NHRA to resume in July at Indianapolis with limited fans

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NHRA drag racing will resume its season in July with back-to-back events at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis with limited spectators allowed.

The events will be run on July 11-12 and July 18-19 and admission offers will be extended to NHRA members and 2020 U.S. Nationals ticket holders.

“Because we are an outdoor sport, we feel comfortable opening these Indianapolis events to a limited number of fans who are the lifeblood of our sport and following the guidance of the state of Indiana to resume racing,” said NHRA President Glen Cromwell.

The revised 2020 schedule will consist of 19 total events — two of which were completed before the season was suspended during the coronavirus pandemic.

The season will conclude with the championship finale November 13-15 at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. The revised schedule announced Wednesday is subject to change due to COVID-19.

Sixteen of the events on the revised schedule will be condensed to two-day competition schedules for the Mello Yello drag racing series classes due to economic and logistical factors. It will include one day of two-round qualifications on Saturday and final eliminations on Sunday. The Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series classes will begin racing on Friday.

Events in Chicago; Norwalk, Ohio; Richmond, Virginia; Epping, New Hampshire; and Sonoma, California, as well as spring events in Las Vegas and Charlotte, North Carolina, originally on the calendar have been canceled.

The NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta was moved to August 28-30.

The revised schedule:

July 11 - 12 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing at Lucas Oil Raceway, Indianapolis

July 18 -19 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing at Lucas Oil Raceway, Indianapolis

July 31-Aug. 2 Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals, Seattle

Aug. 7-9 Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals, Denver

Aug. 14-16 Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Brainerd, Minnesota

Aug. 21-23 Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals, Topeka, Kansas

Aug. 28-30 NHRA Southern Nationals, Atlanta

Sept. 3-6 Denso Spark Plugs NHRA U.S. Nationals, Indianapolis

Sept. 11-13 Mopar Express Lane NHRA Nationals, Reading, Pennsylvania

Sept. 18-20 NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, Charlotte

Sept. 25-27 Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville, Florida

Oct. 2-4 AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals, St. Louis

Oct. 9-11 NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol, Tennessee

Oct. 16-18 AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals, Dallas

Oct. 23-25 Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals, Houston

Oct. 30-Nov. 1 Dodge NHRA Nationals, Las Vegas

Nov. 13-15 Auto Club NHRA Finals, Pomona.