2026 NASCAR Schedule

hmmm298 said:
SVG killed that experiment. Reducing the number of road courses accordingly.
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If a single driver won half the 1.5-mile oval races, would you advocate reducing the number of those? Waltrip won seven Bristol races in a row; I guess that track should have been dropped decades ago.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
If a single driver won half the 1.5-mile oval races, would you advocate reducing the number of those? Waltrip won seven Bristol races in a row; I guess that track should have been dropped decades ago.
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StandOnIt said:
Probably some fans wanted Bristol burned during that time.
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Folks ARE whining for Bristol to get dropped. Something about attendance (which I don’t know why they care about, do they work for NASCAR?) and something about “Muh Entertainment”. Bristol isn’t the problem, nor was it ever.
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
Done deal.
racer.com

NASCAR headed for San Diego in 2026 | RACER

RACER has learned a deal has been reached for NASCAR to return to Southern California next year, and the announcement of the event could come as soon as next week.
racer.com racer.com
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Coronado baby!!!!! Going to be amazing. I have stayed on the island a lot....in fact, heading there next month. Hard to get my head around where they will be racing, but isn't that always the case with street courses? Ingress and egress will be interesting, but who the hell cares?! I CANNOT WAIT. I am so there!!!!!!!
 
hmmm298 said:
SVG killed that experiment. Reducing the number of road courses accordingly.
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Mark Martin won Watkins Glen three years in a row in the mid-90s.

Jeff Gordon won three straight road courses.

Kevin Harvick won at Phoenix SIX times in eight races.

When Chase Elliott was dominating the road courses, fans wanted more of them.

Lets not forget either that Michael McDowell had SVG's number at Chicago.
 
HoneyBadger said:
Mark Martin won Watkins Glen three years in a row in the mid-90s.

Jeff Gordon won three straight road courses.

Kevin Harvick won at Phoenix SIX times in eight races.

When Chase Elliott was dominating the road courses, fans wanted more of them.

Lets not forget either that Michael McDowell had SVG's number at Chicago.
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Buescher beat him heads up.
 
I look forward to it being a massive disappointment because the nostalgia for 2 good races in 2020 years and diminishing returns for the next gen on mile and a halves.
 
Per Jordan Bianchi of the Athletic:

“NASCAR will not race in the streets of downtown Chicago in 2026, pausing a three-year experiment that was unlike anything in the league’s 76-year history and proved it could pull off a race through the streets of a major city.

NASCAR announced its decision in a public letter to the city late Friday afternoon, noting that this only applies to 2026 and that the league is receptive to returning to the Chicago Street Course to race on the temporary circuit it has built each of the past three years around Grant Park.

Our goal is for the Chicago Street Race to return in 2027 with an event that further enhances the experience for residents and visitors alike, as we work together towards a new potential date, shorter build schedule, and additional tourism draws,” NASCAR-appointed Chicago Street Race president Julie Giese said in the letter.

The 2025 race was the last on the three-year contract between NASCAR and the city of Chicago. NASCAR and the city held a mutual option to return in 2026.

When the Chicago race was announced in 2022, it received public backlash from city leaders concerned about the potential negative impact on the community due to the logistical and financial questions that come with shutting down a portion of the city’s streets.

But city officials have warmed up to the event. During this year’s race on July 6, Mayor Brandon Johnson noted the competition is becoming a tradition, based on conversations he had with drivers in pre-race meetings with NASCAR.

At the time of its inception, the Chicago Street Course was considered an innovation, breaking well outside NASCAR’s usual mold of racing on purpose-built circuits, often in less populated areas. NASCAR leadership viewed the event as a way to demonstrate that it could build a world-class track incorporating city streets while minimizing the inconvenience to the general public. The most recent build for the Chicago Street Course took only 25 days, reduced from 42 days in its first year.

It’s not yet known what will replace the Chicago Street Race on the 2026 NASCAR schedule. The Athletic reported last month that NASCAR is finalizing a deal to race on another temporary road circuit in the San Diego area. That race is expected to be formally announced by the end of this month.

Each of the Chicago race’s first two editions were marred by poor weather. In 2023, it was shortened from 100 scheduled laps to 78 due to a rain delay. In 2024, the race was scheduled for a reduced 75 laps and only completed 58. This year, though, all 75 laps were completed.

Shane van Gisbergen won two of the three races — in 2023 and again this year. Alex Bowman won in 2024.”

www.nytimes.com

NASCAR’s Chicago Street Race is off for 2026, but ‘our goal’ is a 2027 return

NASCAR said it hopes to return in 2027, but noted the need to find a new potential date as part of the difficulties for next season.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
I’ll post the link when it’s live and then we’ll see if there’s still a presumption loop
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I wish you much success. I think it won't happen but that doesn't mean I don't want it to.

The stated preference is to return to the street course in 2027. Would you overhaul Chicago for a single year when RA is ready just up the road?
 
Charlie Spencer said:
I wish you much success. I think it won't happen but that doesn't mean I don't want it to.

The stated preference is to return to the street course in 2027. Would you overhaul Chicago for a single year when RA is ready just up the road?
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Sh*t-can the Chicago Street Race completely and replace it with Road America.

Take a race from Kansas and give it to Chicagoland.

:cool:
 
Do people think Carson Hosevar jumped happened to get into Chicagoland a few weeks ago to document the condition of the track? Chicagoland was one of the best tracks for racing on the schedule when they decided to shudder it after Covid for a street race. Going back makes a ton of sense.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
It does if NASCAR is going back to stay. NASCAR says its goal is to return to the street course in '27. I don't know how much sense it makes to get it back in shape for one weekend.
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NASCAR also told us they were going back to Fontana….this can go either way I think
 
Charlie Spencer said:
It does if NASCAR is going back to stay. NASCAR says its goal is to return to the street course in '27. I don't know how much sense it makes to get it back in shape for one weekend.
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imo, that's a huge if.

The notice from NASCAR to the City of Chicago that revealed their decision not to return in 2026 read like a long winded "Dear John" letter like what GI's get from their sweethearts who find another guy.

"We've made the decision to pause the Chicago Street Race in 2026 to afford us the time necessary to work collaboratively with your office and other community leaders to explore a new potential race date and to develop a plan that further optimizes operational efficiencies on the course build and breakdown while continuing our presence in the local community."

Left out is the reluctance of NASCAR to agree to cash strapped Chicago's need for a bigger payout from a new deal.

From what we're hearing out of San Diego, it sounds to me like NASCAR has found another guy.
 
Interesting building. More interesting backstory.
Screenshot_20250721_184604_Maps.jpg
 
I should have stated, that pic is part of the Coronado Naval installation in San Diego,site of the future road course race...
 
Magicmiler said:
It will be interesting to see how the layout is for this race.
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I just can't tell you how excited I am for this. I have vacationed on that island several times. The only way those vacations could have been better is with a race....and it is happening!!!!!! OMG!!!!!!!!! ....and back to SoCal!!!! I love SoCal!!!!! So ****** excited!!!!!
 
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