PINELLAS PARK, Fla. – Showtime Speedway and BG Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series officials have confirmed early details to resume the series schedule beginning with an event that was recently added as COVID-19 fears are subsiding and Florida is slowly beginning to reopen.
Showtime Speedway promoter Robert Yoho confirmed that the May 9 event at Showtime Speedway appears to be solid and he intends to do everything possible to make sure the event goes off without a hitch. It was originally thought that the event would have to be contested with no fans in a pay-per-view only format. As of May 1, it’s unknown how many fans, if any, would be allowed to view this event in person.
To date, Yoho appears optimistic that fans will be allowed to watch this event in person. Yoho expects that he will at least to be allowed to operate at 25 percent capacity and will plan to sell tickets accordingly. A worst-case scenario would be to continue the event with no fans and as Pay-Per-View broadcast via SPEED SPORT TV affiliate Low Budget TV. Current plans also have the recently canceled May 2 Super Late Model being event added to this racing program.
The BG Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series season has been idle since its last appearance at Citrus County Speedway in Inverness, Fla., on March 7 that saw Troy DeCaire victorious. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the series has lost two dates from the originally announced schedule.
Due to the eagerness of competitors to get back to regular racing activities, a good field of cars is expected for this event, including a handful of drivers who compete regularly in the Mobile International Speedway series events.
Defending series champion Troy DeCaire is in the process of duplicating his 2019 success. He has won all three previous BG Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series events contested thus far this year. In addition, he leads the country with three total pavement sprint car victories.
“I’m trying” explained Yoho in a Facebook Live video on Friday afternoon. “I’m not gonna burn bridges with government and city officials. I just do what I can do. No need to be upset, it is what it is. I try to do everything I can. I’m on state property and I wanna do things right. We are set for Pay-Per-View next week. I don’t know about fans as it stands today. We should be able to run with a twenty-five percent capacity. If we can’t it will at least be available as a Pay-Per-View” concluded Yoho.
More details on this event including the Low Budget TV broadcast information will be announced in the coming days.