NASCAR's Chicago Street Race, held on city streets for three years, faces potential discontinuation due to weather issues and high costs, despite being a fan and driver favorite for its unique urban setting and successful promotion of new audiences. The event has faced weather setbacks and financial challenges but has also demonstrated NASCAR's willingness to innovate with street racing, making it a significant, if uncertain, part of the series' evolving calendar.
Shane van Gisbergen, the inaugural winner of the 2023 Chicago Street Race, returns to the city aiming to improve after an early exit last year. With a background in Australian Supercars, he excels on street circuits and is considered a benchmark in the NASCAR Cup Series, where he has secured a playoff spot and is eager to make more memories at this challenging track.
Max Verstappen admits he still has a lot to do to prepare for the upcoming Las Vegas Grand Prix, as he has limited experience with the circuit, having only played it on the F1 video game where he crashed a lot. Despite his dominant form this season, Verstappen has struggled on street circuits compared to his teammate Sergio Perez, who has won five races on such circuits. The Vegas race presents a unique challenge with low temperatures and unknown track conditions, but Verstappen aims to overcome these obstacles and finish the season with a flourish.
The Formula E Rome E-Prix was red-flagged after a massive multi-car crash at turn six, involving the Jaguar TCS of Sam Bird, the Maserati MSG of Edoardo Mortara, and the Envision of Sébastien Buemi. The collision occurred when Bird spun his Jaguar and was hit by Buemi, leaving Bird's car in the middle of the track and causing Mortara to collide with it. The incident highlights the dangers of high-speed street circuits, but fortunately, no injuries were reported. The race restarted and Mitch Evans went on to win the first Rome E-Prix.
Andretti Autosport dominated the practice session for the Honda Indy Toronto, with Kyle Kirkwood leading the way. Kirkwood set the fastest lap time on the street circuit, showcasing the team's expertise on such tracks. Romain Grosjean, Felix Rosenqvist, Colton Herta, and Scott McLaughlin also performed well, securing spots in the top five. Championship leader Alex Palou finished 12th, while Tom Blomqvist made his NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut, taking a cautious approach to learn the unfamiliar car and circuit. The race will be broadcast live on Sunday.
Patricio O'Ward set the fastest time in the first practice session on the new 1.7-mile, nine-turn street circuit in Detroit, ahead of Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi. The session was red-flagged six times due to various incidents, including O'Ward stalling after a spin-turn went awry. The new track features a split pitlane and caused bottoming and braking instability issues for drivers.
IndyCar returns to a downtown street circuit in Detroit, replacing the Belle Isle venue on the calendar. The track is 1.7 miles long and features a split pitlane, with half the field pitting on the left and half on the right. The event is supported heavily by Penske Entertainment and promises to be one of the most fan-friendly events of the year, with more than half of the circuit open to the public free of charge. The track is similar to the Detroit Grand Prix Formula 1 layout of the 1980s, with tight corners and a long straight where cars will reach around 190mph.
Santino Ferrucci has praised the new Detroit street circuit, which will be used for the first time this weekend, saying it will be "really fast" and more like Long Beach than Belle Isle. The 1.7-mile, nine-turn circuit features a huge straight on one of Detroit’s most famous streets and, unique in IndyCar, a split pitlane. Ferrucci said he was excited about the dual pit lane and hoped the race distance would be right with the strategy.
