As attempts continue to slow the spread of COVID-19, or the coronavirus, NASCAR has opted to postpone race weekends at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway. Both race weekends were expected to include races for all three of NASCAR’s national series — Cup, Xfinity and Gander RV & Outdoors Truck — with the Atlanta race weekend culminating in Sunday’s Cup Series race and the Homestead weekend building up to a Cup Series race on March 22. NASCAR has not announced a new date for either race weekend.
“NASCAR has decided to postpone the race events at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend and Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend,” a statement from NASCAR read. “We believe this decision is in the best interest of the safety and well-being of our fans, competitors, officials and everyone associated with our sport. We will continue to monitor this dynamic situation as we assess future race events.”
After Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos announced Thursday a ban on all large gatherings, he gave NASCAR the option of either postponing its weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway or running its races there without fans in attendance. At first, NASCAR announced plans to run races at both Atlanta and Homestead without fans in attendance. Those plans were announced Thursday afternoon but changed to postponement at both tracks Friday.
Atlanta Motor Speedway has announced tickets to its race weekend may be exchanged for NASCAR-sanctioned events at any Speedway Motorsports Inc. track in 2020 or 2021. Aside from Atlanta, SMI also owns Bristol Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Sonoma Raceway and Texas Motor Speedway.
“Ticketholders on file will receive a credit for the full amount paid towards any admissions including grandstand seating, infield, camping, fan hospitality, pit passes, etc. The credit can be used for the balance of the 2020 or 2021 seasons for a NASCAR sanctioned event at any Speedway Motorsports owned track, subject to availability,” a statement from AMS read.
At least some race shops also have closed their facilities to fans. Joe Gibbs Racing and Leavine Family Racing are among teams that have announced closures.
After NASCAR announced the postponement of the next two race weekends, Stewart-Haas Racing, which fields entries in both the Cup and Xfinity series, made a statement in support of the decision.
“We support the decision by NASCAR to postpone the upcoming events at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway due to the uncertainty of the coronavirus and its impact on our fans and industry personnel. This was an extremely difficult decision, but also a prudent one as we collectively work to ensure the welfare of all persons involved in our sport,” the statement from SHR read. “We remain committed to our fans and partners, and we ask for understanding during this challenging situation.”
