Pete Pistone: Back on Track - mrn.com

It would have been more than acceptable after the checkered flag flew on last Saturday’s Drydene 311 at Dover International Speedway for a collective cheer to be heard around NASCAR headquarters. When the first race of the Dover doubleheader was over, it officially ended the aggressive make-up schedule the sanctioning body put together after the COVID-19 hiatus.

Remarkable doesn’t begin to describe what an accomplishment that was for the sport. NASCAR like all sports was forced to shut down in mid-March when the pandemic first exploded on the country. It took until May 17 after orchestrating a carefully created plan of health and safety protocols that NASCAR came back at Darlington Raceway and the sport has not looked back since.

"We are eager to expand our schedule while continuing to work closely with the local governments in each of the areas we will visit," said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR’s executive vice president and chief racing development officer, back in May. "We thank the many government officials for their guidance, as we share the same goal in our return – the safety for our competitors and the communities in which we race."

Even while tip toeing through that ever changing landscape of local, state and government regulations which kept NASCAR from competing at tracks on the original schedule, the sport managed to get every lost Cup event made up with Xfinity Series and Truck Series events not far behind.

Along the way several initiatives were implemented around the parameters of completing every event. Practice and qualifying were scrubbed to limit the amount of personnel and time spent at the track. Cup Series doubleheaders in Dover and Michigan allowed two postponed races to be made up without extending the season’s length. Midweek races at Darlington, Charlotte, Martinsville and the All-Star Race accomplished the same goal while also allowing the sport to give the much-debated idea of prime time racing during the week a shot.

It was a monumental effort that could hot have happened without the concerted collaboration of the entire industry including the sanctioning body, track officials, teams, sponsors, television and radio partners. The unfortunate development of not having spectators at the majority of races allowed some of the maneuvering to happen without impacting fans’ plans for travel and attendance. The hope is as the year progresses tracks will begin to be able to open their gates while implementing health and social distancing guidelines.

The season is a long way from over with championships to be decided in Phoenix come November. But in a number of ways NASCAR already has reason to celebrate.

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August 26, 2020 at 09:35PM
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Pete Pistone: Back on Track - mrn.com
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