Three races have been replaced as NASCAR is set to restart 2020 racing season
NASCAR is set to restart the 2020 racing season. In doing so, they’ll visit just two tracks for seven total races across the top three national series.
The repetitive nature of visits to Darlington Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway have taken away a chunk of the schedule.
Related: NASCAR set to resume in May
Officially Canceled events: Events at Chicagoland Speedway, Richmond Raceway (spring) and Sonoma Raceway have now been canceled.
“Due to the current pandemic, NASCAR has faced several difficult decisions, including realigning race dates from several race tracks,” the NASCAR statement read.
“These decisions were made following thorough collaboration with local and state government officials from across the country, including the areas of the affected race tracks. We thank all our fans for their support, and we look forward to our return to racing,” the statement concluded.
NASCAR has a full schedule listed. However, it doesn’t include a second race at Bristol Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway Talladega Superspeedway, Dover International Speedway, Martinsville Speedway. While Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway are absent completely.
The events listed directly above have not necessary been canceled. The series intends to release further schedule updates in the near future.
Related: NASCAR Fines – Violating COVID-19 guidelines could bring big penalties
Notes on NASCAR schedule change
Further details about the changes to the 2020 racing schedule:
Chicagoland Speedway
Chicagoland’s NASCAR Cup Series race — originally set for June 21 — has been reassigned to Darlington on May 17.
The 1.5-mile Illinois track’s Xfinity Series race that was scheduled June 20 will be held May 19 at Darlington. Chicagoland was also set to host the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series (June 19) and ARCA Menards Series (June 18); officials indicated those races will be reassigned at a later date.
Chicagoland Speedway president Scott Paddock: “The difficult decision to realign our race events was a combination of where we fell on the schedule, proximity to NASCAR’s teams and the safety and well-being of our community and larger NASCAR industry.”
“We will miss the roar of the engines at Chicagoland Speedway this season, but we will be rooting for and supporting our NASCAR colleagues at Darlington Raceway as competition returns on Sunday, May 17,” Paddock concluded.
Richmond Raceway
Richmond Raceway’s (spring) Cup Series event on the initial schedule for April 19 has been moved to Darlington on May 20. A Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race that was to be run April 18 remains postponed, with officials saying details would come later for rescheduling. The .75-mile Virginia track’s Sept. 11-12 race weekend remains on the schedule.
Richmond Raceway president Dennis Bickmeier: “As a sport, we continue to be united in the best interests of the safety and well-being of our fans, competitors, stakeholders, and track personnel.”
“There will be brighter and healthier days ahead in the greater Richmond region when NASCAR returns to Richmond Raceway for the NASCAR Playoff Race Weekend on Sept. 11-12. We look forward to NASCAR’s best getting back on the track at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, May 17 as we launch a new countdown to the return of racing in RVA this fall,” Bickmeier concluded.
Sonoma Raceway
Sonoma Raceway’s Cup Series date for June 14 has been moved to Charlotte on May 27. Officials for the road course said in a release they had worked with NASCAR to find an alternate date on the schedule, but a suitable replacement could not be reached, “given the ongoing uncertainty around large events in California.”
Sonoma Raceway president and general manager Steve Page: “We work all year for this event, so this is a huge disappointment for us, for our fans and our sponsors, but we realize it’s part of a larger challenge facing our nation and everyone in the live events business.”
“We are excited that NASCAR is coming back to broadcast television and are ready to support the upcoming events at our Speedway Motorsports tracks. We look forward to NASCAR’s return to Sonoma in 2021,” Page concluded.
New 2020 NASCAR Cup Series schedule
As of: May 8, 2020 (Note: More adjustments are expected in the near future)
Sunday, May 17
Darlington Raceway
Wednesday, May 20
Darlington Raceway
Sunday, May 24
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Wednesday, May 27
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Sunday, May 31
Kansas Speedway
Sunday, June 7
Michigan International Speedway
Saturday, June 27
Pocono Raceway
Sunday, June 28
Pocono Raceway
Sunday, July 5
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Saturday, July 11
Kentucky Speedway
Sunday, July 19
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Sunday, August 9
Michigan International Speedway
Sunday, August 16
Watkins Glen International
Sunday, August 23
Dover International Speedway
Saturday, August 29
Daytona International Speedway
Sunday, September 6
Darlington Raceway
Saturday, September 12
Richmond Raceway
Saturday, September 19
Bristol Motor Speedway
Sunday, September 27
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Sunday, October 4
Talladega Superspeedway
Sunday, Oct 11
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Sunday, October 18
Kansas Speedway
Sunday, October 25
Texas Motor Speedway
Sunday, November 1
Martinsville Speedway
Sunday, November 8
Phoenix Raceway
Links
NASCAR | Darlington Raceway | Charlotte Motor Speedway | Chicagoland Speedway | Richmond Raceway | Sonoma Raceway
