NASCAR Talladega Weather Update: Fans Advised to Seek Proper Shelter as Thunderstorms Move in Over ‘Dega’

Published 04/19/2024, 4:58 AM EDT

The weather curse hasn’t yet lifted for NASCAR, it seems! The 2024 NASCAR season started with the postponement of races right from the one at Daytona. Persistent inclement weather conditions caused the Great American Race to be postponed from Sunday, February 18, to the next day. The Xfinity series season-opener was also rescheduled to Monday morning, creating history with the two races taking place on the same day, on February 19. Additionally, the weather forced the final practice race at Daytona on Saturday to be canceled as well. However, after the next few races concluded without any major hiccups, moving to Talladega next week, fans fear that something similar is going to happen again!

An anticlimactic start to the Talladega weekend?

Ahead of the scheduled race at the Talladega Superspeedway on Friday, the weather in Alabama is hell-bent on playing spoilsport. The weather forecast portrays the atmospheric conditions to be partly cloudy, with a temperature of 19 degrees Celsius or 66.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, predictions of varied cloudiness with thunderstorms in parts of Talladega have turned out to be a major concern for the race to take place. Following this update, Talladega shared safety concerns for the fans of the sport.

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Taking to their X account, officials from the Talladega Superspeedway advised spectators to find proper shelter and secure their belongings at campsites during the race and were also asked to take necessary precautions.

Thunderstorms forecasted for the Talladega area including lightning.
Please find appropriate shelter and secure items at campsites. Please take necessary precautions. pic.twitter.com/Mi5aNlfzHv
— Talladega Superspeedway (@TALLADEGA) April 18, 2024

While many could argue that a late-night race could be the answer in case the weather starts to clear up in the evening, a major cause of concern will be the absence of required facilities in the venue and the car.

Is a one-day delay the only answer?

With no lighting infrastructure around Talladega and the absence of rain tires, a night race is clearly out of the question. Even if the skies decide to clear up in the afternoon, it would typically take around 2-2.5 hours to dry the track, with the race being pushed well into the evening, so that’s not going to work either. On the other hand, according to NASCAR’s unofficial policy, a 24-hour notice is required for any change in the start time of a race. So deciding the course of events on a short notice would be impossible too.

For example, if the skies do happen to clear up at the perfect time for the race to be concluded by the evening, it’s not like NASCAR can magically decide it wants to start the event right then and there. One other constraint is a start time change can at most be an hour earlier than the scheduled time. So, this leave the organization with one option: The race being rescheduled to Monday depending on the forecast. But that is yet to be decided.

Dega
-No lights, no rain tires, sunset 7:20pCT (8:20p ET)
-2-2.5hrs to dry
-Unwritten NASCAR policy is 24-hr notice for any start-time change; at most 1hr earlier than listed time
-Forecast/Xfin race status can impact rescheduled start time so TBD if Mon (typically Noon or 1p ET) https://t.co/Y0NvQFCh5H
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) April 18, 2024

However, rescheduling means, for fans that had planned to watch the race live from the venue on Sunday and then get back to work on Monday, it would be a real issue. Having said that, we can only pray that the weather gods rule in our favour ahead of another exciting race weekend!

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Written by:

Mamata Mukherjee is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports. Combining her love for writing and motorsports she has created some interesting and in-depth stories on drivers like Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Joining ES with 3 years of experience in the field of writing, Mamata feels right at home in her role as a NASCAR Journalist.

Edited by:

Ariva Debnath

NASCAR Talladega Weather Update: Fans Advised to Seek Proper Shelter as Thunderstorms Move in Over ‘Dega’

An anticlimactic start to the Talladega weekend?

Is a one-day delay the only answer?

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