NASCAR will be returning to Chicago and the Shores of Lake Michigan after an extremely hot and chaotic weekend in Nashville.

The Loop 110

Saturday, July 6 @ 3:30PM EST

Chicago, Illinois

50 Laps/110 Miles

John Hunter Nemechek was dominant on his way to victory in a mostly uneventful race in Nashville. The big story however, was the heat. Even at 5:00PM EST, when the race started (4:00PM CST), it was 93(F) degrees, and it only cooled down a couple of degrees by the time the race ended. That will not be the case this weekend, it looks promising to be a beautiful weekend in Chicago.

Most Recent Winner at the Chicago Street Race

Cole Custer won last year’s race around the streets of Chicago’s Famous Grant Park, dramatic amounts of inclement weather and tight time constraints forced NASCAR to make the unprecedented decision to end the race before halfway.

Names To Watch

Joey Logano: Logano will return to the Xfinity Series in the #15 Ford Mustang for AM Racing after the team replaced Hailie Deegan this weekend. Logano is fresh off a win in the Cup Series last week in Nashville. He has 30 Wins in the Xfinity Series but has not driven an Xfinity Series car since 2019 and hasn’t won in an Xfinity Series car since 2018.

Kyle Larson: Kyle Larson is back in the #17 for Hendrick Motorsports. Larson has 15 wins in the Xfinity Series, including a win earlier this year at Circuit of the Americas when Shane van Gisbergen and Austin Hill collided, allowing Larson to slip by for the win.

Sage Karam: The Nazareth, Pennsylvania native will be making his 30th Xfinity Series start and his 5th of the year. Karam jumped onto the NASCAR Road Course scene last year with a spectacular 4th place run at Road America, nearly taking an upset victory. Karam will be driving the #26 for Sam Hunt Racing this weekend.

Daniel Suarez: The 2016 Series Champion returns to the Xfinity Series for the second time this year. Suarez will be piloting the #36 for DGM Racing. He is a 3-Time winner in the series, all coming in his Championship Season.

My Pick To Win: Shane van Gisbergen

Grant Park 165

Sunday, July 7 @ 4:30PM EST

Chicago, Illinois

75 Laps/165 Miles

Joey Logano won a topsy-turvy race in Nashville last weekend. It was Logano’s 1st win of the season. It was also Team Penske’s 3rd win since the start of June. As the race wound down Ross Chastain put on a masterclass of defensive driving in NASCAR. Though it was all for naught, as Denny Hamlin managed to get by Chastain with less than 10 Laps to go. Chastain kept Hamlin in his sights, even closing back in by a few tenths. With 2 laps to go, the chaos card was finally pulled when Austin Cindric was turned on the backstretch.

With fuel being a big concern for many drivers, the ensuing five overtime attempts (which is a new record for the Cup Series) had crashes galore. Many drivers ran out fuel. When it was all said and done, Joey Logano was on top. Zane Smith pulled off a much needed 2nd place effort and an incredibly dejected Tyler Reddick finished 3rd.

Most Recent Winner at the Chicago Street Race

Shane van Gisbergen won on the streets of Chicago a year ago in one of the most shocking upsets in recent memory.

Names To Watch

Shane van Gisbergen: Shane van Gisbergen returns to the site of his upset win a year ago to defend his crown. Since winning last year, van Gisbergen has moved to the US to compete in the Xfinity Series. He has won twice at Portland and Sonoma respectively. SVG will be in the #16 for Kaulig Racing this time around.

Joey Hand: Joey Hand has had quite the successful Sportscar Racing career. A 6-Time IMSA race winner, he has tried his hand at NASCAR in the last couple of years. He made his first start in 2021 at the Charlotte Roval for Rick Ware Racing. He made 6 starts the following year for the team. This time, Hand will be driving a much more competitive car. He will be behind the wheel of RFK Racing’s Stage 60 Project. The part-time entry last ran at Sonoma with Australian Supercars Star Cam Waters behind the wheel.

My Pick To Win: Tyler Reddick

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images