Yahoo Finance William Byron's pit crew will miss Martinsville race due to COVID-19 positives
William Byron will not have his pit crew for a second consecutive race.
Hendrick Motorsports said Thursday that Byron’s pit crew didn’t pit his car during Wednesday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway because of “multiple” COVID-19 positive tests. Byron’s pit crew will also not participate in Sunday’s race at Martinsville.
“The status of other team personnel has not been affected,” the team said in a statement. “The No. 47 pit crew, which is staffed by Hendrick Motorsports, is serving as the No. 24 team’s interim pit crew. Hendrick Motorsports has implemented detailed procedures to protect the health of our team members and follows recommendations from the CDC, OSHA and NCDHHS regarding the handling of positive COVID-19 tests.”
The No. 47 car is fielded by JTG-Daugherty Racing and driven by Ricky Stenhouse. JTG has an arrangement to use a Hendrick pit crew. Hendrick did not say if Byron’s regular pit crew would be available for the season finale at Phoenix Raceway on Nov. 8.
Byron’s teammate Jimmie Johnson missed the Indianapolis race in July after testing positive for COVID-19. Austin Dillon has also missed a race because of COVID-19.
NASCAR has implemented distancing protocols at all tracks since it resumed racing in May during the coronavirus pandemic and is even limiting interactions between team members at the track. The sanctioning body is not, however, testing participants for the coronavirus before each race weekend.
Byron is currently 12th in the points standings and finished 13th in Wednesday’s rain-delayed finish at Texas.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
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