ATLANTA, Ga. – NASCAR and IndyCar have each postponed or called off their upcoming races due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
NASCAR says it will postpone its races at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend and Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend.
“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,” wrote NASCAR in a statement released on Friday.
Before the Atlanta and Miami races were suspended,NASCAR had previously announced on Thursday that it would be holding the races without fans in attendance and that the events would be restricted to competitors, crews and other necessary personnel.
The statuses of other upcoming NASCAR events remain up in the air.
“We will continue to monitor this dynamic situation as we assess future events,” wrote NASCAR.
As for IndyCar, it’s canceling all of its events through April. The season was scheduled to open Sunday on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. Four races are affected.
2020 INDYCAR Season Update: pic.twitter.com/YkaQ5HKvfX
— NTT IndyCar Series (@IndyCar) March 13, 2020
The suspensions of the races come amid of blitz of cancellations and closures as the country seeks to slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.
Formula One's Australian Grand Prix was also called off entirely as auto racing joined other sports affected by the coronavirus.
The NHRA has canceled much of the GatorNationals and IMSA rescheduled the 12 Hours of Sebring in Florida.
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