Credit: AP Photo/Will Lester

If you have to pick a pandemic sport, let it be the one with cars.

With US economy trying its darndest to open back up, the various major league sports have been in a game of chicken to see who will make the first move into the post-COVID-19 consciousness. In a somewhat surprising move, the first sport to return to regular broadcasting will be NASCAR racing.

NASCAR’s current season was put on hold when the pandemic was ramping up back in mid-March. At the time, they were planning on resuming the season on May 9, and according to their announcement yesterday afternoon, they’ll actually get pretty close to that estimate. The season will resume on Sunday, May 17, with the first race held at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina. Racers and staff will be present, but spectators will not be allowed to attend. If you wanna watch, it’s TV or nothing.

After this first race, NASCAR will be running an additional seven races over the following ten days. After the race on May 17, two more races will be held at Darlington on the 19th and 20th. After that, the season will move to Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina on May 24 for the Coca-Cola 600, followed by three more races on the following three days.

Credit: Yahoo Sports

To ensure driver safety, there will be no practice sessions prior to the races, nor will drivers have to qualify for grid positions. All pit crew members will have their temperatures taken before the race, and will be required to wear a face mask for the duration.

NASCAR’s executive vice president Steve O’Donnell is pretty excited to be getting things going again. “NASCAR and its teams are eager and excited to return to racing and have great respect for the responsibility that comes with a return to competition. NASCAR will return in an environment that will ensure the safety of our competitors, officials, and all those in the local community,” he said.