Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
The rain has come in Daytona and the start of the Coke Zero 400 is going to be delayed. As the weather progresses and NASCAR attempts to get the race in Sunday night be sure to follow along with Beyond The Flag for live weather and race updates. We will be providing live updates throughout the night until the Coke Zero 400 goes green or until NASCAR calls the race.
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6:18 PM ET – It looks like rain will be happening soon in Daytona.
7:00 Pm ET – rain is beginning to move into the area.
7:30 Pm ET – it’s raining fairly hard in Daytona at the moment with more rain coming towards the track.
7:40 PM ET – rain continues in Daytona but there is still solid hope that the race will get in tonight.
7:47 PM ET – Pre-race ceremonies taking place in the rain.
7:51 Pm ET – Pre-race ceremonies are continuing, some nice tributes are taking place in the infield.
7:54 Pm ET – Optimistically this thing could be going by 9:30 PM ET if the weather continues its current trend and the track dries at expected speed.
8:08 PM ET – Rain cells continue to build and form around the track. It’s hard to see NASCAR starting this thing any later than 10:00 PM ET and we might be pushing up against that mark now.
8:10 Pm ET – Looks currently like the rain could last till around 8:45 PM ET to 9:00 PM ET. There is still hope to get this thing started but the window is shrinking.
8:17 Pm ET – The Air Titans are on the track and ready but it’s still raining too hard to start drying the track. Rain is expected to lighten enough to dry the track within the next 15-30 minutes or so.
8:20 Pm ET – NASCAR has officially delayed the start of the race for those of you who were wondering.
8:34 Pm ET – Moderate rain still coming down, Air Titans are still ready to get going. Rain is expected to stop between 8:45 PM ET and 9:00 PM ET.
8:45 Pm ET – The rain is slowing down and the radar behind this cell looks promising. If we race tonight NASCAR is going to have to be patient.
9:00 PM ET – How late will NASCAR start this race?>
I think #NASCAR would be willing to start 10:30 or even a little later. #nascar https://t.co/pCwKKbXCJ9
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) July 6, 2015
9:07 PM ET – There isn’t a local curfew at Daytona. If NASCAR is patient they can get this race in. The back end of this cell is about 15 miles away from the track and even that is diminishing as it get closer. If NASCAR is willing to start this race between 10:30 and 11:00 they should be able to get it going.
9:16 PM ET – The rain continues to slow, this is a good sign.
9:25 PM ET – There is still a light rain at the track but the Air Titans have been told to take their positions, they should begin drying the track within the next 5-10 minutes.
9:27 PM ET – Air Titans have been told the edge of the cell is upon them and to “get ahead of it” when it comes to drying the track. The titans are now rolling on the track.
9:40 PM ET – It would appear that the rain will be completely out of the area before 10:00 PM, more likely around 9:50 PM ET. Track drying continues and there should be word of a start time coming soon.
9:59 PM ET – There are popup showers in the area but it would seem that NASCAR is hell bent on getting this race in tonight as the track continues to dry.
10:20 PM ET – Good news – no rain for the rest of the night. Bad news – the track won’t be dry until around 11:00 Pm ET
11:00 PM ET – We should be racing in the next 15 minutes or so. Hopefully the rain stays away for the rest of the evening. Have a good night everyone as the covers are coming off of the cars. If anything changes with the status of the race tonight we will continue to update but that isn’t expected. Boogity, Boog … oh wait … that’s not happening anymore.