Chicago city officials and NASCAR were unable to reach an agreement in time for the racing organization to return to its downtown street course in 2027, sending next year’s event back to Joliet’s Chicagoland Speedway instead.
For three consecutive years, NASCAR staged a street race through Grant Park and surrounding downtown streets. Officials had hoped the event would return to Chicago next year, but negotiations did not result in a deal before NASCAR needed to finalize its schedule.
A portion of the street course ran through the 34th Ward, represented by Ald. Bill Conway.
“The issue is that they had to get their schedule out. So they will be doing the race again at the at the Speedway next year. But I hope that we can we can come to an agreement here in 2028,” Conway said.
NASCAR will return to the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet June 25-27.
It will include the ARCA Menards Series on Friday, June 25, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series on Saturday, June 26, and the NASCAR Cup Series on Sunday, June 27, 2027.
“The fan response this year was overwhelming, so we’re thrilled to be able to honor that turnout with another milestone weekend of racing in Joliet,” said Jacque Herrera, general manager of Chicagoland Speedway. “I grew up coming to this track with my family, so to see it roar back to life this year and return to the NASCAR competition schedule in 2027 is an incredible thrill.”
In a written statement released Monday, NASCAR said, “While we will not be racing on the streets 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.”
One of the issues in previous discussions involved the event’s timing around the Fourth of July holiday.
“The Fourth of July had been a challenging weekend for the city, and we had a lot of things going on. We had to move the Taste of Chicago. I mean, moving the Taste of Chicago is a major thing,” said Ald. Jason Ervin, chair of the City Council Budget Committee.
Ervin and Conway both said they would not support a NASCAR return if the event is held on the Fourth of July weekend as it was in previous years. Both also said any future agreement must make financial sense for the city.
“We’re not in a position to be handing over huge chunks of cash or creating additional expenses without seeing a requisite return on that investment,” Ervin said.
Conway said NASCAR paid the city $2 million in 2025, while city costs related to the event totaled about $5 million.
“To NASCAR’s credit, I think that they have recognized the additional financial strain on the city and are willing to be to help defray that cost,” Conway said.
Officials said several issues remained unresolved for 2027 before NASCAR decided not to return to Chicago next year. Ervin said the decision should not be viewed as a reflection on Mayor Brandon Johnson.
“It would be worse if it was a bad deal, just to get something done,” Ervin said.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the mayor said: “We remain open to discussing the future of NASCAR in Chicago and look forward to continuing to build partnerships that bring new opportunities to Chicago.”
Although the race will return to Joliet in 2027, NASCAR plans to maintain an office in Chicago. City officials and NASCAR representatives said they intend to continue discussions with the goal of bringing the street race back to Chicago in 2028.
