Motorsports
How iRacing helped make the NASCAR Chicago Street Race a reality – NBC4 Washington
The NASCAR Chicago Street Race didn’t come from nowhere — it came from a computer. Rather than taking the risk of racing on the roads of a major city blind, NASCAR used a cost-effective alternative: iRacing. The sim-racing video game has become an essential tool for the real-life racing series, especially when it comes to […]

The NASCAR Chicago Street Race didn’t come from nowhere — it came from a computer.
Rather than taking the risk of racing on the roads of a major city blind, NASCAR used a cost-effective alternative: iRacing.
The sim-racing video game has become an essential tool for the real-life racing series, especially when it comes to innovation.
So, when NASCAR began to consider what a street race in Chicago might look like, it turned to iRacing for help. The sim game is the closest replica of what it feels like to drive a race car. Using laser-scanners, iRacing is able to create pin-point details of every car and track imaginable.
“We pioneered the use of laser-scanners, to go to a track and use them,” said Steve Myers, executive vice president of iRacing. “We can collect millions of points of data by taking laser-scanners around these tracks, and get them digitally perfect. Every little bump, every curve, every crack. We can even, from the laser-scan, pick up where the paint is on the track. Paint is a little bit more slippery than pavement, so we can recreate these tracks to be exactly perfect.”
Myers, who has been in the industry since 2000, was one of iRacing’s earliest employees. The company was founded in 2003 by designer Dave Kaemmer and John Henry, who co-owns the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Penguins, Liverpool FC and RFK Racing.
“We started the company with the idea that we wanted to make the most authentic racing simulation that you could possibly make,” Myers said. “The way that we did that was create truly authentic driving models of cars and digitally perfect race tracks, to the point that real world race car drivers could use the product and actually find value in it.”
The value of sim racing is different from virtual reality versions of any other sport. If you’re playing “Madden” or “NBA 2K,” you aren’t actually doing the motions of football or basketball. In iRacing, you’re able to truly simulate what to feels like to drive a particular race car — from setting up the balance to managing tires and navigating treacherous tracks.
“There is no Dick’s Sporting Goods where you can go buy a race car and do it in your backyard,” Myers explained. “This is done on a computer now. It absolutely has become that gateway for people to experience racing and see if this is something exciting for them.
“In sim racing, you can be on the track with Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. and be competitive with him. William Byron, he was able to take that skill transition to the real world and continue that career and trajectory to where I think he’s going to be a Cup champion some day. That’s what’s really cool about sim racing though — if you were good at ‘NBA 2K,’ you could dominate LeBron James in that game on a console. There’s no chance that you’re going on to a basketball court with him and probably even score a basket.”
Byron is perhaps the greatest example of how iRacing translates to the real world. The Hendrick Motorsports star didn’t grow up racing, instead picking up iRacing as a teenager. His success in the video game boosted his profile and eventually led to a contract with Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Now, the 27-year-old Byron is the two-time defending Daytona 500 champion and leads the NASCAR Cup Series points standings.
As NASCAR saw drivers like Byron coming from iRacing, they have developed a closer partnership for projects like the Chicago Street Race. That venture began back in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when NASCAR broadcasted virtual races on iRacing with real-life stars competing.
That’s when the world was introduced to the Chicago Street Course.
We walked, biked and drove the Chicago NASCAR Street Race course to see what it’s really like—and how long it takes to complete without race-day speed.
“NASCAR was interested in looking at Chicago as a location for a race,” Myers explained. “We came to the city in November of 2021 and we scanned every road around Grant Park there. Then we took that data back in house, and started mapping out what might be a good race course.
“In 2021, we did the Pro Invitational (virtual race on FOX), where we showed the Chicago Street Course to the world for the first time in the digital space. It wasn’t even a real race yet at that point. So, when we did that race on TV, it was well-received. The racing was well-received. That was the point where NASCAR and Chicago decided to make this a real race.”
That wasn’t the end of it, though. The first street race was held in July 2023, nearly two years later. Over that time in between, Myers and his team worked with NASCAR executive vice president Ben Kennedy to nail down the perfect course layout.
“We worked very closely with Ben Kennedy, who had made site visits and had some ideas of sections of the track that he wanted to see there,” Myers said. “Over a couple of months, we iterated a number of different design ideas and showed them to Ben and we’d have drivers drive it. Ultimately, we settled on the track that’s currently being raced now.”
Even when they finally thought the track was perfect, Kennedy found one more change to make.
“We actually had it going the reverse direction, and then Ben was doing laps on iRacing and said ‘You know what? I think this is going to go better going the other direction.’ So, we switched the direction based on his feedback.”
Now, the Chicago Street Course is a 2.14-mile circuit with 12 turns — going in the clockwise direction around Grant Park.
“We’re very proud of our part in the sport and being able to do some of these changes.”
The third edition of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race will take place on Sunday, July 6.
A street race brings high speeds and tight turns to city streets that are closed off for racing.
Motorsports
FOX adds pre-race IndyCar coverage for Nashville
FOX is expanding its broadcast window for the Aug. 31 season finale at Nashville Speedway. Originally scheduled to go live at 2:30pm ET, FOX will open the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix show 30 minutes earlier to “offer even more time to celebrate a historic run by the season champion or set up a […]

FOX is expanding its broadcast window for the Aug. 31 season finale at Nashville Speedway.
Originally scheduled to go live at 2:30pm ET, FOX will open the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix show 30 minutes earlier to “offer even more time to celebrate a historic run by the season champion or set up a thrilling season finale and the fight for the championship,” according to the IndyCar Series.
With his championship lead trimmed to 99 points, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou continues to hold a tight grip on the title with four races left to run, but his main challenger, Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, is on a hot streak of late, winning two of the last three contests.
If Palou continues his strong historical form at this weekend’s Java House Grand Prix of Monterey and again on Aug. 10 at the BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland, he could be in a position to clinch the championship at Portland if O’Ward has two poor results, or take the championship after the Aug. 24 Milwaukee Mile race.
A sustained fight from O’Ward and poor finishes from Palou over the upcoming races is where the extended FOX broadcast at Nashville could bring greater value, but if the championship is settled beforehand, the extra 30 minutes can be used to celebrate the new title holder and set up the remaining battles for the better rankings in the standings and the challenge facing the handful of drivers attempting to earn $1 million Leaders Circle contracts for their teams.
Motorsports
Indianapolis TV Schedule: July 2025 (NASCAR)
NASCAR TV schedule for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IRP NASCAR is rolling into Indianapolis, Indiana for the famed Brickyard 400 weekend. The 2.5-mile of Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series. At the same time, the short track of Indianapolis Raceway Park hosts the NASCAR Truck Series and ARCA Menards […]

NASCAR TV schedule for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IRP
NASCAR is rolling into Indianapolis, Indiana for the famed Brickyard 400 weekend. The 2.5-mile of Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series. At the same time, the short track of Indianapolis Raceway Park hosts the NASCAR Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series.
View the NASCAR TV schedule for Indianapolis below.
Indianapolis TV Schedule
NASCAR
The following includes all on-track NASCAR action:
Friday
July 25, 2025
12:05pm ET
CW App
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Practice
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
1:00pm ET
No TV
ARCA Menards Series
Practice
(IRP)
1:05pm ET
truTV
NASCAR Cup Series
Practice
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
2:00pm ET
No TV
ARCA Menards Series
Qualifying
(IRP)
3:05pm ET
FS1
NASCAR Truck Series
Practice
(IRP)
4:10pm ET
FS1
NASCAR Truck Series
Qualifying
(IRP)
5:30pm ET
FS1
ARCA Menards Series
Race
(IRP)
8:00pm ET
FS1
NASCAR Truck Series
Race
(IRP)
NASCAR.com
Press Pass: Post NCTS Race
Saturday
July 26, 2025
1:00pm ET
CW App
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Qualifying
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
2:35pm ET
truTV
NASCAR Cup Series
Qualifying
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
NASCAR.com
Press Pass: Post NCS Qual
4:30pm ET
CW
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Race
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
NASCAR.com
Press Pass: Post NXS Race
Sunday
July 27, 2025
2:00pm ET
TNT Sports | HBO Max
NASCAR Cup Series
Race
(Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
NASCAR.com
Press Pass: Post NCS Race
NASCAR Qualifying Order: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (July 2025)


NASCAR Cup Series
Playoff Point Standings
Points Ahead of Indianapolis
Pos | Driver | Wins | Points
1. Denny Hamlin
4 Wins
2. Kyle Larson
3 Wins
3. Christopher Bell
3 Wins
4. Shane van Gisbergen
3 Wins
5. Chase Elliott
1 Win
6. William Byron
1 Win
7. Ryan Blaney
1 Win
8. Chase Briscoe
1 Win
9. Joey Logano
1 Win
10. Ross Chastain
1 Win
11. Austin Cindric
1 Win
12. Josh Berry
1 Win
13. Tyler Reddick
+156
14. Alex Bowman
+63
15. Chris Buescher
+44
16. Bubba Wallace
+16
— Playoff Cutline —
17. Ryan Preece
-16
18. Kyle Busch
-39
19. Ty Gibbs
-52
In-Season Challenge
Indianapolis Matches
The highest finisher of these two drivers will take home $1,000,000:
Ty Dillon (Seed 32)
vs
Ty Gibbs (Seed 6)
Links
Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis Raceway Park | NASCAR
Motorsports
NASCAR announces San Diego street race for 2026
With Chicago on hold, NASCAR announced Wednesday that it is headed to San Diego next summer to host a new street race weekend on an active naval base. The three-day event, dubbed the NASCAR San Diego Weekend, will take place in June 2026, filling the void on the schedule left by the Chicago Street Race, […]

With Chicago on hold, NASCAR announced Wednesday that it is headed to San Diego next summer to host a new street race weekend on an active naval base.
The three-day event, dubbed the NASCAR San Diego Weekend, will take place in June 2026, filling the void on the schedule left by the Chicago Street Race, which last week was paused after three years.
The San Diego street race will feature a very different and likely less disruptive setting, trading Grant Park for Naval Base Coronado, Lake Michigan for San Diego Bay and bus routes for runways.
“It’ll be a blend of traditional street racing in a way where we’ll be winding our ways through some of the streets on the base,” Ben Kennedy, NASCAR’s executive vice president, said in a news release. “They’ll be going past (aircraft) carriers. They’ll eventually go out onto the tarmac, probably by some military aircraft, maybe a couple of F-18s out there, and then back toward the entrance to the base.”
The NASCAR San Diego Weekend, set for June 19 to June 21, will include Xfinity and Cup Series events, adding a Craftsman Truck Series race to the opening day lineup. The street race weekend coincides with the 250th anniversary of the United States Navy.
The agreement to hold the San Diego street race is a one-year deal, NASCAR confirmed Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This is a huge win for San Diego and we are so grateful to NASCAR for their partnership,” Mark Neville, CEO of Sports San Diego, said in the release. “Without a doubt, the NASCAR San Diego Weekend will have a significant and favorable impact on San Diego’s tourism and hospitality industry.”
Last year, the Chicago Street Race generated $128 million in total economic impact and drew 53,036 unique visitors, according to a study commissioned by Choose Chicago, the city’s tourism arm. The nationally televised Cup Series race also generated $43.6 million in media value for Chicago, according to a companion report.
While attendance figures for the third annual Fourth of July weekend run through Grant Park have yet to be released, TV ratings for the Cup Series race on July 6 were down for the third consecutive year, averaging 2.1 million viewers on cable channel TNT, according to Nielsen. The Xfinity race on July 5 averaged 1.1 million viewers on its new TV home, the CW broadcast network, according to Nielsen.
NASCAR sent a notice last week to Mayor Brandon Johnson putting the Chicago Street Race on hold for 2026, but leaving open the door to return on a different date the following year.
NASCAR said it paused the Chicago Street Race because it needs more time to explore rescheduling the event away from Independence Day and finding ways to speed up the build-out and breakdown of the pop-up racecourse, in response to concerns from the city.
The three-year deal with NASCAR to host the street race was struck during former Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration and included a two-year renewal option.
NASCAR said in the release that it will build on its experiences with the first street race in Chicago and apply it to San Diego, including “how to load into and out of a city efficiently.”
While the details of the temporary San Diego racecourse have yet to be finalized, it will certainly look different than the 12-turn, 2.2-mile circuit through Grant Park, down DuSable Lake Shore Drive and up Michigan Avenue, which has popped up in Chicago over the last three summers.
“We’re not going to be on city grounds,” Kennedy said. “We’re going to be working with different partners in this area and I think in ways, it will be a little bit more simple, and then in other areas we’ll just have to be mindful of schedules and how they coordinate people on and off the base.”
Chicago hosted the first street race in NASCAR’s 75-year history. San Diego will be the second street race, and the first held on an active military base.
The San Diego street race will also mark NASCAR’s first return to Southern California since February 2024, when it last held the Clash at the LA Coliseum. Before that, NASCAR raced at Fontana Speedway, a traditional oval track east of Los Angeles, for 26 years.
Whether NASCAR returns to Chicago remains to be seen. But NASCAR is maintaining its Chicago office and reiterated Wednesday it hopes to be racing again on the streets of Chicago down the road.
“We hope to still return in 2027,” a NASCAR spokesperson said.
rchannick@chicagotribune.com
Originally Published:
Motorsports
NASCAR street race moving to San Diego: The Rundown
Good afternoon! It’s Wednesday, and it’s dangerously hot out. Here’s how you can stay safe. And here’s what else you need to know today. 1. NASCAR is taking its street race to San Diego in 2026 After previously announcing it was pausing the Chicago Street Race, NASCAR said today it was holding a race at […]

Good afternoon! It’s Wednesday, and it’s dangerously hot out. Here’s how you can stay safe. And here’s what else you need to know today.
1. NASCAR is taking its street race to San Diego in 2026
After previously announcing it was pausing the Chicago Street Race, NASCAR said today it was holding a race at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego next year, Kyle Williams reports for the Chicago Sun-Times.
The race will occur Father’s Day weekend.
The Chicago Street Race faced obstacles from the city and the weather during its three-year run. But racers loved the course because of the change of pace from their usual oval tracks.
Naval Base Coronado will become the first active military base to host NASCAR. Drivers will race past aircraft carriers and F-18s, but the official course layout has yet to be finalized.
The Chicago Street Race — along with NASCAR holding an exhibition race inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum — imbued NASCAR with the confidence to continue experimenting with where they hold races. [Chicago Sun-Times]
2. CPS board members asked Gov. Pritzker and lawmakers to call a special session on school funding
As they stare down a $734 million budget deficit, some Chicago Board of Education members are calling on the governor to hold a special legislative session this summer to drum up money for schools, my colleague Sarah Karp reports for WBEZ.
They say this is an urgent need not just for Chicago but also for school districts across the state that also are grappling with budget troubles. These come as federal COVID-19 relief money runs out and the Trump administration puts other federal funding in jeopardy.
Two board members in particular — Aaron “Jitu” Brown, an elected member who represents the West Side, and Debby Pope, an appointed member from the North Side — are echoing the demands of the Chicago Teachers Union.
The CTU held a news conference this month where officials and members said Illinois leaders must “Trump-proof” the state with additional funding for schools. [WBEZ]
3. Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an order to snuff out smoking on CTA trains
Mayor Brandon Johnson said he has “had enough” of cigarette smokers lighting up on L trains. He called the act “unthinkable” and signed an executive order aimed at cracking down on CTA smokers, WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel reports.
Johnson said the effort will include placing social workers at CTA stops, starting an anti-smoking campaign on the “detrimental effects of smoking” and tasking city agencies with finding other short-term and long-term interventions “to end smoking on our transit system.”
The order came as a surprise to Ald. Bill Conway (34th), who introduced a resolution last month calling for “data-driven” enforcement of the city’s ban on CTA smoking. He said the mayor did not reach out to him for input or to inform him of the new plan.
Conway criticized the mayor’s approach, saying he doesn’t “really quite know how community meetings or social workers help with the cause.” [WBEZ]
4. ComEd bills will likely remain high as AI and data centers suck up power
PJM Interconnection, the multistate electric grid operator that serves Northern Illinois, confirmed yesterday that power demand continues to be high and the price of electricity is likely going up next year, Brett Chase reports for the Chicago Sun-Times.
Power consumption nationwide has skyrocketed as big data centers and artificial intelligence operations have proliferated. ComEd’s rate hikes this summer are directly related to high demand across the country.
Meanwhile, new sources of renewable energy, including wind and solar power, have been slow to connect to an electric grid that spans from Northern Illinois to the East Coast. Renewable sources were supposed to take the place of coal plants, which have been shutting down. [Chicago Sun-Times]
5. Kim Deal on making music with Steve Albini and warming up crowds for Olivia Rodrigo
There’s no way to start a conversation about Chicago with Kim Deal without the name Steve Albini.
The late, great producer and audio engineer behind Chicago’s Electrical Audio recording studio was basically on Deal’s speed dial for almost 40 years, as she came up the ranks in iconic acts like Pixies and The Breeders. From his legendary Studio A, he zeroed in on the raw power and vociferous noise characteristic of Deal’s many seminal projects — albums like Pixies’ “Surfer Rosa,” The Breeders’ “Pod” and her 2024 solo debut “Nobody Loves You More.”
Among those who appreciate Deal’s catalog is pop star Olivia Rodrigo: Last year, Rodrigo recruited The Breeders to open on her Guts World Tour. Every night, Rodrigo told audiences how much The Breeders meant to her, particularly their uberhit “Cannonball.”
Now, Deal returns to Chicago for a solo set at Thalia Hall tonight, Selena Fragassi reports for the Chicago Sun-Times. [Chicago Sun-Times]
Here’s what else is happening
- The White House revealed its “AI Action Plan,” which was heavily shaped by President Donald Trump’s Silicon Valley supporters. [AP]
- Bryan Kohberger was sentenced to life in prison for murdering four University of Idaho students nearly three years ago. [AP]
- The feds want 15 months for former City Club President Jay Doherty in the ComEd Madigan plot. [Chicago Sun-Times]
- A who’s who of female Chicago chefs will guest star at Ravinia’s musical supper club. [WBEZ]
Oh, and one more thing …
The Athletes Unlimited Softball League, currently in its inaugural season, is far from the first women’s pro softball league to captivate audiences, my WBEZ colleague Erin Allen reports for Curious City.
Before the current women’s sports boom, before Title IX, women stepped up to the plate in the 1940s and ‘50s. You may be thinking of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, celebrated in the 1992 film “A League of Their Own.”
But there was a lesser-known professional league based in the Chicago area called the National Girls Baseball League. The name was misleading in that the teams were all local, not national; the players were mostly women, not girls; and they played softball, not baseball.
It was a pro league that gave the All-American league a run for its money. The two didn’t regularly play against each other, but they did have a heated rivalry. And the NGBL left behind its own storied legacy. [WBEZ]
Tell me something good …
What hobbies are you into these days?
Dan writes:
“A year ago, I signed up for my first senior citizen class. I thought that they were just for old people, but since I’m only 70, I did it anyway.
The class was stained glass, and due to the fact that we have a great class and teacher, I’ve stuck with it. The Vatican will never call to give me a commission, but I’ve completed a number of projects including college and NFL emblems (not for sale).
Our instructor had a commission to do a stained glass Italian Beef and I was allowed to give her a small amount of assistance with that.
So I guess I’d call it a new hobby.”
Feel free to email me, and your responses may be used in the newsletter this week.
Motorsports
Packers’ soaring profits showcase NFL’s revenue growth
A number of smart, experienced executives responded to a question: What are the headwinds and potential pitfalls that could slow the growth of the sports business? A few pushed back on the concept, believing the mindset must remain bullish. Here are the most common themes from respondents, who are given anonymity (each paragraph represents an […]

A number of smart, experienced executives responded to a question: What are the headwinds and potential pitfalls that could slow the growth of the sports business? A few pushed back on the concept, believing the mindset must remain bullish. Here are the most common themes from respondents, who are given anonymity (each paragraph represents an individual’s response):
Fans Of The Future: “Data indicates that sports is already behind music, actors and influencers with Gen Z, and the trend lines are scary. When you’re already competing against the most addictive content in human history — social media — for young people’s attention and it starts to cost thousands of dollars per year to be a fan, sports just might not capture the masses in favor of other options.”
“Short-form content and highlights are preferred over full-length games. There are numerous studies pointing to younger fans attending fewer games and being less likely to watch full games. Other studies indicate that social media, athlete-led content and personal storylines matter as much, if not more, than the games. This shift is pushing leagues to ‘entertainify’ sports with music acts, influencer integrations, celebrities and alternate streams or kid-focused broadcasts, all to stay relevant.”
“Gen Z and Gen A only want real-time highlights sent to their devices, and they are not as interested in attending sporting events. Also, their interests are more global.”
“Gen Alpha and Gen Z have different sentiment toward live entertainment and event attendance than older generations and prioritize other expenditures. That’s a big worry.”
So Much = Too Much? “More teams in March Madness, more teams in the FIFA World Cup, more teams in CFP, more leagues and teams in general. Everyone is vying for attention. The tinkering — mixed doubles at the U.S. Open — and gimmicks like the NBA All-Star, live interviews while a baseball game is going on, can be interesting, but also can ruin the fan experience or imply that the core product, the game itself, isn’t enough.”
“Too many games, leagues, teams and sports. Fans are overstimulated by options and have a hard time with content discovery. A lot of emerging leagues are going to struggle for eyeballs.”
“The need for colleges to generate additional revenue will result in playing more games, eventually playing football on every day but Sunday.”
“Too much ego; valuations don’t make sense and that puts too much pressure on more revenue and return. Where is that coming from? That will diminish the product and value for fans.”
Fragmentation: “It’s simple. Media dollars will slow, causing major revenue shortfalls.”
“Viewers must have access to numerous services across platforms. It’s not just unaffordable for many. It’s also confusing, juggling multiple apps and logins.”
“Dissemination of sports content has been a real evil. We have to wake up that discoverability is a major threat.”
Where’s The Middle Class Fan? “The never-ending hunt for ‘premium’ experiences is limiting who can actually enjoy sports, which in turn, slowly but surely, minimizes the diversity of the fan base, which in turn erodes the attractiveness of that audience to advertisers.”
Another cited pricing out fans: “We run the risk of making attendance prohibitive for many sectors of our population. We also don’t make it easy for fans.”
Other Concerns: “The biggest fear is a terrorist attack/shooting at a sporting event. We have been lucky to have not seen something like this, as we all know there are gaps in security.”
“Will teams be able to crack the code on monetizing fans in new ways? This will require developing structured data sets for fan data. Even if certain teams establish structured data sets, do individual teams have enough scale with their fan bases to meaningfully drive new revenue? Or will it need to be more of a collective effort across organizations? Can sports organizations truly make their fan bases global?”
“The joy and love of the game is being sucked out of youth sports. These new facilities are amazing, and it’s awesome there’s so much more coaching and everything looks and feels so professional. But to what end? The number of ‘jobs’ available as athletes isn’t getting materially bigger. It feels like more and more of a grift for kids and their families.”
“Many of our CPG clients are bracing for tariffs and a bad economy. Corporate finance is questioning whether sports marketing platforms are driving sales proportionate to the expense of sponsorship and activation. Also, sports properties have to stop continuing to split categories. Brands are at a breaking point.”
“Tougher immigration policies and enforcement in the U.S. could create barriers for both athletes and fans. This could undercut the communal, multicultural spirit that underpins the culture within sports communities.”
“Post-COVID boom for live events is over, so economic instability could really hurt demand.”
What do you think are the headwinds facing our business? Please let me know.
Please Be Thinking About: Former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue continues to recuperate at his home in Washington, D.C., after a cardiovascular scare late last month. I know you’ll join me in wishing the Pro Football Hall of Famer and one of the truly great people all the best.
Abraham Madkour can be reached at amadkour@sportsbusinessjournal.com.
Motorsports
NASCAR will hold first street race on active military base at Naval Base Coronado in 2026
NASCAR will hold a street race on Naval Base Coronado in Southern California next June as a replacement for its downtown Chicago event that ran the last three years. The move to the San Diego area does not eliminate a return to Chicago, where NASCAR will still maintain an office and effort an eventual return, […]

NASCAR will hold a street race on Naval Base Coronado in Southern California next June as a replacement for its downtown Chicago event that ran the last three years.
The move to the San Diego area does not eliminate a return to Chicago, where NASCAR will still maintain an office and effort an eventual return, perhaps as early as 2027.
But the shift next year will allow NASCAR to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Navy by hosting all three of its national series over a three-day weekend on June 19-21.
“As part of our nation’s 250th anniversary, we are honored for NASCAR to join the celebration as we host our first street race at a military base, Naval Base Coronado,” Ben Kennedy, executive vice president and chief venue and racing innovations officer, said Wednesday. “NASCAR San Diego Weekend will honor the Navy’s history and the men and women who serve as we take the best motorsports in the world to the streets of Naval Base Coronado.”
It will be NASCAR’s second street race in the sport’s history, following the three-year run in Chicago, and first on an active military base. The course layout is not complete but is expected to be around 3 miles.
NASCAR has seen Auto Club Speedway close after the 2023 race. It built a temporary short track inside Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum from 2002 through 2024 but moved that event to North Carolina.
Kennedy, who has been bullish on new endeavors for his family business, was the brains of the races at the Coliseum, Chicago, this year’s visit to Mexico City and now next year in San Diego, a venture the Navy is excited about.
“NASCAR embodies the very best of the American spirit through speed, precision and an unyielding pursuit of excellence,” Navy Secretary John C. Phelan said. “Hosting a race aboard Naval Air Station North Island, the birthplace of naval aviation, it’s not just a historic first, it’s a powerful tribute to the values we share: grit, teamwork and love of country.
“From the flight deck to the finish line, this collaboration reflects the operational intensity and unity of purpose that define both the United States Navy and NASCAR.”
The base is known as the “West Coast Quarterdeck” and is a consortium of nine Navy installations that stretch from San Clemente Island 50 miles off the coast of Long Beach to the Mountain Warfare Training Facility 50 miles east of San Diego.
NASCAR named Amy Lupo, who has been with the series since 2021 and helped launch the Coliseum, as president of the race. She spent more than 20 years at ESPN expanding the X Games when she lived in San Diego early in her career. She still lives in Southern California.
-
College Sports2 weeks ago
Why a rising mid-major power with an NCAA Tournament team opted out of revenue-sharing — and advertised it
-
Motorsports3 weeks ago
Team Penske names new leadership
-
Sports2 weeks ago
New 'Bosch' spin
-
Fashion1 week ago
EA Sports College Football 26 review – They got us in the first half, not gonna lie
-
Sports1 week ago
Volleyball Releases 2025 Schedule – Niagara University Athletics
-
College Sports3 weeks ago
MSU Hockey News – The Only Colors
-
Sports2 weeks ago
E.l.f Cosmetics Builds Sports Marketing Game Plan Toward Bigger Goals
-
Health1 week ago
CAREGD Trademark Hits the Streets for Mental Health Month
-
College Sports2 weeks ago
Buford DB Tyriq Green Commits to Georgia
-
Youtube2 weeks ago
Will LeBron James request a trade? 🤔 Windy says MULTIPLE TEAMS would make offers 👀 | NBA Today