NASCAR returning to Chicago Speedway during July 4th weekend

NASCAR will make its long-awaited return to Chicagoland Speedway over the Fourth of July weekend, highlighted by the Cup Series event on Sunday. 

In preparation for the upcoming event, a crew of drivers made a pit stop in Joliet, as the track prepares for its first competitive race since 2019.

A familiar sound is back in Joliet. Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and defending Cup Series champion Kyle Larson were speeding around Chicagoland Speedway doing tire testing, ahead of NASCAR's return during the July 4th weekend.

"Nice to be back. Honestly, the place looks to be in really good shape. I didn't really know what to expect with this place being on hiatus for a while, but it looks really good ... it has a lot of wear, I feel like it wears more than when we were here last, which is normal, so we should put on a really good show when we come back," Blaney said.

"It's in much better shape than I expected it to be in," Larson said. "The track surface itself, I think too, is in a better place than I expected it to be, which also, again, I'm sure they had to pull weeds and things like that, but yeah, it looks good. I think it's completely raceable facility and excited, you know, to get here."

All three drivers have experience racing here. For Larson, that includes a pair of second-place finishes in the final two cup races in 2018 and 2019.

As Ryan Blaney pointed out, the backdrop here in Joliet is a little different than when drivers raced through the streets of downtown Chicago the past three years. While the Chicago street race is now off the schedule, both Blaney and Larson are happy Chicagoland still gets a date.

"I had an amazing time racing in the city for those few years. I thought those was probably my favorite event of the year every year that we did it. So, bummer that we're not going back, but I understand and then yeah, I mean, it's cool we get to still stay in the area," Larson said.

"I was just happy that this track came back because I always thought it did a great job and draws a good crowd," Blaney said. 

And Blaney says he hopes some of those new NASCAR fans who checked out the Chicago NASCAR Street Race the last couple of years make the trip to Joliet this July.