CHICAGO — Xfinity has signed on as a founding partner for NASCAR’s inaugural Chicago Street Race Weekend, giving the event another corporate sponsor.
NASCAR announced the agreement on Thursday, providing Xfinity with presenting, marketing, and promotional rights for the July 1-2 race weekend. McDonald’s and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois also are serving as founding partners for the event.
“Whenever we want to do something bold to advance the sport and the fan experience, Xfinity has always been there to help us move NASCAR forward,” Chicago Street Race President Julie Giese said in a release. “The founding partner model is really unique to the Chicago Street Race, and we can’t think of a better organization to add to this incredible list of partners for our first-ever street race.”
As part of NASCAR’s 75th anniversary season, the Cup Series will race against the backdrop of Lake Michigan and Grant Park on July 2 as part of a three-year deal with the city of Chicago. The Xfinity Series will hold The Loop 121 on the previous day.
The start-finish line for the 12-turn, 2.2-mile street course will be near Buckingham Fountain, and drivers will race by several downtown landmarks on Michigan Avenue, South Columbus Drive and DuSable Lake Shore Drive.
The process for preparing for race weekend could cause some headaches for the city, due to road closures and parking restrictions around Grant Park.
Xfinity is in its fourth season as a premier partner for NASCAR and ninth season as the title partner of the Xfinity Series. It plans to use its Chicago deal to promote its 10G network. Turn 10 on the race course will be called the Xfinity 10G Turn.