LOUDON, N.H. — The sparse crowd speckled through the grandstand Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 looked picture perfect to Gov. Chris Sununu.
State health officials as well as track officials went to great lengths to devise a plan that would allow NASCAR to host New England’s first live sporting event in Loudon since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Just before the pre-race prayer, Sununu offered a message to the fans in attendance, estimated at about 12,000 people.
“They didn’t say it could happen, but it happened,” he said.
Sununu went on to emphasize that the event wouldn’t have been possible without the fans’ cooperation with the safety protocols and social distancing guidelines implemented for race day.
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A key component in accommodating such a large crowd was strategically assigning seats throughout the stands so groups remained six feet apart.
Fans had more than enough room to spread out with several rows separating them.
Fields at the north end of the track that would have been typically filled with trailers and campers were open. Small groups of fans sprawled out to watch from a grassy knoll on the backstretch of the 1.058-mile oval.
The only instance in which social distancing was ignored was at the very end of the race when winner Brad Keselowski celebrated by doing a burnout with the American flag hanging out of the driver’s side window of his No. 2 Penske Racing Ford. It prompted fans to flock to the fences along the frontstretch near the flagstand to join in the celebration.
“It’s so great to be racing in front of fans again,” Keselowski said during his TV interview as the fans chanted “Brad! Brad! Brad!”
Loudon was just the fifth NASCAR event this year to host fans. Runner up Denny Hamlin said he fed off the atmosphere.
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“It was fantastic,” Hamlin said. “The turnout was unbelievable. I don’t know how many tickets they sold, but it was probably all of them. They did a great job. The fans were just enthusiastic.”
Bushwacked
Kyle Busch’s day couldn’t have been much shorter. On lap 17,, he bumped the wall coming out of Turn 2. A flat tire and heavy damage to the right side of his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota knocked him out of the race. He wound up finishing last, in 38th place., after bringing out the first of 11 caution periods for 52 laps.
Busch, who had recorded three victories and finished all 28 of his career starts at Loudon before Sunday, is in danger of missing the playoffs. Although he’s come up with 10 Top 10 finishes and eight Top 5′s, he still hasn’t taken the checkered flag this season.
Busch has had a run of tough luck this season and his JGR teammate Martin Truex Jr. said it hasn’t been sitting well with Busch.
“He’s been pretty grumpy to be honest with you,” he said. “He’s been pretty grumpy. They’ve had some tough luck for sure, and again today obviously.
“He’s really not been too down on things. I think he knows that he’s got a great team and they can overcome this.
Playoff Picture
Clint Bowyer, Matt DiBenedetto and William Byron all came into Loudon looking to stay above the cutoff line. Meanwhile, Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones and Jimmie Johnson were looking clawing to figure out a way into the Top 16 with just six races remaining — all in August. With a 14th place finish, Bowyer held firm at 14th in the playoff points. Byron picked up five stage points that allowed him to leapfrog DiBenedetto into the 15th spot. DeBinedetto sat at the cutoff line in 16th. Reddick , who finished 10th, Jones (24th) and Johnson (12th) were still locked in the first three spots below the cutline. . . . . In recognition of Johnson’s final go round on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit this season, NHMS executive vice president and general manager David McGrath presented the retiring seven-time Cup Series champion with a commemorative musket carried by militiamen from all over New England during the seige of Boston on April 19, 1775. In addition to the custom-designed musket, the track also dedicated Jimmie Johnson 5k Way, a new running trail around NHMS named in Johnson’s honor. “Jimmie’s impact on our sport, including his three wins here at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, are truly immeasurable,’' McGrath said . . . The track announced it had reached an agreement with Foxwoods Resort Casino, the title sponsor the NASCAR Cup Series race at NHMS since 2017, to extend its partnership through 2021 . . . In recognition of the passing of track founder Bob Bahre, who died July 24 at age 93, a message was painted on the outside wall of the frontstretch in red block lettering that read, “Godspeed Bob.”
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Julian Benbow can be reached at julian.benbow@globe.com.
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