event to Illinois just weeks after the inaugural Enjoy Illinois 300 Cup Series race is a testament to the strength of our tourism industry from Chicago to Metro East,” Governor JB Pritzker said in a statement last year. “Illinois, with its longstanding tradition of innovation, is a fitting host for NASCAR’s first-ever street race, and we are thrilled to welcome this new series to America’s most iconic drive next summer.”
“Chicago is one of the world’s top sports and entertainment destinations. Year after year, fans from all over the world travel to our great city for high-profile sporting events,” said Kara Bachman, executive director, Chicago Sports Commission. “The 2023 NASCAR Chicago Street Race weekend will continue that legacy with another monumental sports moment and we look forward to welcoming fans to NASCAR’s first-ever street race.”
If there’s one driver to watch on Sunday, it has to be Joey Logano because he knows how to make history. Logano won the debut race at the Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the inaugural Bristol dirt race and the first Cup Series race at World Wide Technolgy Raceway. This does not mean Logago will be the favorite to win the street race, but it would not be a surprise to see him perform well.
“The jury’s still out, right? We haven’t raced yet. But so far, I’d say it’s a success from a lot of different things,” Logano said ahead of Sunday’s race, per NASCAR.com. “I told some of the people from NASCAR, even if the race is just OK, it’s a success because of where we are and the marketing that’s come along with it. You know, so many people in Chicago are talking about NASCAR racing right now. They may not have talked about it or heard about it or are interested in it, and they’re going to come to see it, and hopefully, you’ll hook them into loving the sport, like we have so many others. So from that standpoint, it’s already a win for a sport, and we’ll see how the race goes.”
