2023 NASCAR Chicago street race: Everything you need to know from course route to tickets and more

With the NASCAR Cup Series season in full swing, the sport is headed to its fifth regular season race at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend in a year that seemingly kicked off just a couple of days back. Drivers and teams spent most of the fall touring the West Coast of the country, and are now headed to the state of Georgia just as the summer season knocks on our doors.

Eight races have been completed so far this year, if we count the exhibition-style Busch Light Clash and the Duels at Daytona, and the 4th of July holiday weekend does not seem too far away. A weekend celebrated in honor of the country's independence, this year's 4th of July weekend also brings NASCAR fans something new to look forward to.

The Chicago City Street Race, which was announced last year as an addition to the 2023 Cup Series season, will be taking place this year with the sport making its return to the area after its final visit to Chicagoland Speedway in 2019. The full schedule for the weekend is as follows:

Saturday, July 1, 2023

• Xfinity Series and Cup Series practice and qualifying
• The Black Crowes concert
• Xfinity Series race
• The Chainsmokers concert

Saturday, July 2, 2023

• Charley Crockett concert
• Miranda Lambert concert
• Inaugural Cup Series street race

Tickets for the event can be purchased at nascarchicago.com, having been on sale since last month. Prices for general admission start at $269, with high-end suites and paddock access for the complete weekend going up to $3377.

What does the NASCAR Chicago Street Race course route look like?

With NASCAR slated to race on the closed streets of a city for the first time in history, it will be interesting to see how cars and drivers adapt to unfamiliar conditions. The proposed track for the event consists of a 2.2-mile-long course with 12 turns, with most of them being 90° corners.

Drivers will start out from the start-finish line located in front of the iconic Buckingham Fountain on South Columbus Drive and run through main streets such as Lake Shore Drive and Michigan Avenue. NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series cars will also be seen passing through the famed Grant Park and Soldier Field, two of the most recognizable landmarks in Chicago.

Here is a turn-by-turn breakdown of the course route:

Turn One:

Starting on South Columbus Drive, drivers will take a left onto East Balbo Drive, heading towards Lake Michigan.

Turn Two:

The right-hander takes the cars onto the southbound lanes of Lake Shore Drive, going towards the Museum Campus.

Turn Three:

A slow right-hand curve in front of the Field Museum.

Turn Four:

A 90° turn onto East Roosevelt Road.

Turn Five:

Turning back onto South Columbus Drive, drivers will head northward down a long straightaway.

Turn Six:

Left onto East Balbo Drive, in close proximity to where Turn One is located.

Turn Seven:

A right-hand turn onto South Michigan Avenue leading into a chicane. Touted as one of the most challenging spots on the track.

Turn Eight:

The NASCAR Cup Series will follow the curve of Congress Plaza to the right, beginning with a sweeping chicane across Ida B. Wells Drive.

Turn Nine:

Located in front of Buckingham Fountain, drivers return towards Michigan Avenue.

Turn Ten:

Arriving back onto Michigan Avenue, heading northward as drivers make another quick right-hand turn.

Turn Eleven:

Right-hander onto East Jackson Drive. The famous lions of the Art Institute of Chicago will also be nearing this turn.

Turn Twelve:

Putting drivers back on the front straightaway, the final turn sends them right and back down Columbus Drive for a long straightaway and the start-finish line.

The race, titled Grant Park 220, is scheduled on July 2, 2023 and will be telecast live on NBC Sports at 5:30 pm ET.