Las Vegas Motor Speedway announced that no fans will be allowed to attend the upcoming NASCAR races throughout the facility and grandstands on September 25-27, 2020. The announcement came as the track was unable to receive approval from Steve Sisolak, Governor of Nevada, to have fans in attendance for the races throughout the weekend and with LVMS next on the racing schedule following this weekend’s events at Bristol Motor Speedway.
“To say we’re disappointed that we will conduct the South Point 400 playoff weekend without fans would be a gross understatement,” Chris Powell, President of Las Vegas Motor Speedway, said. “Our staff has been working – many of them remotely – since the February Pennzoil 400 to prepare the speedway for our playoff triple-header. But we must adhere to Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak’s directive that limits gatherings due to Covid-19. While we disagree with this policy, we have no choice but to oblige. We certainly regret this situation for the thousands of race fans who won’t be able to attend our NASCAR-weekend events.”
People are not permitted to attend sporting events or concerts under Nevada’s current re-opening phase, with groups being limited to no more than 50 people. Only essential personnel and team members will be permitted to enter the infield facilities and for the Truck, Xfinity and Cup Playoff races at the track next weekend.
Fans who purchased tickets ahead of the NASCAR triple-header weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be contacted by the speedway ticket services department to discuss credits for future races or refunds.
“We’re hopeful that we will be able to welcome all of our fans back for our two race weekends in 2021,” Powell added. “Those dates will be announced soon, and we look forward to getting things back to normal.”
Prior to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the hiatus of this year’s racing season in March, Las Vegas Motor Speedway was one of four racetracks that hosted NASCAR events on February 21-23, 2020. The upcoming Truck, Xfinity and Cup races at Vegas are set as Playoff races, with the Truck race serving as the second Round of 10 Playoff race on September 25, the Xfinity race serving as the Playoff opener on September 26 and the Cup race serving as the first Round of 12 Playoff race on September 27.
With Friday night’s announcement, Las Vegas Motor Speedway joins a host of other Cup tracks, including Darlington Raceway (May), Charlotte Motor Speedway (May), Bristol Motor Speedway (May), Atlanta Motor Speedway, Martinsville Speedway (June), Pocono Raceway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Kansas Speedway (July), Michigan International Speedway, Dover International Speedway and Richmond Raceway, that have not permitted fans to attend NASCAR races. The upcoming Cup postseason races at Bristol Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Kansas Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and the season finale at Phoenix Raceway are set to welcome limited number of fans to attend the facility and watch the races from the grandstands.
The NASCAR Truck Series Playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will occur on Friday, September 25, at 9 p.m. ET on FS1, the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff race at LVMS will occur on Saturday, September 26, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at LVMS will occur on Sunday, September 27, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.