Austin Dillon in the NASCAR garage area at Daytona (Photo: Torey Fox | NASCAR Digital Media)
NASCAR Fines: Violating COVID-19 guidelines could bring big penalties
Shane Walters
NASCAR sent out a memo to teams announcing the penalty for a violation of new rules
On May 17, NASCAR is set to return. The first race will be held at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina. Seven races are set to take place in an 11-day span.
It’s a jam packed schedule for the month of May. Each of the events will be held at either Darlington Raceway or Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina.
Each of those tracks are within a driving distance from most of the teams in the NASCAR industry. That eliminates the need for hotels and airplanes. It’s a controlled way to restart the racing season, with everything being concluded within 24 hours.
Each of the races will be run without practice or qualifying. Drivers will enter turn one for the first time, on the drop of the green flag. This is the case for every race except the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
There will be guidelines in place at the track too. Of those, temperature checkpoints will be setup for entering the facility as well as various spots within the tracks.
Initially, NASCAR had plans to test the entire industry. However, the technology still isn’t there to test on a mass scale, quickly.
NASCAR is doing their part of protecting the industry in every way possible. Those include one-way walkways throughout the garage area.
Teams are limited to just 16 total members at the track. That includes: the car owner, driver, spotter, garage and over the wall crews.
The road crews are expected to be different than the shop crews. NASCAR is attempting to separate the two, which would prevent spread to the tracks in certain cases.
Beyond that, everyone is required to wear a mask at all times throughout the event. Gloves are required as well.
Some teams will be decorating these masks with team and/or sponsor branding. Like paint scheme, these mask designs are going to be submitted to NASCAR for approval ahead of the event.
Social distancing is also required. NASCAR will be spacing teams out throughout the entirety of the infield. The lack of fans and one-day shows allow this to happen.
At the same point, this is also why there’s only going to be one class per day. Cup, Xfinity and Trucks will all have their own day at the various tracks ahead.
Everyone at the track is expected to keep a logbook. That log is to record everyone they come into contact with. This will allow the sport to contract trace in the case of a positive test.
NASCAR has gone through a lot to restart the schedule. And now that it’s starting, they want to make sure they can keep it going.