Fans fire back after Chicago columnist’s ‘rude’ message for NASCAR

A Chicago columnist drew backlash after publishing a harsh take on NASCAR's Grant Park 160 taking place in the city. Fans of the sport didn't hold back and called the remarks 'rude' and 'pretentious.'

NASCAR has held its only street race in Chicago for three years now. With the original contract expiring this year, a two-year option remains as a last resort to continue racing in the Windy City. However, there have been talks about San Diego possibly replacing Chicago with its own street race.

Amidst an uncertain future, a Sun-Times columnist released an article taking aim at NASCAR. Adam Stern from SBJ shared an excerpt from the piece, writing,

"@SunTimes columnist headline, "Dear NASCAR: It's Not You — It's Us:" "Before you motored into our lives, we never knew we needed auto racing on our beloved lakefront. That’s because we didn’t need it. We speak baseball here. Football. Basketball. Hockey."

Fans immediately took notice and fire back.

"Wow. That's rude," a fan said.

A Chicago resident came in support of the event, writing,

"Chicagoan here who doesn't care a lick about baseball, football, basketball, or hockey. The only sports that matter are those competing on tires, and I fully welcome NASCAR a permanent home in Chicago."

Here are some more reactions from fans:

"This is such a strange column what did I just read," a fan said

"There were literally people standing in their windows and on top of bus stops to get a peek. I think it was a success regardless of what @Suntimes says," another fan wrote.

"Kinda pretentious to be speaking for a whole city there bud," an X user said

"The stands were packed yesterday. It’s a wanted event even if people think differently of it," a fan wrote

While there have been complaints about course construction affecting the local public, measures were taken this year to reduce disruptions. Although, a peculiar situation happened during Sunday's (July 6) race, when a caution was thrown to let an ambulance pass through.

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NASCAR's Chicago Street Race ended in controversy after a delayed caution

NASCAR was marred by a controversial finish in the 2025 Chicago Street Race. A late crash by Cody Ware brought out the caution with one lap to go, but Shane Van Gisbergen had already crossed the start/finish line to take the white flag. This left the chasing pack unable to contend for the lead since the race wrapped up under caution instead of an overtime finish.

Had the caution been waved in time, a two-lap dash to the green-white-checkered flag would've taken place. Ultimately, Van Gisbergen took home the win despite not leading the most laps.

Michael McDowell, who began on the front row beside him, led 31 of 75 laps and even won Stage 1, but a stuck throttle ruined his chances and ended his day early. The Spire Motorsports driver spoke to Bob Pockrass ahead of the event and shared how he wasn't threatened by SVG's road course dominance.