Heavy rain delays NASCAR race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet

A Chicago-area NASCAR race once again faced off with severe weather this weekend.

Heavy storms and rain rolled through Joliet on Saturday as fans returned to the Chicagoland Speedway for a NASCAR race for the first time in seven years.

The O'Reilly Auto Parts series race the Cuervo 3000 was supposed to get under way at 4:30 p.m. Saturday. After the rain finally subsided, it took an hour and a half to get the track dry.

In the end, Brandon Jones would take the win, holding off Chase Elliott.

Cup drivers have seemed to enjoy the return to Joliet, and hope to return to the Chicago area in the future — either in a reboot of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race, or back at the Chicagoland Speedway again.

"I hate to abandon any racetrack. Every one of them has character, and this one definitely has a lot of character. I would say it's going to put on a great show for TV," said Austin Dillon, driver of the No. 3 car. "I think we just, the only other factor is show up, you know? We've got to make sure that everybody shows up."

The Cup Series race is still scheduled for 5 p.m. Sunday to close out the weekend of racing. Denny Hamlin, a previous winner at the track, grabbed the pole for the race.

The Cup Series race will be the second race of NASCAR's five-race In-Season Challenge, with drivers competing head-to-head in a bracket-style competition for a $1 million prize.