This past weekend, NASCAR held the Chicago Street Race in Grant Park for a third consecutive year. DePaul landed a partnership with Spire Motorsports and was featured on Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Chevrolet ZL1. 

“Partnering with Spire Motorsports for the NASCAR Chicago Street Race allows us to spotlight DePaul on a national stage while embracing a global event in our own backyard,” said DePaul Vice President and Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy. “It’s the perfect example of how we’re using sports to elevate our visibility and create real-world learning experiences for our students.”

DePaul went full throttle with a partnership, but McDowell wasn’t able to go full throttle in the race. 

He started in second place and led each of the opening 31 laps; he passed Shane van Gisbergen — the winner of the Cup Series — in the opening corner. 

There was an issue with McDowell’s throttle cable that sent him to the service lane, and ultimately took him out of the running for the win. 

“The throttle cable just broke,” McDowell said to NASCAR post-race. “I don’t know what caused it or how it got to that spot, but that’s what happened. I feel like we had control of the race the whole race.

“I was behind the pace car, and the throttle stuck wide-open. Luckily, I got to the switches fast enough before I ran into something, and then a cable broke after that. It’s just a shame. We had a great car,” McDowell said. 

McDowell ended up finishing in 32nd place, 22 laps behind van Gisbergen.

“Epic weekend for us. I’m a lucky guy,” van Gisbergen said to the Associated Press.

Shane Van Gisbergen is rapidly establishing himself in NASCAR, winning twice in his rookie season and possibly positioning himself for the Cup Series playoffs. After securing victories at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and the Grant Park Street Circuit, he heads to Sonoma with a chance to match top drivers like Denny Hamlin. His crew chief praises Van Gisbergen’s ability to navigate through challenging situations on the track. As he becomes more comfortable with the car’s setup, there’s significant potential for him to improve even further, particularly on oval tracks.

By the Numbers

• Two victories in 2025: Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and Grant Park Street Circuit.
• Van Gisbergen’s average finish on ovals has improved from 30th to top-20.

State of Play

• Trackhouse Racing’s strategic investment in Van Gisbergen is paying off with multiple wins.
• Ongoing improvements are expected on oval tracks, enhancing his competitiveness.

What’s Next

Van Gisbergen will race at Sonoma Raceway next, where he aims to continue his winning trend and build on his playoff positioning. With two more road courses left in the regular season, opportunities for additional victories remain, which could strengthen his spot for the playoffs.

Bottom Line

Shane Van Gisbergen is proving to be a significant asset for Trackhouse Racing, combining natural talent with strategic racing IQ to enhance his potential as a star in NASCAR. His development as a driver is key to attracting sponsorship and could lead to a competitive playoff run.

The price of avocados from Mexico, a mainstay at both restaurants, has doubled from about $45 to $50 per box to about $90 to $100, he said. That price has trickled down to customers, now costing them $2 per scoop, up from $1. It’s now cheaper to buy the popular topping from local markets than from wholesalers. Many local grocers now limit the number of avocados each customer can purchase, he said, because of high demand.

“Those signs are because of people like me,” Hammer joked, referring to the quantity restrictions. He said customers are beginning to “tighten their belts” and visit his restaurants less frequently.

They’re also ordering fewer extras like avocado and guacamole. Even mainstay are becoming more expensive. The price of ground beef has increased due to the rising costs of cow feed, Hammer’s suppliers have told him.

Looking ahead

In an attempt to keep things afloat during these uncertain times, Hammer, whose family owned a pub when he was growing up, has stopped taking a salary from the restaurants. Instead, he relies on his digital marketing business for income. He acquired Twisted Root just six months ago, while Joe Biden was president, and Mauka Poke about a year and a half ago, he said.

The seafood restaurant brings in about $350,000 a year with a 5% profit margin, but Twisted Root has a negative 10% profit margin despite its $450,000 yearly revenue. The staff is larger there and the rent higher, plus Twisted Root offers vegan alternatives that are more expensive than meat and dairy products, Hammer said. He tries to keep the menu prices reasonable for customers, which sometimes means taking on more cost.

After qualifying third, Carson Hocevar had high hopes for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup race at the Chicago Street Course. But while his teammate Michael McDowell passed Shane van Gisbergen and led the opening lap, Hocevar slipped back to seventh.

Just three laps into the race, Hocevar clipped the wall at the apex of Turn 10, shooting out into the outside wall. At that point, he lost control and spun in front of the field.

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Brad Keselowski, Daniel Suarez, Austin Dillon, Todd Gilliland, Riley Herbst, and reigning Supercars champion Will Brown all plowed into it, suffering damage. The track was nearly completely blocked as well. A.J. Allmendinger made it through, but not without being clipped by Keselowski on his way by.

Ryan Blaney and Ross Chastain led the lucky ones through a small opening between the pile-up and the concrete wall. There was also some contact between cars behind the main crash as drivers tried to slow, with Cole Custer sustaining some damage after hitting Erik Jones.

NASCAR was forced to red flag the race in order to clean up the mess. The stoppage lasted 16 minutes.

This will also impact the $1 million in-season bracket challenge as Hocevar was part of the final 16, facing off against Tyler Reddick in Chicago. Keselowski was facing Ty Dillon, who entered the tournament as the bottom seed.

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William Byron wasn’t involved in the wreck, but the championship leader had his own issues early, going to the pits and falling off the lead lap after experiencing clutch issues.

Read Also:

Daniel Suarez felt unheard, with “no chemistry” at Trackhouse Racing

Shane van Gisbergen goes elbows out to win Chicago NASCAR Xfinity race

To read more Motorsport.com articles visit our website.

The three-time Supercars champion is now a three-time race winner in the NASCAR Cup Series. Shane van Gisbergen won from pole in the NASCAR Xfinity Series…and then proceeded to do it again in the Cup race on Sunday.

While chaos broke out behind the leaders, SVG remained firmly in control for the final run of the race, capturing the checkered flag.

“What an amazing weekend for me,” said van Gisbergen. “Lucky guy to drive some great cars. I thank Trackhouse, WeatherTech Chevy and all these guys and girls here, what an amazing weekend. Thanks everyone for coming out, and hope we put on a good show.”

Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images

Ty Gibbs finished second, matching his career-best finish in the Cup Series. Tyler Reddick was charging fast on fresh tires, but he ran out of time, settling for third. Denny Hamlin came from last on the grid to finish fourth and Kyle Busch rebounded from a mid-race spin to finish fifth.

AJ Allmendinger, Ryan Preece, Alex Bowman, Austin Hill, and Ross Chastain filled out the remainder of the top ten.

As Van Gisbergen approached the white flag, Cody Ware crashed big, burying his No. 51 car in the tire barrier. Luckily for him, he took the white flag before the race-ending caution flew.

Stage 3

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Chris Graythen – Getty Images

The final stage of the race got underway on Lap 49 of 75 with Briscoe and Reddick leading the way, trying to go longer than most on fuel.

SVG restarted back in eighth, but quickly made his way up to third. Reddick stayed close to Briscoe about three seconds clear of the three-time Supercars champ.

With 18 laps to go, he easily dispatched Reddick for the runner-up spot. Three laps later, he made the pass for the lead on Briscoe. Moments later, the caution flew for a medical emergency. NASCAR needed to get an ambulance across the track to help a spectator.  

Reddick took the opportunity to pit from third, giving up track position for fresh tires. A handful of cars pitted with him, but it still put him deep in the field.

The green flag flew with 13 laps to go and chaos broke out behind the leaders with multiple incidents. Chastain got put into the tires in Turn 1 and then sent Joey Logano spinning in the next corner, collecting Ricky Stenhouse Jr., but none of this actually caused a caution. Austin Cindric stopped on track with damage, and that ultimately triggered a full-course caution.

In a nine-lap dash, things got very heated between Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace as they battled not just for a spot on track, but for advancement in the $1 million in-season challenge. In the end, Wallace got turned off the nose of Bowman and spun out. 

There was a lot of contact throughout the pack in the closing laps, but things somehow remained green until the white flag incident. And while SVG celebrated the win, his teammate, Chastain, was confronted by Logano on pit road following their contact.

Stage 1

Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, Brad Keselowski, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford

Photo by: Logan Riely / Getty Images

At the start of the race, Michael McDowell managed to get around van Gisbergen and take the race lead. It was a clean start, but William Byron fell behind the pack and went to the garage with clutch issues.

Just three laps into the race, Carson Hocevar slammed the wall at the exit of Turn 10 and lost control while running the seventh. This ignited a multi-car pileup, collecting Brad Keselowski, Austin Dillon, Will Brown, Todd Gilliland, Allmendinger, and Riley Herbst. Cole Custer also sustained damage was trying to slow down.

The rest of the stage was mostly clean except for a spin from Bowman. Most of the field chose to short-pit including van Gisbergen, who went from second to eleventh.

However, McDowell was among ten drivers that stayed out, winning the stage. He was followed by Busch, Reddick, Chase Briscoe, and Preece.

Christopher Bell was penalized for speeding during the first cycle of stops, putting him to the rear of the field.

Stage 2

SVG quickly made up ground with fresh tires, cutting through the top ten with relative ease. Meanwhile, Wallace went for a spin after contact with Kyle Larson.

Later on, Josh Berry spun and slammed the wall, destroying the nose of the car. Several drivers, including Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe, dove to pit road just before the caution came out.

Under caution, McDowell gave up the lead after telling the team that his throttle was sticking. He got fresh tires and a full load of fuel as the Spire team went under the hood to investigate. 

SVG was back in control, leading Allmendinger. Busch went spinning on the restart, costing him all of his track position. To make matters worse, he got a pass-through penalty after driving through too many pit stalls. Katherine Legge also lost control and slammed the tire barrier at Turn 1. She was able to continue.

Van Gisbergen gave up the stage win to pit early, as did Allmendinger. That allowed Ryan Blaney to take the stage win, ahead of Briscoe and Reddick. 

Photos from Chicago – Race