NASCAR Cup Series: Daytona International Speedway – The end of an era
By Asher Fair
Tonight’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway marks the end of an era for the most iconic track on the schedule.
Daytona International Speedway has been a staple on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule not only for the Daytona 500 but for the track’s July race every year since the track was added to the schedule back in 1959.
In addition to the Daytona 500, which is held annually in February, the July race has been held at the track in each of the last 60 years, with tonight’s running of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 scheduled to mark the 61st consecutive running of the race to follow up the 61st annual Daytona 500 a few months ago.
However, this evening’s 160-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked Daytona International Speedway oval in Daytona Beach, Florida will mark the end of an era, an era of more than half a century that began when the track first hosted a Cup Series race more than six decades ago.
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Independence Day (July 4th) weekend, particularly the Saturday evening of this weekend, has been the host date of the July race at Daytona International Speedway ever since 1959.
Only one year since 1959, 1998, was this race not held during this weekend. In the 1998 season, widespread wildfires in central Florida forced the race to be pushed back until mid-October.
Other than during that one uncontrollable instance, NASCAR fans have known for several decades what the Saturday night of July 4th weekend means for their sport.
Not anymore.
The 2020 Cup Series schedule was released back in March, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, not Daytona International Speedway, is scheduled to be the host track of the race on July 4th weekend. The 2020 Brickyard 400 is scheduled to take place on Sunday, July 5.
Meanwhile, the second race of the season at Daytona International Speedway is scheduled to be the regular season finale on Saturday, August 29, marking the end of an era and a tradition that has long been a huge part of the most iconic track on the Cup Series schedule and of the sport itself.
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You can watch the final July race at Daytona International Speedway for the foreseeable future this evening on NBC beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET. This race, the Coke Zero Sugar 400, marks the halfway point of the 36-race 2019 NASCAR Cup Series season and is slated to play a huge role in determining where the playoff cut line will end up.