MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Faced with heavier than expected snowfall on Saturday night and early Sunday morning, NASCAR officials have postponed Sunday’s scheduled STP 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race and the resumption of the Alpha Energy Solutions 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race until Monday.
The STP 500 has been rescheduled for 2 p.m. on Monday, following the completion of the Truck Series event, which was halted on Saturday after 23 laps by rain that later turned to snow as a storm moved into southern Virginia. The Alpha Energy Solutions 250 will restart at 11 a.m. with pole winner Ben Rhodes as the leader.
Both races will be broadcast on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer Steve O’Donnell discussed the decision in a Twitter post on Sunday morning.
“Way more snow than anticipated last night-Met with track/local authorities this morning-resources need to be dedicated to local community-roads-trees down, etc.” O’Donnell tweeted. “We’ll put on a great day of @NASCAR Monday.#doubleheaderAlways a tough call but the right one in this case.”
Saturday’s scheduled qualifying session for the STP 500 was cancelled because of rain, putting Monster Energy Cup Series leader and defending champion Martin Truex Jr. on the pole, with the field ordered according to owner points.
Way more snow than anticipated last night-Met with track/local authorities this morning-resources need to be dedicated to local community-roads-trees down, etc. We’ll put on a great day of @NASCAR Monday. #doubleheader Always a tough call but the right one in this case.
— Steve O’Donnell (@odsteve) March 25, 2018
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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