The NASCAR Chicago Street Race will not return to Grant Park in 2027 after the clock ran out on efforts to find an alternative date outside the already busy July 4th weekend and secure a $15 million state grant.
Downtown Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) said the surprise decision was “75% scheduling and 25% money.”
After receiving a $5 million state grant for each of the three years the Chicago Street Race was held, Hopkins said NASCAR officials made what they thought was a strong case for a $15 million state tourism grant. The state budget approved last spring renewed the $5 million grant.
Money was a contributing factor to the decision not to return to Chicago. But Hopkins said the major reason was the demand by the city and local alderpersons that NASCAR hold the race on an alternative summer weekend, and not further strain the Chicago Police Department and other city workers over the July 4th holiday.
“Had they been able to resolve the scheduling and logistics issues with the city, they would have gone forward without the full level of state support that they thought was ideal, but they ran out of time,” Hopkins said Tuesday.
“They had to announce their schedule. And the risk was, if they continued delaying this decision, they would potentially lose out on the ability to have it at the Joliet Speedway. So they had to take the sure thing. Joliet is there. It’s available. And what they’re saying is, this will be the Chicago Street Race that we know, just transported to Joliet. Same field of drivers. Same position in the NASCAR hierarchy. The event is unchanged except for the venue.”
The Joliet race will be held June 25-27. A source close to NASCAR confirmed the decision to shift to Joliet “wasn’t just about money.”
NASCAR “has to get its schedule out by the end of August” and “ran out of time” to nail down all of the details despite a “genuine good faith effort” to finalize an alternative Chicago weekend, sources said.
The sources noted that for every event NASCAR moves, the schedule for races in other cities must be altered as well.
NASCAR issued a statement that did not explain the reasons for the one-year shift to Joliet. But it made it clear the door remains open to a return to Chicago in 2028.
“We’re incredibly grateful to the City of Chicago, the State of Illinois, Choose Chicago, the Chicago Sports Commission, our labor and business partners, community organizations, neighbors and, most importantly, our fans who made this first-of-its-kind event such a tremendous success,” the statement said.
“While we will not be racing on the streets of Chicago in 2027 despite genuine joint efforts by both NASCAR and our partners at the city and state level, we remain committed to the Chicagoland region and would welcome the opportunity to bring the NASCAR Chicago Street Race back at some point in the future.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office likewise sounded a conciliatory note, saying the city was “proud to host NASCAR” and they “remain open to discussing the future of NASCAR in Chicago.”
The statement continued: “The race provided an opportunity to showcase Chicago to a global audience and demonstrated the potential of our streets and downtown as a setting for major events. While NASCAR will not return to Chicago in 2027, we’re pleased that NASCAR has decided to maintain its Chicago office and continue investing in important community programs like NASCAR STEAM Fest with CPS.”
For three years, the NASCAR Street Race drew a large and dedicated fan base that filled Chicago hotels and patronized the city’s restaurants — even though rain was a problem on several of the race days.
The nationally televised event also showcased the beauty of the Chicago lakefront and downtown to a much broader audience that might be motivated to visit the city at a later date.
Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia said his members were looking forward to welcoming the crowds he called “NASCAR tourists” back to Grant Park in 2027 on a weekend other than the already busy July 4th weekend.
That makes Tuesday’s announcement a big disappointment.
“Their fan base — this is like religion to them. Very, very strong fan base,” Toia said.
“Losing an event like this could be impactful in the summertime because independent restaurants live for the summertime. Not just the guests in beds and diners in seats, but the exposure we get from NASCAR on national television… They see how beautiful Chicago is and then they want to come and visit Chicago.”
Michael Jacobson, president of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association, said hotel operators are a resilient bunch.
“When we lose an event like this, we’re able to find other events to fill that place and we did that this year. We had a very successful July 4th weekend this year as well,” Jacobson said, adding, “…working together to figure out what works for everybody is where the conversation moves to next. We’re hopeful that we can find a way to win them back in the future — working together with a longer runway and a longer time line.”
Choose Chicago, the agency that markets the city to conventions and tourists, said Chicago “served as the launching pad” for a “history-making event” that transformed downtown streets into a “world-class racecourse.” It proved that a street race “could work in a major city.”
“Although the race isn’t returning in 2027, Choose Chicago remains committed to working with our partners at NASCAR… in hopes of welcoming the race back to Chicago in future years,” the agency’s statement said.
Hopkins said he has asked NASCAR to use the time between now and 2028 to “minimize the disruption” to downtown Chicago by reducing the set-up and take-down time for a return of the race in Grant Park “in coordination with the Suenos” music festival and other summer events.
“They said they were gonna do that anyway. But I said, `Now you’ve got more time. Get creative and make it a top priority so that you can come back eventually with a new proposal in 2028 that will feature a reduced footprint at both ends — set-up and take-down,'” Hopkins said.
“That’s been a major concern for my residents — even the ones that have supported this event. And I’ve had a divided constituency. It’s been pretty close to 50-50. So if they want to win over even more downtown residents, that’s the best way to do it.”