NASCAR Pulls Into Chicagoland Speedway

The sparks will be flying and the wheels screaming again on Saturday night in Joliet, Illinois as the Sprint Cup Series rolls back to Chicago’s Chicagoland Speedway this week for the running of NASCAR’s LifeLock.com 400. Chicagoland Speedway is a 1.5 mile intermediate oval track that’s similar in requirements and construction to the other tracks of this type in NASCAR, which do make up the majority of the tracks currently used for Sprint Cup Series competitions at present. Chicagoland Speedway does have one twist that the other tracks of this type don’t have, it’s closer to being one continuous circle due to its backstretch, which has a noticeable bend to it, rather than the perfectly straight backstretches of the other 1.5 mile ovals used in the Sprint Cup Series. This fact means that the racers will always be turning the wheel as they go around Chicagoland Speedway and the cars will be setup to provide the racers with greater handling sensitivity as compared to the other 1.5 mile oval tracks.

LifeLock.com 400 this Saturday

The history of NASCAR at this track isn’t as long and noteworthy as many of the tracks that have been raced on by NASCAR competitors over the years, but the LifeLock.com 400 in years to come should become one of the iconic races in NASCAR. Last year’s race saw Kyle Busch win the pole and lead for 165 of 267 laps in the LifeLock.com 400. This year we might see more of the same, but Kyle has gotten a little smarter lately, and come to realize he doesn’t have to win every lap, just the last one. Expect Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch to once again duel it out Saturday night for the victory in the LifeLock.com 400. Throw in a few wild cards like Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards into the mix and the possibilities for an entertaining race increase geometrically.

Image: Zuma Press