High-octane racing over man-hole-ridden roads surrounded by towering skyscrapers – that is the scene the Chicago Street Race showcases. This starkly contrasts the usual scenes that NASCAR fans are used to, which include country landscapes or mountain backgrounds. Yet NASCAR’s experiment in the Windy City last year was a huge success.

This season as well, it was no different. Hordes of fans of variegated backgrounds flocked to Chicago to witness the sport for the first time. This fell right in place with executives’ plans to expand the motorsport’s footprint. So now, bigger plans are already in the works.

NASCAR could make a mark in more metros

The idea of hosting a street race took root during the pandemic. The virtual iRacing events made officials think – racecars competing in a skyscraper setting seemed real only in video games. But in November 2020, iRacing scanned the streets of Chicago, giving NASCAR officials some ideas. So preparations began in full swing until the inaugural Chicago Street Race flagged off last year. Despite a vast flurry of apprehensions, it was a success; It was the most streamed race ever on Peacock and NBC Sports Digital with 163,500 viewers.

This year as well, the reality soared past expectations, as Alex Bowman was crowned the winner. Despite the large numbers, almost half the audience was experiencing NASCAR for the very first time – thousands flew from different countries to witness the race. This has set new plans in motion on the sanctioning body’s part. NASCAR journalist Adam Stern updated an international interest situation: “At Chicago earlier this month,@NASCAR hosted officials from other cities in the U.S. interested in hosting a street circuit race in the future, per person familiar, as the property continues to see interest in the concept.”

This spells a big step forward in NASCAR’s global efforts which seemed like a distant dream last year. Veteran racer Kevin Harvick had significantly said prior to the 2023 race, “This race could be the greatest race that you’ve ever seen, or it could be the worst one you’ve ever watched.” And clearly, the results overwhelmingly tilted to one side, as Shane van Gisbergen grabbed the victory. It was the second-most watched race of the season, behind only the Daytona 500. NBC had a 2.52 rating and 4.632 million viewers, marking the most viewed race on the platform in six years.

So NASCAR COO, Steve O’Donnell, was very confident about further street racing prospects last year. It spelled a big international ambition for the sport. “What’s great about this is NASCAR has huge interest globally, right now. We saw it in Garage 56. (Kennedy) and I had a number of meetings with a number of different countries and a number of different continents wanting races.” But he wanted to focus on what the fans, NASCAR’s most important element, would want. “Good problem to have for us, but we want to do what’s right for our fans, take the product to where we think it’s going to resonate.”

And NASCAR fans are making their stance clear on social media – cheering loudly for street races.

NASCAR community wants to take it to the streets

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Picture the Chicago Street Race – burning rubber and high-decibel noise in a metropolitan downtown. Racers battling it out around tight corners, narrow stretches, and a whopping seven 90-degree turns. Seems like a dreamy scenario from a video game narrative – but NASCAR made it happen. So fans are hungry for more of such fairytale racing, as they encouraged NASCAR’s plans. “It would be awesome to see WV get into the street course racing game with NASCAR to setup a cheaper temporary street circuit!” Another fan hoped for expansion efforts: “Hope it stays in Chicago but maybe they can add another street course date.”

Some NASCAR gearheads put forward some wild ideas, all revolving around holding heart-throbbing street races. One fan suggested a full-fledged trial run to test-proof the idea. “Maybe have a STREET CAR NASCAR 10 race SERIES separate from the Cup series to test it out first.” Another fan emphasized settling in one city for a while. “Take these walls and show in the road. Build it like a special event that it’s in a city for 2-3 years and onto the next one.”

Others started visualizing NASCAR visiting their favorite urban neighborhoods. “Can’t wait to race the streets of downtown Little Rock.” Somebody else added, “A street race in San Diego would be epic.” Another suggestion and plea flew in: “Streets of Vermont 🙏” One fan offered a suggestion that would accommodate everybody’s preferred city landscapes. “50 race season. But each one is a different states street course.”

Evidently, the NASCAR neighborhood is pumped to witness more wild street course races. Maybe this is how the sport will finally grow wings and reach a diverse audience, as it is already doing.