CHICAGO -- First, I'm not a huge fan of Chicagoland Speedway hosting the first race of the Chase, which NASCAR already has said will happen again next season, too.
The third-largest media market in the country is too wrapped up in the Chicago Bears to get NASCAR on the front page of the local paper.
Imagine if the Cubs or White Sox were contenders.
Well, it could happen.
I'd rather see the Chase begin somewhere like Darlington or Bristol. They're smaller markets -- OK, tiny compared to Chicago -- but they would embrace the sport, and the style of racing at those tracks is more likely to create drama that captures the imagination.
