Wait, NASCAR Is Planning 7 Races In 11 Days From Next Week?!
While online e-racing has been the only motorsport the world could enjoy/argue about under the Covid-19 lockdown, NASCAR will become the first series to return to the track for real when it runs a 400-mile Cup event at Darlington Raceway on May 17.
Yes, bewildering as that is, it is in fact being planned.
The South Carolina race will be behind closed doors with no fans in attendance. But with more than two months off from the 2020 season, NASCAR is making up for lost time: it will hold another 200-mile race at Darlington just three days later for the Xfinity series (NASCAR’s so-called ‘minor league’), and then a 500-mile Cup event on May 20 there. The series will then move to the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina for the Coca-Cola 600 on May 24, a 300-mile Xfinity race on May 25, a 200-mile Gander Trucks Series event on May 26 and then a 310-mile Cup race on May 27.
In all, there will be seven races in 11 days, and they’ll all be run on a one-day format, with no practice sessions and qualifying only for the Coca-Cola 500. The series is also taking precautions with the teams and staff, with screening for everyone entering the track and mandatory masks and social distancing.
“NASCAR and its teams are eager and excited to return to racing, and have great respect for the responsibility that comes with a return to competition,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president.
Can they actually pull this off? We know we’ll be tuning in to find out.
*Images courtesy of NASCAR
