NASCAR Youth Series cancels Richmond racing activities due to Hurricane Debby

The NASCAR Youth Series announced Tuesday it has canceled all racing activities at Richmond Raceway this weekend due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Debby.

“Due to the eminent inclement weather, the NASCAR Youth Series is cancelling their racing activities for Richmond this weekend. All other racing activities and events remain on schedule as of now,” the statement said.

The NASCAR Youth Series is the sanctioning body for the quarter-midget racing division of the United States Auto Club (USAC). The events were scheduled to take place Thursday-Sunday, leading up to the Cup Series’ Cook Out 400, but Debby had other plans.

Debby, which made landfall Monday morning on Florida’s Big Bend, is currently crawling across southeastern Georgia and coastal South Carolina. It is expected to then make its way through southeast North Carolina on Friday.

Hurricane Debby impacting NASCAR weekend at Richmond

“Debby is expected to produce potentially historic rainfall totals of 10 to 20 inches, with maximum amounts of 25 inches, bringing areas of catastrophic flooding across portions of southeast Georgia, the eastern half of South Carolina, and southeast North Carolina through Friday,” the National Hurricane Center said, via CBS News. “From northern North Carolina through portions of the Mid-Atlantic States, 4 to 8 inches of rainfall, with local amounts to 12 inches, are expected through Sunday morning. This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with river flooding possible.

“On the forecast track,” forecasters continued, “the center of Debby is expected to move offshore the coast of Georgia later today, drift offshore through early Thursday, and then move inland over South Carolina on Thursday.”

The Clean Harbors 250 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race is currently scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Cook Out 400, meanwhile, has a 6:00 p.m. start time on Sunday. Barring any EMS concerns, Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports doesn’t envision Debby impacting the on-track status of either race. The current forecast calls for a 40% chance of rain Saturday, and a 20% chance on Sunday.

“NASCAR will monitor the weather and conditions as they have a few days before making any decisions,” Pockrass tweeted Monday. “The garage isn’t scheduled to open until Saturday. (Cup haulers scheduled to enter Friday late afternoon; truck haulers Saturday morning).”

The Cup Series race at Richmond is the first coming out of the two-week Olympic break.