Pocono Race Postponed Until Monday Afternoon

August 3, 2009


Photo courtesy of Autostock
Photo courtesy of Autostock
LONG POND, Pa. (Aug. 2, 2009) - Steady rain and "weeper worry" in several locations on the 2.5-mile triangular-shaped Pocono Raceway forced officials to postpone Sunday's Pennsylvania 500 until Monday. The three Penske Racing Cup Series teams continued to prepare for the event , which was rescheduled to begin at 12:15 p.m. ET Monday afternoon.

Heavy rain hit the track Sunday morning. It let up about an hour before the scheduled 2 p.m. ET race start time and the sky brightened for driver introductions. The rain returned about 3:30 p.m. and soaked the surface again. There was light rain the rest of the afternoon, forcing the postponement.

There was also some concern about "weepers" - water that seeps up through the track following heavy precipitation on the triangle track. The Pocono track does not have lights and faced a time crunch to start the race before darkness in the evening hours.

"I think you'll see a better race at this point if we race (Monday)," Penske Racing Miller Lite Dodge crew chief Pat Tryson said on Sunday. "If we had started the race and ran out of daylight before the 200 laps had been run, it could have created a situation where NASCAR would say 10 laps to go. Then it would be a situation where some cars could make it (on fuel) and some couldn't. It's always a little easier when you know what to expect. (Monday) everyone will start with the idea we're going to go 500 miles."

The NASCAR Cup garage will open at 9:30 a.m. ET. The race is scheduled to start Monday shortly after noon ET and be televised on ESPN. SPEED will air a special edition of NASCAR Raceday at 11:00 a.m. ET. MRN Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio will air the race live.