For the first time in NASCAR history, whose who are seeking the start time for a Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway are doing so to catch a night race.
The start time for Wednesday night's NASCAR race at Martinsville, which added lights in 2017, is a little earlier than it would have been on its originally scheduled date of May 9. But now the first Cup Series night race in the track's 70-year history will play out as a mid-week race rather than a weekend event.
Due to the same coronavirus pandemic-related issues that shut down live sports in March, NASCAR created a modified schedule of races for May and June that continues tonight at 7 p.m. ET at the half-mile oval in southwest Virginia. Like all races currently on the schedule, Wednesday night's race at Martinsville will run without fans in the stands and with a limited number of team and NASCAR personnel allowed to attend.
The start time for Wednesday night's race at Martinsville, 8 p.m. ET, is later than NASCAR's original time (8 p.m. ET) for its spring race at the track, but the distance remains the same — 500 laps and 263 miles with stage lengths of 130, 130 and 240 laps.
Below is all you need to know about the schedule for Wednesday night's race at Martinsville and beyond.
MORE: Watch today's NASCAR race live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)
What time does the NASCAR race start today?
- Race: Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway
- Date: Wednesday, June 10
- Start time: 7 p.m. ET
The 7 p.m. ET start time for the mid-week race at Martinsville is the first and only such start time on NASCAR's modified Cup Series schedule for 2020. The only other 7 p.m. ET start time currently on the schedule is the open for the July 15 All-Star race.
Wednesday night's NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville was set for 7 p.m. ET (rather than 8 p.m. ET, the original time for the spring race at Martinsville) in part because teams will need to travel back to their facilities after the race in preparation for Sunday's race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The only other night race confirmed on the Cup Series schedule, at Kansas on Thursday, July 23, has a start time of 7:30 p.m. ET.
What channel is NASCAR on today?
- TV channel: FS1
- Live stream: Fox Sports Go | fuboTV (7-day free trial)
Including Wednesday's race at Martinsville, Fox and FS1 will broadcast seven more Cup Series races. That includes the July 15 All-Star Race before NBC takes over to broadcast its half of the schedule.
FS1 is carried by all major pay TV distributors. Fox Sports' site has a "find FS1" feature so viewers can find channel listings in their area and on their system.
As is the case for all the Cup Series races on Fox and FS1 this season, Mike Joy and Jeff Gordon will call Wednesday's race at Martinsville. Until further notice, they will do so remotely from the Fox studio rather than the booth at the track.
NASCAR live stream for Martinsville race
Anybody who has a cable or satellite subscription can stream Wednesday night's race at Martinsville live via Fox Sports Go. This should be the preferred route for a viewer who has such a subscription but isn't able to get in front of his or her TV.
For those who don't have a cable or satellite subscription, there are five major OTT TV streaming options that carry FS1 — Sling, Hulu, YouTubeTV, fuboTV and AT&T Now. Of the five, Hulu, YouTubeTV and fuboTV offer free trial options.
Below are links to each.
NASCAR schedule 2020
NASCAR on June 4 released its latest revised Cup Series schedule through July of 2020. It remains committed to running 36 races, four of which were completed before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the sports world. According to Fox Sports, NASCAR hopes to keep its 10 playoff races in the fall intact and at their original tracks.
Below is the schedule revision for the Cup Series, starting with the races at Darlington the Cup Series ran in its return last month:
| Date | Track | TV channel | Start time |
| Sun., May 17 | Darlington | FOX | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Wed., May 20 | Darlington | FS1 | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun., May 24 | Charlotte | FOX | 6 p.m. ET |
| Wed., May 27 | Charlotte | FS1 | 8 p.m. ET |
| Sun, May 31 | Bristol | FS1 | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun, June 7 | Atlanta | FOX | 3 p.m. ET |
| Wed, June 10 | Martinsville | FS1 | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sun, June 14 | Homestead-Miami | FOX | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun, June 21 | Talladega | FOX | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sat., June 27 | Pocono | FOX | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun., June 28 | Pocono | FS1 | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sun., July 5 | Indianapolis | NBC | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sun., July 12 | Kentucky | FS1 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Wed., July 15 | All-Star Race (Charlotte) | FS1 | 7 p.m. ET (open) | 8:30 p.m. ET (race) |
| Sun., July 19 | Texas | NBCSN | 3 p.m. ET |
| Thurs., July 23 | Kansas | NBCSN | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| Sun., Aug. 2 | New Hampshire | NBCSN | 3 p.m. ET |
The Darlington race on May 17 ran instead of the the Chicagoland race that was originally scheduled for June 21. The Darlington race on May 20 ran instead of the postponed Richmond race that was originally scheduled for April 19. The Charlotte race on May 27 ran instead of the Sonoma race that was originally scheduled for June 14.
The Pocono doubleheader remains as previously scheduled for the final weekend of June, with the Cup Series racing on back-to-back days. Those races now will be presented on Fox (and FS1) rather than on NBC. Fox's will close its coverage this season with the All-Star race at Charlotte on July 15 before NBC takes over, but NBC will still broadcast the Brickyard 400 on July 5.
The Cup Series races still postponed include events at Dover and Michigan. NASCAR's next challenge will be finding dates for those races while it tries to sort out the rest of the 2020 schedule, but doubleheaders at those tracks in August are possible.