NASCAR: Which track would replace Watkins Glen?

If NASCAR does not get a waiver from the state of New York to have a race weekend at Watkins Glen International in mid-August, which track would replace it on the schedule?

There is growing speculation that Watkins Glen International, which has hosted a NASCAR Cup Series race each season going back to 1986, will not host its scheduled race weekend for the Cup Series and Xfinity Series this season.

The Xfinity Series is set to compete at the eight-turn, 2.454-mile (3.949-kilometer) natural terrain road course in Watkins Glen, New York on Saturday, August 15, and the Cup Series is set to do so on Sunday, August 16.

However, due to the current restrictions in the state of New York, these races may only be allowed to take place if NASCAR is granted a waiver by Governor Andrew Cuomo, and the outlook of that occurring does not look promising, according to multiple sources.

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As of now, individuals traveling to the Empire State from Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nevada, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas or Utah must quarantine for 14 days.

Most NASCAR teams are based on the state of North Carolina, and Michigan International Speedway is set to host a race the previous Sunday, August 9. There is no 14-day break between any two races remaining on the 2020 schedule.

“As an increasing number of states around the country fight significant community spread, New York is taking action to maintain the precarious safety of its phased, data-driven reopening,” said Cuomo. “We’ve set metrics for community spread just as we’ve set metrics for everything the state does to fight COVID-19, and eight more states have reached the level of spread required to qualify for New York’s travel advisory, meaning we will now require individuals traveling to New York from those states to quarantine for 14 days.”

NASCAR is set to reveal more of the return to racing schedule in the very near future. So which track would replace Watkins Glen International if it needs to be replaced?

The most likely option is the Daytona International Speedway road course in Daytona Beach, Florida.

NASCAR has already axed Sonoma Raceway from the schedule, leaving just two road courses on the Cup Series schedule, Watkins Glen International in August and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval in October, so it would make sense to replace the races at Watkins Glen International with races at another road course to prevent there from being just one road course on the Cup Series schedule.

The Xfinity Series doesn’t have this problem, given the fact that they just raced at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course this past weekend and are scheduled to race at Road America in August and at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval in October, but it is believed that they would race at the same track as the Cup Series on the third weekend in August regardless of the location.

The Daytona International Speedway road course, which hosts the annual 24 Hours of Daytona sports car endurance race of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, is a 12-turn, 3.56-mile (5.729-kilometer) track that encompasses much of the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) high-banked oval itself and includes a whale tail-like section of the infield and a chicane on the back straightaway.

As of now, the Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International is set to be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 15, and the Cup Series race at the track is set to be broadcast live on the same channel at the same time the following afternoon.