JACKSON, MI - Baseball teams can play through light rain. Football teams can play through any amount of rain.

But when it comes to racing, precipitation is public enemy No. 1. Going into a turn at 220 mph doesn't work when the track is slippery.

Anybody who's ever attended a race at Michigan International Speedway can probably attest to this. Since 2000, no track in NASCAR has had more Cup Series races cut short due to rain than MIS.

Races have ended early due to rain at MIS in 1969, 2000, 2001, 2006 and 2015. The race has also been postponed twice due to rain, in 1977 and 2007. The rain persisted so long in 2007, the race was bumped to Tuesday - the first modern-day NASCAR race to be run on a Tuesday.

Is there a way to avoid the rain? MLive Meteorologist Mark Torregrossa says, in a perfect world, there's a few scheduling changes that could be made to maximize sunny weather.

"June, July and August are our wettest months because the moisture in the air is highest and ready to turn into rain," Torregrossa said. "If I was choosing a race date, I'd go the first two weekends in September."

Race times could also be altered to lower the chances of rain getting in the way. In 2017, the start times at MIS have been bumped back by NASCAR to 3 p.m., accommodating the west coast viewers three time zones away.

"The races usually occur in the late afternoon, and that's just when instability in the atmosphere is highest," Torregrossa said. "If you want to have the highest chance of rain on a race, have it in the afternoon.

"That's the same reason why I always tell future brides to have their outdoor summer wedding between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. It's before the heat builds and develops storms."

Without lighting to race at night, any kind of rain can delay can postpone a Cup race at MIS with a 3 p.m. start time to the following day. One recent improvement, however, is NASCAR's more efficient jet dryers - called Air Titans. These machines can dry a 2.5-mile track in two hours.

Races must be halfway complete - or have two stages complete starting this year - to be deemed official once the rains come.

The forecast looks clear for Sunday's Pure Michigan 400, although thunderstorms could interrupt practices and qualifying sessions on Friday.

Not only does rain hinder on-track action, but it can have an effect on ticket sales as well. Skies were sunny and the track was dry by the start of June's FireKeepers Casino 400, but a rainy morning and bleak forecast likely kept some fans home.

"I think the weather cooperated, but the forecast didn't," MIS President Rick Brenner said after the race.

Tracks most likely to get rained on

There's a clear trend when looking at tracks with the most rain-shortened races - almost all are near the Atlantic coast.

"You'd really have to go to the western part of the U.S. where it's drier to lower the chance of rain on a race," Torregrossa said.

Here's a list of how often races at current Cup Series tracks get rain-shortened, as of Aug. 10, 2017. Data comes from racing-reference.com.