NASCAR races remain on hiatus as North Carolina, the state where most Cup Series teams are based, has extended its stay-at-home order due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Democrat Governor Roy Cooper on Thursday extended his executive order closing non-essential businesses and prohibiting groups of 10 or more through to 8 May.
It was originally set to expire on 29 April, and several Republican senators have urged Governor Cooper to relax the measures in a bid to resume the NASCAR season as soon as possible at Charlotte Motor Speedway behind closed doors.
In a clarification issued on Thursday, Governor Cooper said race teams are allowed to have personnel work in their shops under his current order, but they must follow social-distancing guidelines.
However, if teams are located in a state with tougher standards, they must follow those stricter guidelines.
Regardless, team shops have been shuttered since NASCAR suspended its season on 13 March.
Races have been postponed through to the 8-9 May weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
Cooper said: “It’s important to get our economy moving forward.
“We’re helping with unemployment payments, stimulus money and the businesses that continue to be open.
“But I won’t risk the health of our people or our hospitals and easing these restrictions now would do that.
“This decision is based on the data that we see in our critical categories.
“I know people want our lives and our livelihoods back, and I have a plan to do that, but first we will need to hit certain metrics in order to do that.”
State officials said the trends they will be watching going forward include COVID-19-like symptomatic cases over 14 days, lab-confirmed cases over 14 days, positive tests as a percentage of total tests over 14 days and hospitalisations over 14 days.
As of Thursday, there were 7,608 confirmed cases in North Carolina and 253 deaths since the outbreak began.
Mecklenburg County, which includes the Charlotte area, reported 78 new cases on Thursday – the second-highest amount since the outbreak began.
During a Q&A session, Governor Cooper was asked about the plausibility of Charlotte Motor Speedway being able to host the Coca-Cola 600 on 24 May.
He said the issue requires further discussion among health officials and NASCAR teams around the Charlotte area.
But he said announcement on whether the race can go on will be forthcoming “soon.”
Tracks in Texas, South Carolina and Florida have also offered up their facilities as a site to host races with no fans.