Sunday’s race is called The Real Heroes 400, and it will be held without fans in the stands, and teams will be scaled down and required to wear protective masks.
The Darlington race will be broadcast live at 3:30 p.m ET on Fox and MRN, and can be live streamed through Fox sports apps. It can also be heard through Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
NASCAR kicked off its season in February with the Daytona 500, which was won by Denny Hamlin. The circuit got three more races completed before coronavirus shut down the sports world.
In the Daytona 500, Ryan Newman took the lead on the final lap that Monday evening in Florida, but then he was bumped from behind and his car skidded to the right and flipped high into the air before landing upside down at the Daytona International Speedway.
Newman’s No. 6 Koch Industries Ford had sparks emerging from different directions while his car flipped and landed on Corey LaJoie’s No. 32 car, and when Newman’s car finally came to a stop, there were flames coming from the car and fuel was seen flowing towards the fire.
Newman was extracted from the car and taken to nearby Halifax Medical Center, where he was in serious condition with non-life-threatening injuries.
He was able to walk out of the hospital days later.
“As I watched in the next 24 hours of the crash, I had to make myself believe what I went through,” he said. “That tells me God was involved. … I was blessed in more ways than one.”
As racing returns on Sunday, so does Newman, who will be back in action for the first time since his fiery crash.
NASCAR in late April announced its modified schedule, which includes a race today and again on Wednesday in Darlington, followed by two races at Charlotte.
Sunday’s race is called The Real Heroes 400 as part of The Real Heroes Project, a collaborative effort between 14 sports leagues, including NASCAR, to honor the first responders on the front lines battling the coronavirus.
Brad Keselowski has the pole position, followed by Alex Bowman, Matt Dibenedetto, Kyle Busch and Aric Almirola.
Here is the full lineup and results as they happen during Sunday’s return to racing.
