Scattered showers and thunderstorms are nothing new at Michigan International Speedway. It’s a track that has seen more races shortened because of Mother Nature than any other. With no lights on the 2-mile, D-shaped oval, visibility issues still persist for drivers. One would have thought that with five races cut short since 2000, NASCAR would have learned its lesson and amended mistakes. Wrong!

For the second year in a row, the race in Michigan has been postponed to Monday, forcing questions to be asked about NASCAR’s indifference towards its fans. Speaking about the situation, NASCAR journalist Jeff Gluck wrote:

“I understand TV is king. Really, I do. But at what point does this just seem insane? Move the start times up at tracks with no lights. Especially with the threat of rain. Please. People have work and school tomorrow and they could have seen an official race today.”

Despite Saturday’s Xfinity Series race stopping twice for rain and nearly ending early, NASCAR went ahead with their race schedule, even though Cup Series practice and qualifying were canceled. This meant that the initial race time was delayed by over two hours and only 52 laps were completed before cars were forced to come back into the pit road after a red flag.

It’s like history has repeated itself, as last year, the Cup Series race on the same track was delayed to Monday after 74 laps after rain persisted for a few hours. The issue isn’t limited to just NASCAR either, as weather conditions have forced the delay of the Michigan 500 in the IndyCar/CART series on four separate occasions. One would think that with the National Weather Service predicting a 72-82% possibility of rain, NASCAR would consider changing its schedule to cause minimal disruption for its fans. They didn’t.

The first stage at the FireKeepers Casino 400 in Michigan saw Ryan Blaney take the win. The yellow flag came out on Lap 39 of the 45-lap stage when Denny Hamlin spun, sending most drivers to pit road. While many opted to change tires and refuel, Blaney stayed out and led the restart, holding off the competition for the stage win. Chase Elliott, making a strong push in the final laps, finished second.

Michigan International Speedway’s situation highlighted NASCAR’s focus on TV ratings, sometimes at the expense of trackside fans. With weather delays looming, starting the FireKeepers Casino 400 earlier might have made sense, but that risked lower TV viewership. In the end, no floodlights meant the race couldn’t continue the same day, leaving everyone disappointed.

Fans are done with the race delay at Michigan International Speedway…

Many fans took to social media to express their frustration at the circumstances of the postponement of the FireKeepers Casino 400. Urging NASCAR to make changes, one fan wrote, “Every single time. #Nascar needs to understand. This happens more often than not. Either put lights on the tracks or move start times up. Stupid.”

Even Kyle Larson would agree with this. The FireKeepers Casino 400 getting rescheduled prompted him to look back at his rookie days. “I miss the 1pm start times from my rookie season….” He was doing well before the red flag. He finished 14th after the first stage. And in stage 2, he was 7th.

Echoing a similar sentiment, another fan mentioned, “If you’re a race track that has the capacity to host a nascar cup race, you should have lights. Period. Idk why that isn’t a baseline thing nowadays.”

But what’s the reason behind Michigan Speedway not having lights? Well, the reason comes down to money. The speedway is located in a rural area/two-lane roads, as reported by Bob Pockrass. Installing track lights, plus lights for parking lots, would be a big monetary investment. But we are sure fans wouldn’t accept this answer as many invest their time and money to watch these races.

“I feel bad for the people who travel pretty far, especially if it’s their only chance to see a race that season. Not everyone can extend travel plans at the last minute. The inclement weather responses have been awful lately and they really need to find a happy medium,” commented a fan.

It turns out that NASCAR would have had time to make changes, considering forecasts were available. The speedway takes about 1-2 hours to dry with the available track drying equipment. However, aspects like sunshine, humidity, and track temperature can affect the drying time. And with the track not having lights, NASCAR knew they were up against time if they faced bad weather. But there’s a catch!

With race timings being dictated by broadcasters for increased TV viewership, one fan absolved NASCAR from any blame while responding to Jeff Gluck’s tweet. The fan wrote, “Couldn’t agree more. This is 100% on NBC. The “in” thing to do is to blame NASCAR of course but NBC dictates the start. If they started at noon today the entire race is most likely done by now 🤦🏼‍♂️🤦🏼‍♂️”

“When we were still kids, start times for races were between 12:30pm and 1:30pm for every daytime race. Those were the days…,” reminisced a fan.

Regardless, MIS track president Joe Fowler reassured people that their ticket purchases were protected. “One thing that we offer is our weather protection program. So if you buy a ticket and for whatever reason the race gets postponed, you’re covered. You can use that ticket towards credit for next year’s race.”

But let us not forget how the 2023 FireKeepers Casino was also delayed to Monday. The 2022 race was delayed by around two hours, whereas the 2021 race was brought under caution as a light shower passed by. When will they learn?