Motorsport Monday: Cancellations, Ryan Newman, Ferrari Engine Scandal, and More

Updated 4/9/2020

Things are looking a bit grim these days, as fears over the ongoing coronavirus pandemic reach unprecedented levels. States’ officials continue to shut down schools, businesses, community centers—liquor stores!—prompting major entertainment entities to follow suit. That means, racing series around the world have taken a particularly hard hit, just as their seasons were getting started.

Some organizations had hoped to move forward with scheduled events by eliminating spectators. However, as world leaders crack down on lockdowns, the writing on the wall seems to say “Better safe than sorry.”

Coronavirus Cancellations

If you’re tired of scrambling around social media and news apps trying to find out what’s been shortened, postponed, or cancelled, we’ve rounded up as many as we could find below.

NHRA

NHRA officials postponed part of the Amalie Motor Oil Gatornationals scheduled for this past weekend. Sportsman categories ran without fans but Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycle, Pro Mod, Factory Stock Showdown, Top Alcohol Dragster, and Top Alcohol Funny Car will all run at a later date.

Additionally, the organization has opted to suspend all drag racing with tentative plans to resume June 5-7 with the rescheduled Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway. You can learn more about the revised 2020 series schedule HERE.

NASCAR

Update 3/19/2020: NASCAR released a statement postponing all racing events through May 3, with plans to return racing in Martinsville. “We intend to hold all 36 races this season, with future rescheduling soon to be determined as we continue to monitor this situation closely with public health officials and medical experts,” it read.

NASCAR announced on March 13 its decision to postpone the weekend’s tripleheader at the Atlanta Motor Speedway as well as next weekend’s event at Homestead-Miami Speedway due to coronavirus concerns. “We believe this decision is in the best interest of the safety and well-being of our fans, competitors, officials and everyone associated with our sport,” said the organization. “We will continue to monitor this dynamic situation as we assess future race events.”

IndyCar

In addition to cancelling its St. Petersburg season-opener, IndyCar has called off all races through April, affecting the first four events of the 2020 season.

“Really, there isn’t a sporting event left that feels comfortable running even without fans,” said Mark Miles, president and CEO of IndyCar’s new parent company, Penske Enterprises. “We just felt like it was the right thing to do to not allow the opportunity for the racers to go racing here.”

Unfortunately, because it requires so much work to build IndyCar’s street courses, both the St. Petersburg and Long Beach Grands Prix are unlikely to be rescheduled. Additionally, on March 27, representatives for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced that the 104th Running of the Indy 500 will move from May 24 to August 23.

As of April 6, the 2020 NTT IndyCar series cancelled the May 30-31 doubleheader grand prix at Detroit, added doubleheader events later in the season at Iowa Speedway and Weather Tech Laguna Seca Raceway, and added a third weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The season now hopes to begin June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway and feature 15 races.

Formula 1

F1 also saw its season-opener cancelled. The Australian Grand Prix, which suffered several weeks of a will-they-or-won’t-they, was finally called off mere hours before it was set to start, when a McLaren crew member tested positive for the coronavirus. This cancellation joins three other call-offs, the Bahrain Grand Prix (March 20-22), the first-ever Vietnam Grand Prix (April 3-5) and the Chinese Grand Prix (April 17-19).

On March 19, The Dutch (May 1-3) and Spanish Grands Prix (May 8-10) were postponed and Monaco (May 21-24) was cancelled. And, as of yesterday, April 8, The Canadian Grand Pix (June 14) has joined the list of delays, bringing it to a grand total of nine events.

F1 organizers are scrambling to still put together a 2020 season. Midweek races and alternative venues are two ideas floating around, as it the possibility of holding multiple races at the same track.

Formula E has gone so far as to suspend its entire season by two months, after cancelling events in Rome, Paris, Seoul, and Jakarta.

IMSA

The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) postponed its 68th annual 12 Hours of Sebring. The decision was based on the U.S.’s European travel ban, “which will prevent a number of drivers, teams and key personnel from participation,” said IMSA in a press release.

Originally set to run March 21, it has been delayed until November, making the popular endurance race the season-ending event of the 2020 season.

World Endurance Championship

WEC cancelled its 1000 Miles of Sebring, which it planned to run alongside the IMSA, also because of the travel ban. A statement from the series confirmed that the Total 6 Hours of Spa, set for April 25 in Belgium, has been postponed as well.

Additionally, race organizers will announce on April 15 whether or not this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours will go ahead on June 13-14.

World of Outlaws

Originally, the WoO NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series had postponed events through April 9. In light of California’s statewide stay at home order, officials decided to halt the remainder of this spring’s California tour. That includes races on April 10 at Merced Speedway, April 11 at Ocean Speedway, and April 17-18 at the Stockton Dirt Track. The next race on the calendar is a two-day show at Vado (New Mexico) Speedway Park on April 24-25.

In the meantime, race directors have gotten creative, finding new ways to bring The Greatest Show on Dirt to its fans. On April 1, The WoO NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars and the Morton Building Late Model Series made their “virtual “ debut on Fox Sports 1. Overall, fans seemed to love the distraction and newfound entertainment.

Learn more about iRacing HERE.

 

Ultra4

Ultra4 organizers pulled the plug on the 2020 Lasernut Stampede, the first of three Lasernut Western Regional Ultra4 events this year. “The Reno National Championships held in late October will now be counted as a points event for the Ultra4 Lasernut Western Regional Series as well as the Ultra4 Nitto National Championship,” reads a statement from President Ryan Thomas.

As of March 30, Ultra4 announced a revised schedule for the remainder of 2020. “In the immediate short term, we are refunding all advance paid entry fees regardless of that race being cancelled or not,” reads a statement. Additionally, upcoming events at Rush Offroad Park (4/17) and San Felipe, MX (5/16) have been cancelled.

The following is Ultra4’s event schedule for 2020:

• Crandon, WI (6/18-6/21) – This will be an optional non-point race open to all classes
• 4WP Adventure Offroad Park, TN (7/23-7/25) – Points Race
• Lasernut Reno, NV (9/17-9/19) – Points Race
• Nitto Tire Ultra4 National Championships at Crossbar Ranch, OK (10/22-10/24)
• 1st Annual Ultra4 Jamboree San Felipe, MX (11/24-11/28) – Non-competition fan/racer engagement

FIA World Rally Championship and World RallyCross Championship

The World Rally Championship went ahead as planned the weekend of March 14 in Mexico, with Sebastien Ogier taking the win by 27.8 seconds. However, the Frenchman said the Rally Mexico victory had “no value” as it should have been postponed amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Rally Argentina, planned for April 23-26, has been postponed.

In World RallyCross, this year’s Catalunya-Barcelona event set for April 18-19 has also been postponed. Organizers are looking into an alternate date for the championship opening round.

American Rally Association

Rally In the 100 Acre Wood, scheduled for March 20-21 in Missouri has been cancelled. “There are no formal plans to reschedule the event, although several options are being considered,” reads a prepared statement. The ARA has also decided to postpone the Olympus Rally, scheduled for April 25-26 in Washington. “Organizers from the event and the ARA are looking at a possible new dates, both in the near future and later on the 2020 calendar.”

NMRA

The NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals, set for April 2-5, has been postponed indefinitely. “The COVID-19 pandemic has gripped our nation and disrupted everyday life but we are excited to continue the 2020 racing season for both sanctioning bodies in May,” said Steve Wolcott, CEO and founder of ProMedia Events and Publishing, parent company of the Holley NMRA Ford Nationals and NMCA Muscle Car Nationals. “Our next two events are in St. Louis with the first one scheduled after the CDC’s eight week recommended restrictions for the pandemic and we are confident the crisis will work itself out by then.”

The Holley NMRA Drag Racing Series tour returns May 14-16 with the NMRA Gateway Rumble, while the NMCA kicks off the NMCA Power Festival May 28-31. Both are at the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway in Madison, Illinois.

Off-Road Events

As of March 17, SCORE announced the postponement of the San Felipe 250. Originally planned for March 24 – 29, it has been moved to May 9. Additionally, the organization is changing the 52nd SCORE Baja 500 race week from June 3-7 to June 16-21.

Similarly, Best in the Desert announced its decision to postpone the Jagged X National Desert Cup after the Bureau of Land Management expressed uncertainty over whether or not they would be allowed to proceed as scheduled. Originally scheduled for March 20-22 in Laughlin, Nevada, no replacement date has been set yet.

Also in response to COVID-19, the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series postponed its season opener. “Despite being forced to reschedule its original dates in late April, the opening weekend of the championship will remain at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Arizona, with a doubleheader now scheduled for Friday, May 8, and Saturday, May 9,” reads a press release.

In Other News…

Drifting Standards Drafted

The FIA World Motor Sport Council approved the first-ever drifting vehicle regulations, a milestone for a developing motorsport that continues to grow in popularity. Referred to as DC1, these new standards will streamline competitors’ participation in worldwide drifting events.

“Until now, no common standards have existed for drift cars, with each event, series and/or ASN implementing their own regulations,” explains the FIA in a press release. “These new standards will allow teams to build to a common set of regulations which can be adopted worldwide, thus making it much easier for competitors to use the same car across multiple events, enabling the sport to grow further.”

The FIA Specific Regulations for DC1 Drift Vehicles can be found HERE.

Ryan Newman Talks About Daytona 500 Crash Injuries

“On so many levels, I feel so lucky,” Ryan Newman told TODAY, in his first exclusive interview since the fiery February 17 crash that put him in the hospital for two days. “The angels aligned and held a really good grip with their hands.”

Newman, who was leading the final lap of the 2020 Daytona 500, hit the wall and went airborne after being bumped from behind by Ryan Blaney. Unfortunately, upon landing, he was thrown into the path of Corey LaJoie, who hit the driver’s side of Newman’s car at full speed, sending it airborne again. The car then landed on its roof, skidding past the finish line in a terrifying jumble of crumpled metal, dangerously spewing sparks and fuel onto the track.

Newman, 42, was treated on the track and then transferred to Halifax medical center in Daytona Beach, Florida. Treated for a brain bruise, he miraculously suffered no broken bones or major internal injuries.

No word on when he plans to return to the racing season, though he promises “We’re working on it.”

F1 Ferrari “Cheating” Scandal

We’ll leave you with a little drama—as if you needed more in your life these days.

In early March, seven F1 teams wrote a letter to the FIA, demanding answers about the governing body’s ruling on the legality of Ferrari’s engine. It appears that while F1 bosses doubted the Italians’ car was legal at all times during 2019, it simply couldn’t prove it. (Not a great look for an organization whose job it is to draft and enforce rules, but here we are.)

“To avoid the negative consequences that a long litigation would entail,” the FIA instead chose to enter into a settlement. However, that agreement remains confidential, prompting the aforementioned angry collective response.

Check out the video below for a detailed breakdown of how we got here:

“The issue has arisen at a sensitive time for the FIA and F1 as they are attempting to conclude negotiations over the terms by which the teams will sign up to take part in F1 for the five-year period starting in 2021,” reports the BBC. Additionally, as the coronavirus continues to wreak havoc, transparency is perhaps more important than ever.