2023 was a monumental year for the American stock car racing behemoth. The year marked the promotion’s first-ever official Le Mans debut, fielding its tried-and-tested Cup Series car in the 24-hour endurance race, capturing the spotlight in France for the world to get a glimpse of its true potential. Above all, the year marked the first year when NASCAR, in its 75 glorious years, tried something different, featuring its first-ever street race. However, the hard-core Speedway fanatics and traditionalists despised the idea of seeing a Cup car racing in the tight city lanes of downtown Chicago.

Even the rain gods did not approve, as the Fourth of July weekend race was drenched in the torrential rains that lashed out. Despite all the adversity, Grant Park 220 went on to become a massive success for the promotion, even earning a place in its 2024 schedule.

Grant Park 220: The Grand NASCAR Success story

As mentioned earlier, 2023 turned out to be a significant year for NASCAR. Commemorating its 75 glorious years of “aggressive racing,” the company dispatched a team of its top drivers, including its 7-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson, to take on the big daddy of endurance races, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The Hendrick Motorsports-powered #24 Chevy blasted its way, passing the more agile GTE spec Ferarri’s and Porsche’s to finish 39th out of the 62-car field despite the late mechanical fault that rattled the team. While the organization’s idea was to showcase its unique style of racing on a global platform in connection to the centenary feat of Le Mans, as it turns out, that was just a teaser to what NASCAR had come as the whole picture unfolded in July.

Following that, the month of July witnessed a massive surge in its viewership and TV ratings as the promotion went all in on its inaugural street race in the Windy City. Despite the heavy backlash from hard-core enthusiasts, the sanctioning body decided to give it a green signal, and the race finally got underway on a rain-soaked surface.

While the city was never accustomed to the racing franchise, people were excited to catch the action as the sight of the cars speeding past in the lanes and the thunderous rumbling V8s got them out of their homes, with some even tearing down mesh fence covers to watch the action despite the pouring rain. Reporters saw large crowds moving into the city, ignoring the brutal showers, to get a first-hand experience of the raw action.

In a detailed article, Chicago.suntime.com noted the fan interactions were on track while its reporters were on the ground scrounging for updates amidst the battering rain. The writing is pretty much an eye-opener for all the detractors who denounced the feat as the fans from around the world came down to the city to have a visceral experience of NASCAR’s “aggressive racing.”

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Moreover, the viewership stats signify the massive success of the event despite the crowd, security concerns, and huge traffic disruptions that were in place during the race.

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Thes first-ever street race delivered the sport’s biggest rating in 6 years

Irrespective of the result, which had the outsider Shane Van Gisbergen make history, putting the regulars to shame and acing the first-ever NASCAR street course, the event was a runaway hit. The race was more of a fast-paced thriller with an unexpected twist when Kiwi sensation and Trackhouse Racing driver SVG claimed the throne, besting the competition on their home turf.

Despite the skepticism surrounding the race, many enthusiasts doubted whether the fans would show up since the midwestern city was more used to NBA and NFL events and had no major racing pedigree. Fortunately, things turned out great, with ardent fans and casuals both coming down to the circuit despite the heavy rain.

Moreover, the star-studded lineup and the huge hype around its inaugural street race got fans at home glued to their TV screens. The event recorded NASCAR’s highest TV ratings in the last 6 years. It was NBC’s most-watched NASCAR race in six years with a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 4.795 million whereas, it was the most-watched NASCAR Cup Series race since FOX’s telecast of the 2023 Daytona 500 drew a TAD of 8.173 million.

The street race was also NASCAR’s most streamed race, with over 163,500 viewers tuning into Peacock, NBC Sports’ digital platform. Above all, the tickets for the 2024 iteration of the same have gone live on December 6th, with pre-registrations going up a day before on December 5th. Now, what are your thoughts about the race? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

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