Seth Eggert, NASCAR’s dedicated ‘penalty-tracker’, suggests fans save their tickets since “Including exhibition races, practice, & qualifying,” weather has affected 19 NASCAR Cup Series race(s)/weekends in 2024. The most recent was the Firekeepers Casino 400 in Michigan, where Tyler Reddick won the race after a staggering 17+ hour red flag for pouring rains.

However, it looks like that won’t be the last. As per the most recent bearings by the National Weather Service and other trusted sources, “showers and thunderstorms” could affect the Regular Season championship at Darlington on Sunday.

NWS predicts potential hiccups for Southern 500 weekend at Darlington

On August 27th, RaceWeather.net, a trusted weather forecasting site serving the racing community since 2003, reassured fans concerned about another rainy day race at Darlington, that “the chance is smaller than last week” on their official Twitter handle. The collective had predicted that the chances for rains over the racetrack were mainly on evenings of Friday and Sunday. But in their most recent update, raceweather.net suggests, “FRI & SAT are looking great, but keep an eye on SUN — scattered showers and thunderstorms are possible. While there’s some uncertainty in the timing and coverage, it’s shaping up to be a 1-poncho kind of day…”

And what do they mean by a “1-poncho day?” When a fan questioned if a “1 poncho day is better than a multi-poncho day,” the people operating RaceWeather.net’s Twitter replied, “I’ll bring the one and hope not to use it.” As for the specifics, their official website expects the temperature to average lows of 72°F and highs of 92°F from Friday, August 30, all the way through Sunday, September 1st. RaceWeather.net informs the NASCAR community that they “don’t rely on the outside sources for the actual forecasts, except for NWS’ issuances of advisories.” They claim to have “3 degreed meteorologists” and a 4th one is working “on his Bachelors.”

As for the National Weather Service (NWS)? Their 7-day report anticipates a rise in precipitation levels from 20% on Saturday to 60% on Monday morning. Although most of August has been hot and humid off the coast of South Carolina, the NWS foresee showers carrying over onto the next month, right until Thursday, September 5th. With this, the anticipations for Saturday’s schedule could take a major hit, as the agency predicts “a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2 pm.” Practice and qualifying for the Xfinity & Cup races should be over by 1:20 pm. However, the Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 Xfinity race will go live at 3:30 p.m. ET. If the rain chances prevail, it could throw a potential wrench into the works of that contest.

On Sunday, the conditions could get worse with rains forecasted above Darlington Raceway yet again, from 2 pm. The NWS also estimates “New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch,” with even higher amounts possible in the situation of a thunderstorm. Sunday night will most probably remain cloudy, with renewed chances of rain before 2 am. Scheduled for a 6 pm green flag time, if the 2024 Cookout Southern 500 Cup race is impacted or not, remains to be seen. The Weather Channel has even projected a 50% chance of rain on Sunday night.

Regardless, if inclement weather affects what would be the 20th race in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series, it wouldn’t be a first for The Lady in Black. Interestingly, it would be the 526th Cup race weekend affected by weather in the 75-year history based on Seth Eggert’s available data. But what can fans do in such a situation?

How fans can save their tickets in case of inclement weather

NASCAR has a ‘Weather Protection Program’ for races that get delayed or rescheduled because of natural conditions. This program allows regular grandstand ticket holders to exchange their tickets for a different one at any of the 11 NASCAR-owned racetracks included in the policy, considering they cannot be present at the venue on the rescheduled date for whatever reasons.

The racetracks include Darlington, Daytona, Homestead-Miami, Kansas, Martinsville, Michigan, NASCAR Chicago Street Circuit, Phoenix, Richmond, Talladega, and Watkins Glen. Barring the Daytona 500 and the Phoenix Championship race, fans can exchange their old tickets for any other event, based on its seating “seating location availability at the time of redemption,” for no additional costs.

If the regular season finale at Darlington changes dates, you’ve got two months to switch your tickets. But remember, this only applies to regular grandstand tickets bought directly from the track. Complimentary or corporate tickets do not fall under this policy. And if a race runs fewer laps but NASCAR still officially counts the finish, the Weather Protection Program won’t apply for that event. RaceWeather.net also informs track-going fans that their “Chief Meteorologist, Aaron Studwell, will be reporting live from Darlington Raceway (@TooToughToTame) for the #NASCAR weekend! If you spot Aaron, don’t hesitate to say hello and chat about all things #weather.” And if you have any further questions about reschedules, give the Darlington Raceway track ticket office a call at 866-459-7223.

For the fans watching the action at home, you can catch all the originally scheduled 367-lap action live on USA Network.