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NASCAR Plans Return To The Track After 2-Month Pause

   DailyWire.com
NORTH WILKESBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MAY 09: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY) (Editors note: This image was computer generated in-game) Christopher Bell, driver of the #95 Rheem Chevrolet, races during the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series North Wilkesboro 160 at virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 09, 2020 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Chris Graythen/Getty Images

NASCAR is scheduled to make its return to the track on Sunday after about nine weeks of forced absence because of the coronavirus.

Professional motorsports racing is one of the first sports to return since the coronavirus outbreak led to a wave of shutdowns in mid-March and early April. NASCAR’s return may serve as a bellwether for other professional sports on how to reopen while mitigating risks from the pandemic.

Sunday’s reopening, officially the fifth race of the NASCAR season, will be held at South Carolina’s Darlington Raceway, ESPN reports. The May 17 date is the culmination of weeks of flurried activity to adapt to the pandemic and coordinate with dozens of partners and teams. Sunday’s race is first of seven races that will take place over 11 days.

“The conversations and decisions that have been made during this time are no different than the decisions that have to be made by everyone right now, in every corner of society,” NASCAR senior vice president Eric Nyquist said. “The news and what we know about the virus and the pandemic, it all seems to change on an hourly basis, especially during those critical first days after Atlanta. So, we have always had to be willing to react to that. And that flexibility won’t stop when racing starts at Darlington. Far from it.”

At Darlington, racers, pit crews, and other workers will have to abide by new rules. No fans will be allowed at the event. New health safety equipment and protocols will take the temperatures of each team member before and after the race, and pit crews will be required to wear protective gear in addition to the suits and gloves they normally wear.

NASCAR has advantages that other professional sports lack when it comes to adapting to a pandemic, such as being accustomed to wearing helmets, suits, and gloves. The sport also has an extensive network of health professionals because of its inherent danger to participants.

The motorsport’s restart comes as Major League Baseball is trying to salvage its season and is in talks with the MLB Players’ Union to settle on a short-term one year plan for playing amid a pandemic. The union has resisted an MLB proposal so far, likely because of the pay structure that MLB officials say is best of all parties involved considering the circumstances.

As The Daily Wire reported on Tuesday:

“The proposal would link player’s salaries for the 2020 season to the amount of revenue generated this year. In March, the union agreed to cut player salaries on a prorated game-by-game basis, but says the direct tie to league revenues is effectively the salary cap system that union officials have fought against for years.”

Players’ union executive director Tony Clark slammed the proposal ahead of talks between the union and the MLB.

“A system that restricts player pay based on revenues is a salary cap, period. This is not the first salary cap proposal our union has received. It probably won’t be the last,” Clark said. “None of this is beneficial to the process of finding a way for us to safely get back on the field and resume the 2020 season — which continues to be our sole focus.”

The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a member.

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