NASCAR has claimed it could go racing again as early as May with events behind closed doors, despite postponing its first event in May today.
The Cup Series had been scheduled to go to Martinsville on May 8-9 for its next round, but the series revealed the decision to postpone that event, with the proviso that it could yet go racing in May.
“NASCAR is postponing the scheduled events on May 8-9 at Martinsville Speedway,” read a NASCAR statement.
“Our intention remains to run all 36 races, with a potential return to racing without fans in attendance in May at a date and location to be determined.
“The health and safety of our competitors, employees, fans, and the communities in which we run continues to be our top priority.
“We will continue to consult with health experts and local, state and federal officials as we assess future scheduling options.”
The next race scheduled on the calendar is the All Star event on May 16, with the prestigious 600-mile race at Charlotte one week later a return to Cup Series championship action.
The championship got four races in before the coronavirus spread, with the Daytona 500 won by Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano winning races at Phoenix and Las Vegas while Alex Bowman winning at Fontana. Kevin Harvick leads the standings.
The USA has been hit hard by the coronavirus with more cases and deaths than any other country according to stats released by the UK’s The Guardian.
America’s largest single-seater championship, IndyCar, has a rescheduled calendar which starts at Texas in June, but the track’s president Eddie Gossage has been quoted in the American press as saying its race would not go ahead behind closed doors.
The track declined to comment on those quotes when asked by The Race.
NASCAR has filled the gap without real-life racing with the Pro Invitational Series held on the iRacing platform. It has attracted most of the current NASCAR grid.
