HAMPTON, Ga. — Less than 24 hours after appearing that NASCAR racing would indeed go on, despite no spectators for the next two weeks, officials with the sanctioning body have pulled the plug.
NASCAR confirmed late Friday morning that its tripleheader weekends at both Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway been postponed, part of a growing ripple effect from the global coronavirus outbreak.
The full postponement of the next two events marks the first time NASCAR events have been completely pushed back since 2001, when the sanctioning body moved the New Hampshire Motor Speedway race weekend to Thanksgiving weekend in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
NASCAR officials issued a short statement Friday just before noon addressing the news.
“NASCAR has decided to postpone the race events this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend,” the statement 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.”
No reschedule dates for either event have been confirmed at this time.
The next scheduled NASCAR weekend beyond Homestead-Miami Speedway is a tripleheader weekend for all three national series at Texas Motor Speedway, March 27-29.