NASCAR cannot catch a break. For the fourth time since the season resumed and fifth overall, another race has been delayed due to rain. In this case, it was the Cup Series‘ Alsco Uniforms 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and the Xfinity Series‘ Cheddar’s 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. After being scheduled for Wednesday night, the former was delayed to Thursday night, with the crunched schedule forcing the latter to be moved to Monday night.
Tropical Depression Bertha made landfall in the Carolinas on Wednesday morning. Although it weakened as it moved inland, the rain reached Charlotte Motor Speedway prior to the start of the Alsco Uniforms 500 in the evening. The race was to be the fourth Cup date since the season restarted and the second at Charlotte after Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600. The 600 had also fallen victim to rain, leading to an hour-long delay.
Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron and Alex Bowman, who respectively finished the 600 in twentieth and nineteenth, will start on the pole.
The season, which resumed in mid-May at Darlington Raceway, has been plagued by weather issues. The Xfinity return date, the Toyota 200 at Darlington, was pushed back by two days because of the weather. Its parent race, the Cup Series’ Toyota 500, was called shortly before the checkered flag due to the rain. The Daytona 500 in February was also plagued by precipitation that forced it to be moved from Sunday to Monday.
“Guess we’ll just have to soak up the win a little longer,” 600 winner Brad Keselowski tweeted. “See you Thursday.”
Due to logistical concerns for the Xfinity Series, its date at Bristol was moved from Saturday to Morning night. The starting grid will be determined by random draw.
