JOLIET, IL: In spite of rumors circulating that this would be the last IndyCar race at Chicagoland Speedway, Dario Franchitti and 28 of his best friends put on yet another amazing, heart-stopping show. If this indeed is the end of open-wheel racing at Joliet, it was the best funeral I’ve ever attended!
For whatever reason, promotion has always been a problem at Joliet. Until this season, fans were forced to purchase an expensive “Track-Pack”, consisting of tickets for both NASCAR and IndyCar events. Very few spectators we’ve spoken to over the years were happy being force-fed this type of arrangement. Also, there was consistently a lack of race advertising in the local media; since the IRL first appeared at Chicagoland Speedway in 2001, it seemed that very few folks in the Windy City area even knew the cars and stars of the Indianapolis 500 were in town!
The good news is that true fans of motorsports enjoyed ten years of unparalleled thrills and chills watching the IndyCars perform at Joliet. Those of us lucky enough to have been in attendance during Chicagoland’s decade of speed will never forget the amazing shows we witnessed.
With a mear 15-20K spectators in attendance last night, it wasn’t difficult to ask many of them how they felt about attending perhaps the final IndyCar race at Joliet. The general consensus was one of amazement.
“How can the Speedway stop racing Indy Cars here?”, one middle-aged guy wearing a “Helio” shirt exclaimed. “This is the best auto racing on the planet; it just blows NASCAR away!”
Perhaps, like his fellow IndyCar die-hards, he should have told his friends…
Chicagoland’s “Decade of Speed”: Peak Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300 August 28, 2010
Dario Franchitti
Peak Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300 August 29, 2009
Ryan Briscoe
Peak Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300 September 7, 2008
Helio Castroneves
Peak Antifreeze Indy 300 Presented by Mr. Clean September 9, 2007
Dario Franchitti
Peak Antifreeze Indy 300 Presented by Mr. Clean September 10, 2006
Dan Wheldon
Peak Antifreeze Indy 300 September 11, 2005
Dan Wheldon
Delphi Indy 300 September 12, 2004
Adrian Fernandez
Delphi Indy 300 September 7, 2003
Sam Hornish Jr
Delphi Indy 300 September 8, 2002
Sam Hornish Jr
Delphi Indy 300 September 2, 2001
Jaques Lazier
RIP, IndyCar at Chicagoland Speedway…
IndyCar SeriesJohn AtlasThe Dirt Guy