At least one sport will be back this spring: NASCAR.
South Carolina’s tourism chief, Duane Parrish, confirmed reports Thursday that Darlington Raceway will hold a race as soon as the NASCAR season resumes. While a date isn’t official, it is anticipated to be held in the spring, with mid-May as a widely speculated timeframe.
Sources told SCNow.com the Darlington race will take place the weekend of May 17 without fans, although some details are pending.
“Some good news,” Parrish said Thursday during Gov. Henry McMaster’s “accelerateSC” meeting. “The RBC Heritage announced they will be playing a made-for-television event, no spectators. Before that, Darlington will broadcast a race as well with NASCAR. So we do have some lights at the end of the tunnel in regards to events.”
The PGA Tour announced last week the RBC Heritage tournament, held on Hilton Head Island, S.C., is slated for June 18-21, after being postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The golf event originally was slated for April 16-19.
Additionally, the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway was scheduled for May 24. While there has not been an announcement regarding that race, NASCAR reportedly is optimistic it will take place.
Although the Darlington race will give NASCAR fans the sports fix they’re looking for, it won’t come with the economic impact it traditionally has. A 2017 study revealed that an ordinary Darlington race weekend with spectators generates $53 million for the state — something that won’t happen in 2020 for a race without spectators.
But, it’s a big step toward bringing back a sense of normalcy to the sports world.
