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In separate tweets, the governor and the head
of the racetrack expressed their plan to see the green flag fall
in Fort Worth at an unspecified date in the near future.
Texas Motor Speedway had been scheduled to host a NASCAR Cup
Series race on March 29, but NASCAR began postponing races two
weeks earlier due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Abbott tweeted, "Just spoke to NASCAR leaders. They're working
to return to Texas at Texas Motor Speedway very soon. I hope to
announce the exciting details in the near future. To prevent
spread of #COVID19 it will be without fans. But they will put on
a great show for TV,"
Gossage subsequently posted on Twitter, "Texas Gov. Greg Abbott
has given NASCAR the green flag to race, and our sport is eager
to get back on track. A non-spectator event is not perfect,
because in our sport the fans come first. But circumstances are
such that this is a novel answer for the return of the sport for
now. We are now working on a hard date.
"Our sport is unique because the competitors are inside the race
cars with no body-to-body contact like most other sports. That
is a distinct advantage now over other sports and why you will
likely see auto racing as the first live sport returning to
action."
Gossage added that all workers present at the race would be
required to test negative for COVID-19 in advance.
NASCAR's Cup Series hasn't been in action since March 8 due to
the pandemic. On Friday, NASCAR announced that the postponements
will continue with the May 9 event at Martinsville (Va.)
Speedway pushed back indefinitely. However, the circuit's
statement added that plans are still being made to run a full
36-race Cup Series season.
In addition to Fort Worth and Martinsville, NASCAR also has
postponed races at Atlanta (scheduled for March 15);
Homestead-Miami, Fla. (March 22); Bristol, Tenn. (April 5);
Richmond, Va. (April 19); Talladega, Ala. (April 26); and Dover,
Del. (May 3).
--Field Level Media
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