NASCAR drivers on returning to racing amid coronavirus pandemic
Kurt Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. join ‘The Daily Briefing.’
NASCAR is jump-starting its stalled season with a series of four Cup Series races held on two tracks over an 11-day stretch following its return to the track on May 17, while three other venues are giving up races this year.
Events originally scheduled for Chicagoland Speedway June 21, Richmond Raceway May 20 and Sonoma Raceway June 14 have been reassigned to Darlington Raceway May 17, Darlington Raceway May 20 and Charlotte Motor Speedway May 27, respectively. All three of the cancelled events plan to return in 2021.
Darlington will hold the first race of the restarted season on May 17 without fans in attendance. (Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
Charlotte will also hold its traditional Memorial Day weekend Coca-Cola 600 on May 24 and fans will not be allowed to attend any of the events. The restarted NASCAR season remains a work in progress, with further updates expected in the coming weeks.
The three reassigned races will be conducted over single days without practice or qualifying, but a qualifying session will be held for the Coca-Cola 600 night race earlier in the day. Race lengths have been confirmed at 293 laps/400.2 miles for Darlington May 17, 228 laps/311.4 miles for Darlington May 20 and 208 laps/312 miles for Charlotte May 27. The method for determining staring positions at the no-qualifying races has not been announced.
NASCAR only completed four Cup Series points races prior to suspending competition after the March 8 Phoenix race, but intends to hold a full 36-race season in 2020.