Storms at Martinsville Speedway may throw wrench into NASCAR's night race

Race fans hoping to catch uninterrupted NASCAR fun by watching the first night race ever at Martinsville Speedway, Virginia, on Wednesday evening should be prepared for weather-related delays.

The Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 will be at risk for thunderstorms that are forecast to erupt over the Appalachians and Piedmont areas of Virginia through evening. The storms will mark an end to surging heat in the region.

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Even though temperatures are forecast to fall into the 70s F Wednesday evening, conditions will be very humid at Martinsville for the scheduled race, which is set to begin at 7 p.m. EDT.

In this Oct. 27, 2019, file photo, Martin Truex Jr. (19) and Clint Bowyer (14) lead the field in turn four during a restart of the NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Va. NASCAR will race at Martinsville Speedway on Wednesday evening, June 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

"The high humidity may not only make it extra steamy inside the cars but could slow down the dry time in between the downpours and add to the risk of lengthy delays or postponement," Alan Reppert, AccuWeather senior meteorologist, said.

A fresh track after a heavy rain can make for much less grip and slippery racing conditions, even when the track has dried off.

"Any torrential downpour could disturb and wash away the the small rubber particles that are naturally put on the track from the car's tires and make for an extra challenge at restart," Reppert said.

Downpours may continue to pester the region Wednesday night.

"While sometimes the weather tends to completely clear after a brief late-day or early-evening storm, there is not only the potential for additional showers and thunderstorms well into Wednesday night, but also some of these storms may get stronger and heavier after dark," AccuWeather Forecaster Tiffany Fortier said.

The storms will be produced by a moist flow of air from the Gulf of Mexico as the circulation from Cristobal spins toward the Great Lakes at midweek.

"As a result of this deep flow of tropical moisture, the atmosphere will be somewhat 'extra charged' over much of the eastern third of the nation from late Wednesday through Wednesday night," Fortier explained.

There will be the potential for some areas in western Virginia, West Virginia and northwestern North Carolina to be hit by locally severe storms with high winds and flooding rain Wednesday night. Severe weather is forecast farther to the north Wednesday evening over the Ohio Valley and the central Appalachians.

Storms and the risk of flooding downpours are forecast to retreat eastward, toward the Atlantic coast on Thursday. Unfortunately, NASCAR will not be able to take advantage of the better weather conditions on Thursday.

If the race cannot be completed on Wednesday night, then the race will be moved to a date later in the year that has yet to be determined.

NASCAR confirmed that if Wednesday's night race is rained out, it cannot be held on Thursday because teams and broadcasters need the time to travel down to Homestead, Florida, the site of Sunday's Cup race, according to FOX Sports reporter Bob Pockrass.

Martinsville Speedway is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series circuit with an oval only 0.526 of a mile long. The 263-mile race, which requires 500 laps to complete, is made more challenging with especially tight turns and the need for rapid acceleration and braking.

The track is comprised of asphalt on the straightaways and concrete on the turns, which are relatively flat and banked at only 12 degrees. Martinsville Speedway is the only track that is still on the schedule since NASCAR began in 1948.

The only midweek races remaining are the All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on July 15 and the race at Kansas Speedway on July 23. The two races at Pocono June 27 and 28 were originally set up as a doubleheader race weekend.

Fans are not yet allowed to attend events due to the pandemic as NASCAR has been running two races per week and maintaining a packed schedule in attempts to catch up from pandemic-related delays. Only the first four races were run on schedule with fans, including the Daytona 500, in February. NASCAR had its comeback race on Sunday, May 17, at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina, and so far this season, 10 races are in the books.

The winner of the race will receive a highly sought after and unique trophy -- a grandfather clock from a local clock-maker, according to Martinsville Speedway.

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the length of the race held at Martinsville Speedway. The race length is 500 laps, not 500 miles.

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