3 takeaways from Cubs’ 3-game sweep. Plus: Your NASCAR go — or avoid — guide.
Sports Friday, July 4, 2025 | | |
| | Good morning, Chicago. With the Fourth of July and the annual NASCAR Chicago Street Race making for a jam-packed few days ahead, Chicagoans can expect a
hot — and potentially stormy — holiday weekend. Should weather predictions hold, forecasts called for temperatures hovering in the mid-90s Friday and Saturday, with a 50% chance of thunderstorms by Sunday afternoon, said Kevin Birk, a
meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Should thunderstorms hit the city this weekend, it would mark the third rainy NASCAR race weekend in a row. Last year, the race weekend’s main event — the Grant Park 165 — faced lengthy delays sparked by intermittent downpours. The year before, racers faced lightning and flash flood warnings. The city is set to host the street race on a 12-turn, 2.2-mile course through Grant Park, down DuSable Lake Shore Drive and up Michigan Avenue. The Xfinity Series’ Loop 110, which features mostly younger, up-and-coming NASCAR drivers, will be broadcast on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on the CW Network and local affiliate WGN-TV. The Grant Park 165 Cup Series race will air Sunday at 1 p.m. on the cable network TNT. Stay connected with us all day: Sign up for our newsletters to get the latest news in your inbox. And you can follow us on social media: X, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. Not a Tribune subscriber? Here's our latest offer. | | One of the most electric moments of the series turned sour quickly when Pete Crow-Armstrong hit an RBI triple Wednesday, only to overrun the base. | | | Chicago Cubs fans love paying tribute to former players from the 2016 champions on their return to Wrigley Field. But will Willson Contreras get the same treatment this weekend? | | | The Colorado Rockies are on pace for 126 losses, which would break the modern-day MLB record of 121 set just last season by the Chicago White Sox. | | | The first two years of NASCAR’s Chicago Street Race were accented by rain, but maybe the third edition will be a charm for fans and drivers. | | | One Chicago Blackhawks prospect is “certainly going against the grain” by reversing his decision to play in college. | | | The Chicago Bulls are bringing in a handful of familiar names to round out their roster for the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. | | | The Chicago White Sox were swept in the 3-game series, falling 31 games under .500 for the 1st time this season. | | | Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz was placed on non-disciplinary leave on Thursday due to a gambling investigation by Major League Baseball. | | | |