Chase Briscoe lost control and clipped Shane van Gisbergen, causing the defending Cup Series champion to crash on Lap 25 of 75.
After winning Saturday’s Xfinity Series race, van Gisbergen was the favorite heading into Sunday’s Grant Park 165 race due to his experience on road courses.
The track was slippery and caused a delayed start to the race. Throughout the race, many crashes and collisions happened. The rain caused puddles to form on the track.
After being in the care center, van Gisbergen was evaluated and released. He was more disappointed that he couldn’t finish the race
“So that sucks,” van Gisbergen said on the NBC Sports broadcast. “But it’s an unfortunate mistake by (Briscoe). I’m sure he didn’t mean it, but yeah when he just clipped me, I had nothing I could do.”
Forte grand marshal
Bears legend Matt Forte used to be the one to leave people in awe with jukes on a football field. Forte, the grand marshal for Sunday’s Grant Park 165, got to do a parade lap in the grand marshal car and said it inspired him.
“To see the course and what it takes to do that as a driver and a high speed to memorize the turns and things is pretty cool,” Forte said. “Being a professional athlete or former professional athlete, you don’t understand or see the behind-the-scenes all the time from outside.”
Forte admitted he didn’t grow up a NASCAR fan, but he knew the names of the big guys — Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon — and noted how uncommon it was for Black people to be fans of NASCAR.
Forte, an admittedly fast driver, attributed that to his past life as a running back. His wife sometimes tells him, ‘You drive like you’re in a game.’
Being around the pit crew and drivers gave Forte a better perspective of the teamwork and camaraderie it takes to succeed in the sport.
“You got to be in place and on point, which has a lot of similarities to offense in football,” Forte said. “Defense; they just run around. They just run around and see the ball, then get the ball. Offense, you have to have a plan to do what the play is organized to do and everybody’s got to be on the same page.”
McDowell’s endorsement
Ahead of the second Chicago Street Race, driver Michael McDowell and Front Row Motorsports secured a sponsorship from the White Sox. McDowell’s No. 34 Ford Mustang Dark Horse was branded with the White Sox logo on the hood of the car, a Sox logo on the sides and SKIL, an electric power tool brand founded in Chicago, toward the back.
“I got a lot more fans than I did here last year,” McDowell said. “Based on the car, running with the White Sox car, even just walking around in White Sox gear, we had a lot of people that were engaged and fans that were into it.”
The partnership between the Sox and Front Row began with the Charlotte Knights — the minor-league team for the Sox — after McDowell competed in the North Wilkesboro All-Star race.
“We’re running the White Sox car and that’s cool to represent an iconic brand and to and to have it be a race where there’s going to be a lot of fans here from this area,”