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NASCAR races at Atlanta and Homestead will be run without fans

nick bromberg
Senior writer
·2 min read
Denny Hamlin (11) leads the field to start the NASCAR Cup Series auto race on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
Will NASCAR race at Homestead next week? (AP Photo/Terry Renna)

NASCAR will race in front of completely empty grandstands for the next two weekends.

The sanctioning body announced Thursday that races at Atlanta and Homestead would be run without fans in attendance. The move comes as sports leagues and governing bodies across the country have limited fan attendance or suspended their seasons altogether in an attempt to slow the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

NASCAR is set to run Truck Series, Xfinity Series and Cup Series races starting Friday at Atlanta and at Homestead from March 20-22.

Miami-Dade County announced a ban on large gatherings Thursday in an attempt to help contain the spread of the virus. The county said that the NASCAR race had been postponed but also said that the decision to run without fans in attendance was up to NASCAR.

No fans at IndyCar in St. Pete, Long Beach canceled

The St. Petersburg mayor announced Thursday morning that the season-opening IndyCar race in the city wouldn’t have general admission for fans.

The mayor of Long Beach announced that the Long Beach Grand Prix, scheduled for April, would not take place as scheduled. Yes, a race in April has been postponed while this weekend’s race is still happening.

Organizers of the race said they were in discussions about potentially having the race later in the year.

NHRA postpones Gatornationals

The NHRA event in Gainesville, Florida, began on Thursday. That will be the only day it’s held. The drag racing sanctioning body said Thursday afternoon that the rest of the event had been postponed and would be held at a later date.

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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.

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