NASCAR races in Dover have had a hard time avoiding the rain. And the 2023 race looks like it will also have to battle the elements — and it lost Round 1.
Sunday's race at Dover lost the fight to Mother Nature, with the Wurth 400 moved to Monday afternoon in the midst of rain showers.
LIVE: Updates, race results, highlights from Monday's Wurth 400 at Dover
Back in 2022, the Cup Series race at the Dover Motor Speedway started on Sunday, May 1, but wound up having to be completed the next day. In 2007 and 2019, the race had to be postponed from Sunday to Monday as well.
Rain has already wreaked havoc on NASCAR's schedule this weekend. Qualifying for the Xfinity and Cup series was rained out on Friday and Saturday, respectively, though NASCAR was still able to run the Xfinity Series' A-Game 200 on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET, with Ryan Truex, Martin Truex Jr.'s younger brother, winning the race.
Here's what you need to know about this week's race and the current weather outlook in Dover.
MORE: NASCAR lineup at Dover
Wurth 400 weather updates
Sunday, April 30
Fans need not make their way to the track on Sunday — Sunday's race was postponed to Monday, with the race getting underway at noon ET.
NEWS: The #Wurth400 at the @MonsterMile has been postponed to Monday at 12 PM ET on FS1, PRN and @SiriusXMNASCAR. pic.twitter.com/ewAnUCvSOs
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) April 30, 2023
Monday should provide a better day for the race, with no rain in the forecast at Dover.
Saturday, April 29
The weather forecast for Sunday in Dover, Del., was not looking great as of Saturday night. According to the National Weather Service, there is a 100 percent chance of showers during the day on Sunday and a chance of thunderstorms.
There is also a flood watch in effect from 6 a.m. ET through 10 p.m. ET Sunday across all of Delaware, per the NWS.
NASCAR announced Friday it would move up the start time of the Wurth 400 at Dover up an hour to 1 p.m. ET. It was originally scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. ET.
The idea of starting the race at 1 p.m. ET has merit. The precipitation potential will be at its highest in the morning, then decrease around noon ET. There will only be a 72 percent chance at 1 p.m. ET and it will stay below 70 percent until 4 p.m., when it goes back up to 77 percent. The chances of rain then start to go back up at 5 p.m. ET.
By moving the race up, NASCAR is hoping to capitalize on the longest period of decreased rain odds.
Should the race face a similar fate as the 2007 and 2019 editions, Monday appears to be a more promising day. There is only a 20 percent chance of rain that day, with just a slight chance of showers after 3 p.m. ET.
