NASCAR fans have been watching Hurricane Nate and the impact it could have on Charlotte this weekend. What we know is what we don't know. Everything is up in the air.
Unsettled for Sat and Sun at @CLTMotorSpdwy Storms around Nate will affect the area, but timing is question. Radar watch @bobpockrass
— Alan Reppert (@AReppert) October 6, 2017
ESPN's Bob Pockrass earlier this week tweeted out that NASCAR is going to have to make some decisions soon.
Will be interesting if forecast shows coming in Sun afternoon if NASCAR moves up start time by an hour. Policy is to give fans 24-hr notice https://t.co/vdDvQNub4Z
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) October 4, 2017
That's because it could be bad:
Yep, 90 percent chance of thunderstorms. That's higher than it was earlier in the week.
Not sure if an hour will really help, though. A quick check of The Weather Channel's forecast for the Charlotte area shows rain and thunderstorms moving in Saturday and not letting up till after Monday, meaning the Xfinity race on Saturday might get in, but there's a chance Sunday's race won't even get underway.
Typically, a Sunday race that is postponed without ever getting started will be run on the following Monday. If that can't happen, NASCAR has 2 options they might consider - push it back a week and slide the remainder of the schedule, or put the Charlotte race at the end of the season. Either choice is not ideal, but they don't take chances with wet tracks. To be clear, NASCAR has not yet said anything about weather possibly impacting the race or what they might do.
Let's hope the forecasters are wrong with this one.