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Weather for the Daytona 500 can be very erratic, and the forecast for it proves the point.
The Daytona 500 is NASCAR’s season-opening marquee event and and the last thing officials want to tackle on top of everything else they do is worry about the weather. When you race in a state that can average 40-60 inches of the wet stuff a year, Daytona Beach is right in the middle of those numbers.
As race fans are well aware, Mother Nature showed no mercy on NASCAR’s revamped schedule last year, causing numerous event delays or outright postponing them for days on end. So it would be no surprise if a particular individual was burning the midnight oil trying to detail minute-by-minute forecasts from the Weather Channel to the local news. The Daytona 500 is that important.
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This year, there is also something else for NASCAR to keep in the back of their minds, weather-wise. When the Daytona 500 concludes, teams will not be packing up and heading to their next destination. Because of California's COVID-19 concerns, Auto Club Speedway got pulled from the 2021 calendar and was replaced with a second week of racing at the Daytona International Speedway. That makes it two weekends of hoping to dodge any raindrops.
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So here's a look at the day-by-day forecast up to and including the NASCAR Cup Series Race at Daytona Road Course on Feb. 21.
Thursday, Feb. 11 - Bluegreen Vacations Duel 1 and 2
Partly sunny, high of 76°. Chance of rain 47%, thunderstorms 24%.
Friday, Feb. 12 - NextEra Energy 250 (Trucks)
Mostly Cloudy, high of 73°. Chance of rain 25%, thunderstorms 23%.
Saturday, Feb. 13 - Beef. It's What's For Dinner. 300 (Xfinity)
Cloudy with a stray thunderstorm in the afternoon, high 74°. Chance of rain 54%, thunderstorms 60%.
Sunday, Feb. 14 – Daytona 500 (Cup Series)
Cloudy with a couple of showers in the afternoon, high 71°. Chance of rain 64%, thunderstorms 29%.
Race weekend at Daytona 2
Friday, Feb. 19 - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race at DAYTONA Road Course
Intervals of clouds and sunshine with a couple of showers possible; cooler, high 64°. Chance of rain 30%, thunderstorms 15%.
Saturday, Feb. 20 - NASCAR Xfinity Series Race at DAYTONA Road Course
Turning cloudy, high 69°. Chance of rain or thunderstorms 0%.
Sunday, Feb. 20 - NASCAR Cup Series Race at DAYTONA Road Course
Cloudy to partly sunny, high 70°. Chance of rain, 25%, thunderstorms 0%
Also read: Key storylines to watch in the Daytona 500, NASCAR Speedweeks
