1. Will Sunday be the final NASCAR Cup Series race on the Chicago street course?
Luken Glover: It’s looking likely. There are several contributing factors to the logistics of the event, such as business and road closures, the expiration of the initial three-year agreement for the city to host the race and poor weather. The return on investment has been solid, but it’s enough to clear the majority of the hurdles NASCAR faces to keep it going. There is also the possible return of Chicagoland Speedway, and with NASCAR in talks with San Diego to host a street race there in the future, it could spell the end of the Chicago street course experiment.
James Krause: No. From my understanding, the city has some aldermen looking to talk to NASCAR about the event’s future after this weekend, and NASCAR has an interest in returning. While you can argue the juice might not be worth the squeeze for some in Chicago, NASCAR touted the event as having created an economic impact of $128 million. Plus, the racing is fantastic with a course that perfectly combines long straightaways, tight corners and passing opportunities. Cost to the city and its taxpayers? The $5 million allocated made up .009% of the state’s $55.2 billion budget. Too worried about the crime? Bad news: Richmond, Va., Indianapolis and St. Louis all have a higher homicide rate than Chicago.
Mark Kristl: Yes, and that’s OK. These three races proved NASCAR could successfully race on a street course, and hopefully there’s a street course race somewhere else in the future. Regarding the 2026 July 4 race, that’s tough to answer because next year is the United States’ 250th anniversary, so there’s extra prestige there. How about Michigan International Speedway? The 2-mile track is loved by the manufacturers, the camping scene there is alive and well, and the daytime racing would serve as a perfect occasion to end the night with spectacular fireworks and a top-notch concert.
2. This weekend will be the first non-Daytona 500 Cup race to have a driver not qualify since 2018. Which open car will be on the outside looking in at Chicago?
Christopher Hansen: Josh Bilicki may be the odd man out in terms of qualifying for Sunday’s race given the competition he’ll face from the other open drivers. Austin Hill and Corey Heim seem poised to make it in with their natural abilities on road courses from the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Will Brown, competing in a third Kaulig Racing entry, is also likely to qualify his way into the field with his road racing background. That leaves Katherine Legge to battle Bilicki for the final spot. Despite both drivers having some road course experience, Bilicki will be left watching from the sidelines after qualifying.
Mike Neff: Looking at the five drivers who have to qualify on time, there are three who should be a layup to make it. Heim and Hill are regular competitors in NASCAR, and they’re driving for 23XI Racing and Richard Childress Racing, respectively. Barring a disaster, they will be in. Brown is not a household name in the states, but he is on the same level as Shane van Gisbergen. Kaulig is experienced and has done well on road courses in the past. It is going to be a coin flip between Legge and Bilicki, but the experience card is in Bilicki’s wallet. He has more races in stock cars, and Legge has struggled as she attempts to learn them. Legge is going to be the odd driver out.
Wyatt Watson: The dishonor will fall on either Legge or Bilicki. Legge is still trying her hand at stock car racing going into her third-ever Cup race with Live Fast Motorsports. She was about eight-tenths off the pace from Ryan Truex in qualifying at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. She has previous experience in the Xfinity Series, but not to the level that matches Bilicki in NASCAR. While Bilicki will possibly be in the slowest car in the field, his biggest challenge will be to make a lap as he qualified for last year’s race without a time. It’s very close to call, but give the edge to Bilicki here.
3. Of the Cup Series’ four current broadcast partners, which one provides the best coverage, and which needs the most improvement?
Watson: Amazon Prime Video has blown everybody out of the water in the span of five races. Its pre-race and post-race shows harken back to the Speed Channel days with in-depth analysis and interviews from a good chunk of the field. Adam Alexander has thoroughly impressed on both his coverage there and at TNT so far with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte, and its presentation during the race is very nice as well. Going commercial-free for a major part of the final run to the checkered flag is a major positive for Prime as well. What I can’t stand is FOX’s coverage. Mike Joy and the pit reporting are the only positives to really write about here, and the revered veteran Joy has been sadly walking it back the last couple of seasons. Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer bring some of the driest commentaries of all time and have made races far less interesting. Overall, it just seems like FOX is not invested in the sport, and that feeling has never been clearer with both Prime’s spectacular performance and the excellent coverage FOX provided for the NTT IndyCar Series.
Kristl: Prime did a phenomenal job in its first year broadcasting the Cup Series. The announcers brought the right amount of enthusiasm, and the post-race show was lively, insightful and enjoyable for the fans. The pre-race intro was awesome, and the postrace content was thorough. FOX needs the most improvement. Too often, I heard Joy talk about something, but the cameras took too long to show it. Michael Waltrip’s grid walk is an embarrassment to the sport when it should be a chance to have some fun and learn or hear something relevant prerace. Its post-race content usually consists of a few interviews, a brief mention of the next race and then FOX transitions to its next show. Everyone knew when Call Me Kat was coming on, though … and it still wound up canceled. FOX should use the Prime broadcasts to significantly improve its 2026 Cup coverage.
Glover: Prime couldn’t have done much better in its introduction to broadcasting NASCAR races, featuring a booth with good chemistry, strong presentation and unique in-race analysis. Its post-race show moved the needle forward, featuring interviews with drivers and more postrace breakdown. NBC deserves a lot more credit for its graphics and overall presentation, providing a much sharper feel than FOX. Speaking of FOX, it is the broadcast partner leaving the most to be desired. Statistical and graphic errors, lackluster camera shots, lackadaisical post-race coverage and a lack of energy from the booth are some of its largest issues that need to be improved quickly.
4. Which driver has been the most pleasant surprise in the Truck Series so far this season, and who has been the biggest disappointment?
Neff: For starters, we have to take Heim out of the conversation. He is absolutely dominating the series and it is unquestionable. Behind Heim, it has been Kaden Honeycutt who has really been surprising. He has shown consistency across all types of tracks and is threatening to break through with a stage win sometime soon. Honeycutt is top five in points and should be a threat to make the Championship 4 come playoff time. As for disappointment, ThorSport Racing in general has underwhelmed. The biggest disappointment of the squad has been Matt Crafton. A multi-time champion, he has simply been struggling tremendously this season, 16th in points and with just one stage win. He has three top 10s and an average finish of 18.2, the worst of his entire career.
Hansen: In his first full-time season competing in the Truck Series, Honeycutt has really come into his own in the last few races. He is on the cusp of breaking into victory lane anytime now and has proven that his No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet has the speed to consistently run up front, leading laps and challenging for wins. Ty Majeski, the defending series champion, is the biggest disappointment simply because he doesn’t seem to have the same sort of speed he had in 2024. Majeski is precariously sitting right on the playoff cut line, only 38 points ahead of Jake Garcia for the last playoff spot on points. With only three races remaining before the playoff grid is set, Majeski will likely need a win to assure he’ll have a chance to defend his championship.
Krause: I’ve been surprised by Daniel Hemric‘s consistency. He probably needs a few more wins to be a championship threat to Heim, but he’s tied with Heim in top 10s at 11 and is tied for the second most top fives with seven. Speaking of title threats, Majeski, like most of ThorSport, has been a non-factor almost all year. Lime Rock Park was his best finish of the year in second, and at short tracks, his strongest track type, he has just one top 10 in three races. If Majeski can’t get a win at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park or Richmond Raceway like he did last year, forget repeat champion — he might not make the playoffs.
Entering his fifth year with Frontstretch, Luken Glover is the author of The Underdog House, shedding light on the motivation and performance of NASCAR's dark horse teams as they strive to fight to the top. Additionally, Glover reports for the site at various events, and he contributes in the video editing department.
A 2023 graduate of the University of the Cumberlands, Glover is a middle school math and PE teacher, as well as a basketball coach. He is passionate about serving in his church, playing/coaching a wide variety of sports, and researching motorsports history.
James Krause joined Frontstretch in March 2024 as a contributor. Krause was born and raised in Illinois and graduated from Northern Illinois University. He currently works in La Crosse, Wisconsin as a local sports reporter, including local short track racing. Outside of racing, Krause loves to keep up with football, music, anime and video games.
Mark Kristl joined Frontstretch at the beginning of the 2019 NASCAR season. He is the site's ARCA Menards Series editor. Kristl is also an Eagle Scout and a proud University of Dayton alum.
What is it that Mike Neff doesn’t do? Mike announces several shows each year for the Good Guys Rod and Custom Association. He also pops up everywhere from PRN Pit Reporters and the Press Box with Alan Smothers to SIRIUS XM Radio. He has announced at tracks all over the Southeast, starting at Millbridge Speedway. He's also announced at East Lincoln Speedway, Concord Speedway, Tri-County Speedway, Caraway Speedway, and Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Wyatt Watson has followed motorsports closely since 2007. He joined Frontstretch as a journalist in February 2023 after serving in the United States Navy for five years as an Electronic Technician Navigation working on submarines. Wyatt is one of Frontstretch's primary IndyCar correspondents, providing exclusive video content on site. He hosts Frontstretch's Through the Gears podcast and occasionally The Pit Straight.You can find Wyatt's written work in columns such as Friday Faceoff and 2-Headed Monsteras well as exclusive IndyCar features. Wyatt also contributes to Frontstretch's social media team, posting unique and engaging content for Frontstretch.
Wyatt Watson can be found on X @WyattWRacing