IndyCar’s anticipated return to Richmond Raceway’s exciting short track won’t be happening in 2020.
RACER.com has learned that the June 27th race at Richmond has been canceled and there is no possibility of finding another date this year. IndyCar is likely to announce this, and the news that Road America is moving from June 21 to July 10-12, on Thursday or Friday.
The state of Virginia has been one of the most cautious about reopening in the face of the pandemic, and it just started Phase 1 of its recovery plan last week. Gov. Ralph Northam is on record saying the earliest that public gatherings will be allowed is July or August.
It’s a double-blow for Richmond, because it had its scheduled NASCAR race in April postponed and then scrapped earlier this month in favor of Darlington.
After a 12-year absence, IndyCar signed a two-year contract to return this season to the 0.75-mile bullring that hosted the series from 2001-2009, and this is the first oval to be lost in IndyCar’s ever-changing schedule.
Richmond joins COTA, Long Beach, Barber, Detroit and Toronto as races canceled because of COVID-19 but Kevin Savoree, who co-promotes Toronto along with Kim Green, told RACER they are still trying to find a fall date to run the Canadian street race, which started in 1986 and is sponsored by Honda of Canada.
Oregon’s Gov. Kate Brown recently announced that large gatherings will remain canceled through at least September and IndyCar is supposed to run Portland’s road course on Sept. 13, so there is a possibility that promoters Green/Savoree could attempt to move Toronto to that date since they promote both races.
Comments