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Race: Sunday, March 18, 2012 in Bristol, TN
Title Sponsor: Food City
Scheduled Green Flag (approx): 1:13pm/et
NASCAR Pre-race: FOX - 12:30pm/et
Television Race Coverage: FOX, 1:00pm/et
In the Booth: Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds
Pit Reporters: Dick Berggren, Steve Byrnes, Matt Yocum, Krista Voda
Hollywood Hotel: Chris Myers and Michael Waltrip
Virtual Garage: Jeff Hammond
SPEED's NASCAR Raceday Pre-Race Show: 10:30 am/et with John Roberts, Kyle Petty, Kenny Wallace
Scheduled Race Re-Air Dates/Times: Wednesday, March 21 at 12:00pm/et on SPEED
TV Listings, Links and Info:
Jayski's TV Listings Page
NASCAR on TV
Race Fan TV
This Week - Performance Racing Network (PRN) and SiriusXM Satellite NASCAR Channel 90
Times are local to the Track
Thursday, March 15
7:00 pm NSCS Haulers Enter
9:00 pm - 11:00 pm SCC Track Laps
Friday, March 16
7:00 am NSCS Garage Opens
11:00 am NSCS Rookie & Spotter Meeting & Drawing for Qualifying Order
12:00 - 1:30 pm Food City 500 NSCS Practice
3:40 pm Food City 500 NSCS Pole Qualifying
4:00 to 9:00 pm Food City Race Night
6:00 pm NSCS Garage Closes
8:00 pm - 11:00 pm Speedway Children's Charities Rides
Saturday, March 17
7:30 am NSCS Garage Opens
9:30 - 10:25 am Food City 500 NSCS Practice
12:00 - 1:00 pm Food City NSCS Final Practice
2:00 pm NSCS Garage Closes
Sunday, March 18
7:00 am NSCS Garage Opens
11:00 am NSCS Driver & Crew Chief Meeting
12:30 pm Food City 500 NSCS Driver Introductions
1:00 pm NSCS Food City 500
ALL TIMES ABOVE ARE LISTED IN LOCAL
NSCS = Sprint Cup Series
SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Times are local to the Track
Practices:
Friday, March 16, 12:00 - 1:30pm/et, TV-SPEED
Saturday, March 17, 9:30 - 10:25am/et, TV-SPEED
Happy Hour 'Final' practice: Saturday, March 17, 12:00 - 1:00pm/et, TV-SPEED
Qualifying: 2 laps for positions 1-42, Friday, March 16 at 3:40 pm/et, TV-SPEED, re-air scheduled at 8:00pm/et.
2012: $5,551,155
2011: $5,439,768
2010: $5,506,217
2009: $5,700,744
2008: $5,661,265
2007: $5,551,106
2006: $5,426,071
2005: $5,336,617
2004: $5,293,316
2003: $4,649,329
2002: $4,032,688
2001: $3,591,445
2000: $2,307,231
Track Specifications:
0.533-mile concrete oval
500 laps, 266.5 miles
Degree of banking in corners: 24 to 30 degrees
Degree of banking in straights: 4 to 9 degrees
Straightaways: 650 feet long.
Concrete racing surface: 43 feet wide.
Seating capacity: 160,000
Bristol has two pits roads: 22 pit stalls on the front stretch and 21 on the back stretch
Pit Stall Size: 25.5 feet long, 15.5 feet wide
Pit Road Speed: 30 mph
Pace Car Track Speed: 35mph
Track Opened: 1960
First Cup race: 1961
Race Festivities/Officials:
Grand Marshal: Food City Store Managers
Command to start engines: Food City Store Managers
Honorary Starter/Wave Green Flag: ?
Invocation: Evg. Mike Rife, Vanasant Church of Christ, Vansant, VA
National Anthem: H4 Quartet, McGhee Tyson Tennessee Air National Guard
Military Flyover: Two T-45's, VT-7 Eagles Naval Air Station Meridian, Mississippi
Track Websites:
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway's Online Ticketing Center
Speedway Motorsports
Bristol Raceway Ministries
Bristol Motor Speedway - Facebook
BMS Photo Page on Flickr
March 2011: see my Bristol Race Info page
August 2011: see my Bristol Race Info page
2011 March Race Winner: #18-Kyle Busch, 91.941mph, started 12th
2011 August Race Winner: #2-Brad Keselowski, 96.753mph, started 8th
Track Race Record 1st Race: Cale Yarborough, Apr 1977, 100.989
Track Race Record 2nd Race: Charlie Glotzbach, July 1971, 101.074
Slowest Race Record: Ned Jarrett, July 1965, 61.826mph
Oldest Race Winner: Dale Earnhardt, 48 years, 3 months, 30 days, 8/28/1999
Youngest Race Winner: Kyle Busch, 21 years, 10 months, 23 days, 3/25/2007
Worst Starting Spot to Win: Elliott Sadler, March 2001, started 38th
2011 March Pole Sitter: #99-Carl Edwards, 124.014, finished 2nd
2011 August Pole Sitter: #39-Ryan Newman, 122.811mph, finished 8th
Track Qualifying Record: #12-Ryan Newman, March 2003, 128.709mph, 14.908 secs
Oldest Pole Winner: Harry Gant, 54 years, 7 months, 17 days, 8/27/1994
Youngest Pole Winner: Joey Logano, 19 years, 9 months, 23 days, 3/19/2010
Food City 500 winner qualified for Chase four years in row: Not every Food City 500 winner makes the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, but a victory in Bristol Motor Speedway's spring race certainly improves a driver's chances. Each winner since 2007 #31-Jeff Burton, #18-Kyle Busch and #48-Jimmie Johnson has qualified for the postseason. Two Food City 500 winners during the Chase era have gone on to become champions: Johnson in 2010 and Kurt Busch in 2004. Jeff Gordon is the last competitor to win Bristol's spring race and the championship in back-to-back seasons. The four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup titleholder accomplished that feat in 1997-98. Gordon and the Busch brothers are Bristol's active win leaders with five apiece. None is likely to challenge Bristol's all-time resident of Victory Circle, Darrell Waltrip, who won 12 times, including seven in a row between 1981-84 behind the wheel of NASCAR Hall of Famer Junior Johnson's Chevrolets. Defending Food City 500 winner Kyle Busch has won the race three times, including 2007 in the debut of the NASCAR Sprint Cup's new car.(NASCAR)(3-14-2012)
At Bristol Motor Speedway:
• Groundbreaking for Bristol International Speedway, as Bristol Motor Speedway was originally known, took place in 1960. The track was an exact half-mile.
• First NASCAR Sprint Cup race was July 30, 1961.
• In the fall of 1969, the track was reshaped and re-measured to .533-miles.
• The name changed to Bristol International Raceway in 1978.
• The first night race was held in the fall of 1978.
• The surface was changed from asphalt to concrete in 1992.
• The name changed to Bristol Motor Speedway in May 1996.
• The track was resurfaced between races in 2007.
• There have been 102 NASCAR Sprint Cup races since the first race there in 1961, two races each season.
• All races have been scheduled for 500 laps, except for both races in 1976 and the second in 1977, which were 400 laps.
• Fred Lorenzen won the first pole.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was won by Jack Smith (with relief from Johnny Allen).
• There have been 44 different pole winners, led by Cale Yarborough and Mark Martin (nine). Martin swept both poles at Bristol in 2009.
• 39 different drivers have won, led by Darrell Waltrip (12).
• Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon each have five wins, most among active drivers.
• The race winner has started from the pole 22 times, the most productive starting position. The last driver to win from the pole was Carl Edwards, in the night race of 2008.
• 81 of 102 races have been won from a top-10 starting position, including 52 from the first four spots.
• The deepest in the field that a race winner has started is 38th, by Elliott Sadler in 2001.
• The last six Bristol races had a margin of victory under one second.
• Youngest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bristol Motor Speedway winner: Kyle Busch (03/25/2007 - 21 years, 10 months, 23 days)
• Oldest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bristol Motor Speedway winner: Dale Earnhardt (08/28/1999 - 48 years, 3 months, 30 days)
(NASCAR)(3-13-2012)
The Number for Bristol Motor Speedway:
0 - fewest cautions for a race at Bristol Motor Speedway (7/11/71)
0 - fewest lead changes for a race (3/25/73)
1 - fewest laps led by race winner (7/26/64 - Fred Lorenzen)
1 - fewest on lead lap at finish (22 times, most recent 8/22/81)
4 - number of jet dryers available for track drying during race weekend
4 - number of races won from outside a top-25 starting spot
7 - number of consecutive wins by Darrell Waltrip at BMS (1981 - 1984)
7 - fewest cars running at finish (3/20/66)
10 - number of cautions in spring race last year
16 - most wins by a car owner (Junior Johnson)
16 - most leaders (4/9/89)
20 - most cautions for a race at BMS (three times, most recent 8/23/03)
34 - races won from the front row (22 from the pole)
39 - different winners at BMS in 102 Sprint Cup races
40 - most lead changes (4/14/91)
42 - number of cars that started the first race at Bristol in 1961
42 - most cars running at finish (3/16/08)
60 - minutes, the minimum amount of time it takes to dry the .533-mile track after a significant rainfall
500 - most laps led by race winner (Cale Yarborough, 3/25/73)
157,574 - number of fans that established the Guinness World Record for the world's largest audience wave at BMS (August 23, 2008)
2012 Caution Update
1 - number of races extended beyond scheduled distance (Daytona)
7 - fewest cautions this season (Phoenix)
10 - most cautions this season (Daytona)
25 - number of cautions in the first three races of 2012; includes 11 for accidents, seven for spins and four for debris.
112 of 781 - number of laps under caution in 2012
191.500 of 1,217.500 - miles under caution in the first three races
(Darnell Communications for Dodge and SRT Motorsports)(3-15-2012)
For news, stats, records and more about this race track, see: Jayski's Bristol Motor Speedway Track News/Rumors/Links page
Keselowski wins at Bristol: #2-Brad Keselowski won the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway for his 1st win of the year, his 2nd win in a row at Bristol and 5th win of his career. Keselowski led the most laps with 215. It is the 10th win at Bristol for Penske Racing, all in the #2 car (7 by Rusty Wallace, 1 by Kurt Busch, 2 by Keselowski).
#17-Kenseth finished 2nd followed by #56-Truex Jr., #15-Bowyer, #55-Vickers [in his first start of the season, also led 125 laps], #31-Burton, #1-McMurray, #42-Montoya, #48-Johnson and #27-Menard. The pole sitter, #16-Billfe, led 41 laps and finished 13th.
Drivers caught up in wrecks included #5-Kahne, #99-Edwards, #18-Busch, #9-Ambrose and #24-Gordon, finished deep in the final results.
THere have been four different race winners in the first four races, four different pole sitters [and none have won] and a different manufacurer win in each of the first four races.
There were 5 cautions for 49 yellow flag laps. There were 13 lead changes among 7 drivers. The estimated attendence was only 102,000, down from 120,000 in 2011.
See race results, awards, money won, laps led, cautions and more on the Bristol Race Results page (pdf).(3-18-2012)
Race Fast Facts - Bristol:
#2-Brad Keselowski won the 52nd Annual Food City 500, his fifth victory in 93 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first victory and second top-10 finish in 2012.
This is his second consecutive victory and second top-10 finish in five races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Keselowski led a race-high 232 laps, a career high. His previous single-race high was 89 in his win at Bristol on Aug. 27, 2011.
Four different manufacturers (Ford, Toyota, Chevrolet, Dodge) won the first four races.
#17-Matt Kenseth (second) posted his 17th top-10 finish in 25 races at Bristol Motor Speedway. It is his second top-10 finish in 2012.
#56-Martin Truex Jr. (third) posted his second top-10 finish in 13 races at Bristol Motor Speedway.(NASCAR Statistics)(3-18-2012)
2012 Sprint Cup Driver Championship Points Standings:
[after Bristol, race 4 of 36]
1) #16-Greg Biffle [0 wins], 157
2) #29-Kevin Harvick [0 wins], 148, -9
3) #17-Matt Kenseth [1 win], 145, -12
4) #56-Martin Truex Jr. [0 wins], 139, -18
5) #11-Denny Hamlin [1 win], 137, -20
6) #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. [0 wins], 137, -20
7) #14-Tony Stewart [1 win], 130, -27
8) #15-Clint Bowyer [0 wins], 126, -31
9) #20-Joey Logano [0 wins], 126, -31
10) #27-Paul Menard [0 wins], 123, -34
11) #31-Jeff Burton [0 wins], 120, -37
12) #39-Ryan Newman [0 wins], 118, -39
(ties broken by 1sts, 2nds, 3rd, etc)
See drivers championship points standings on the Drivers Points Standings page (pdf).
and Owners Points on the Owners Points Standings page (pdf).(3-18-2012)
Bristol Notes-n-Nuggets:
" Brad Keselowski claimed his fifth career Cup Series victory in his 93rd start.
" Brad Keselowski's win finished the third set of back-to-back Bristol victories in six of the past seven races -- Kyle Busch won both in 2009, then 8/2010 and 3/11, and Keselowski won 8/11 and 3/12).
" This was the second top-five of the season for Brad Keselowski. He was fifth at Phoenix.
" Brad Keselowski led four times for 231 laps, including the final 111.
" It was the 72nd Cup victory for Penske Racing, which became the fourth team to win in four races in 2012.
" Matt Kenseth (second) posted his sixth consecutive top-10 finish at Bristol and is one of two drivers to lead in all four races in 2012.
" Martin Truex Jr. (third) scored his second top-10 finish of 2012. In 13 Bristol starts, Truex has just two top-10s; both have come in the past two races.
" Clint Bowyer (fourth) posted his best finish of 2012 and his second top-10 of the year (sixth at Las Vegas).
" Brian Vickers (fifth) earned his first career Bristol top-10 (15 starts) in his first race of 2012.
" Michael Waltrip Racing had three cars in the top five: Martin Truex Jr., Clint Bowyer and Brian Vickers.
" Teammates Jamie McMurray (seventh) and Juan Montoya (eighth) scored their best finishes of the season.
" Jimmie Johnson (ninth) had his third consecutive top-10 finish since ending up 42nd at Daytona.
" Paul Menard (10th) posted his third top-10 in four races in 2012.
" Kevin Harvick (11th) was involved in the first caution but pitted eight times to repair the damage and rallied back to nearly enter the top 10.(Racing Recall/nascar.com)(3-18-2012)
Links to results, practices, qualifying PDF's:
Race Results
Drivers Points
Owners Points
Starting Lineup
Happy Hour Practice Speeds
Practice 2 Speeds
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Speeds page
Lucky Dogs - Who got a lap back on each caution at Bristol: (and their finish)
Caution 1: #23-Riggs, 41st
Caution 2: #36-Blaney, 34th
Caution 3: #14-Stewart, 14th
Caution 4: #39-Newman, 12th
Caution 5: #42-Montoya, 12th
(3-18-2012)
Race Coverage of the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is scheduled for Sunday, March 18, 2012.
Television (TV): FOX at 1:00 pm/et; Pre-Race show at 12:30 pm/et; green flag approx 1:13pm/et
Radio: Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio 90
Scheduled Race Re-Airs: on SPEED, Wednesday, March 21 at 12:00pm/et
Bristol Pit Rules: Bristol Motor Speedway operates under a plan where one-pit road will be used during pit stops under caution. Currently, Bristol remains the only track in the Sprint Cup Series that utilizes two pit roads with 22 pit stalls on the frontstrect and 21 on the backstretch. Teams that pit on the backstretch used to be at a competitive disadvantage. Since the spring 2002 race at Bristol, teams will enter pit road in Turn 2 (the current backstretch pit entrance) drive around down the backstretch and around Turns 3 and 4 and exit in Turn 1. Under green-flag conditions teams will enter and exit pit road under the current two-pit-road scheme.
Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway have been made.
Pole sitter #16-Biffle chose pit stall 1 [as do most pole sitters].
Outside pole sitter #22-Allmendinger took pit stall 23, the first pitstall on the backstretch pit road.
#39-Newman, who starts 3rd took the 22nd pit stall, the last stall on frontstretch pit road.
The 43rd and final pit stall was taken by #24-Gordon, who starts 4th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on the Pit Stall Selection chart.(3-17-2012)
NASCAR Green-White-Checkered Race Procedure: NASCAR allows a maximum of three restart attempts prior to the White Flag under NASCAR's Green-White-Checkered flag finish. If the leader has taken the White Flag and the caution flag is displayed, the field is frozen and the race will not be restarted. Previously, there was only one restart attempt. The procedure applies to all three national series. See rule and notes on the Green-White-Checker rule page.
Wave-around rule: The wave-around rule dictates that cars under penalty at the time of the caution are ineligible for the wave around.
See Jayski's - 2011 Sprint Cup Race Results Page for pole winner, race winner with speed and starting/finishing position, links to race results, drivers & owners points, pit stall selections, qualifying results/starting lineup, practice speeds and chase stats as well as link to race track and race information page for each race
Happy Hour practice for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is over, after 60 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#39-Newman 121.883
#18-Busch 121.836
#2-Keselowski 121.682
#10-Reutimann 121.682
#5-Kahne 121.628
slowest: #74-Sorenson 117.021 & #23-Riggs 118.657
notes: #93-Kvapil scapred the wall late in practice, no major damage.
See fastest speeds. laps run, 10-lap average speeds on the Bristol Happy Hour Practice Speeds (pdf) page.(3-17-2012)
Saturday first practice for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is being run, after 41 of 55 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#22-Allmendinger 122.638
#18-Busch 122.576
#39-Newman 122.443
#16-Biffle 122.380
#56-Truex Jr. 122.341
slowest: #49-Yeley 119.447 & #23-Riggs 119.648
no speed; #74-Sorenson
notes: #48-Johsnon spun and #27-Menard got into the left rear of the #48, casuing slight damage to the #48.
See fastest speeds. laps run, 10-lap average speeds on the Bristol Practice 2 Speeds (pdf) page.(3-17-2012)
Biffle wins pole at Bristol: #16-Greg Biffle won the pole for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway with a speed of 125.215mph for his 1st pole of 2012 and 10th career pole. Biffle has never won from the pole. #22-Allmendinger was 2nd fastest followed by #39-Newman, #24-Gordon, #2-Keselowski, #78-Smith, #43-Almirola, #99-Edwards, #20-Logano and #5-Kahne
The go-or-go homers who made the race (8): #30-Stremme, #36-Blaney, #26-Wise, #74-Sorenson, #98-McDowell, #49-Yeley, #87-Nemechek and #23-Riggs
The go-or-go homers who failed to qualify for the race (2):#37-Hill & #7-Gordon (withdrew)
See qualifying results & starting lineup on the
Qualifying Results page (pdf) and/or Starting Lineup page (pdf).(3-16-2012)
Qualifying Fast Facts - Bristol:
#16-Greg Biffle won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 52nd Annual Food City 500 with a lap of 15.324 seconds, 125.215 mph.
This is his 10th pole in 334 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first pole and fourth top-10 start in 2012. Biffle is now locked into next year's Shootout at Daytona field.
This is his first pole in 19 races at Bristol Motor Speedway. His previous best start at Bristol was second, three times (most recently March of 2011).
#22-AJ Allmendinger (second) posted his first top-10 start of 2012 and his third in ten races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
#39-Ryan Newman (third) posted his 14th top-10 start at Bristol Motor Speedway. It is his second in four races this season.
(NASCAR Statistics)(3-16-2012)
Coverage of Qualifying for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is scheduled for Friday, March 16, 2012 at 3:40pm/et.
Television (TV): SPEED, 3:30pm/et
Qualifying Re-Air: on SPEED at 8:00pm/et
Qualifying Order for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is posted. 44 cars/drivers are listed.
The first of the drivers scheduled to go out is #23-Riggs, who was slowest in practice, #7-Gordon withdrew after not practicing and not being able to get the engine to start.
The final driver scheduled to go out is #99-Edwards, who was fastest in first practice.
Qualifying order is set by the first practice session, with slowest driver going out by speed and the fastest going out last. The non-top 35 drivers are mixed in with the top-35 in owners points, slowest to fastest.
See the full qualifying order on the Bristol Qualifying Page.(3-16-2012)
NOTE: not doing semi-live qualifying anymore. With NASCAR.com and FoxSports having realtime qualifying and hits for my qualifying pages way down due to the availabilty of the real-time qualifying found elsewhere.
Will still post Jayski.com's unique qualifying results here, to help explain how drivers made the race.
For Realtime qualifying, check out:
NASCAR.com and
FoxSports
Friday practice for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is over, after 90 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#99-Edwards 123.921
#22-Allmendinger 123.881
#9-Ambrose 123.865
#20-Logano 123.826
#39-Newman & #24-Gordon 123.730
slowest: #23-Riggs 119.618 & #32-Schrader 120.566
no speed; #7-Gordon could not get the engine started.
This practice will set the order of qualifying, which is scheduled fror 3:40pm/et and be televised on SPEED.
See fastest speeds. laps run, 10-lap average speeds on the Bristol Practice 1 Speeds (pdf) page.(3-16-2012)
Go-or-Go Homers practice for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Where did the drivers who do not have a guaranteed starting spot in the race, where in the practice rank were the drivers:
These drivers would make the race if things stay the same:
#36-Dave Blaney, 32nd
#30-David Stremme, 34th
#74-Reed Sorenson, 35th
#26-Josh Wise#, 36th
#98-Michael McDowell, 37th
#49-J.J. Yeley, 39th
#37-Timmy Hill#, 41st
#87-Joe Nemechek, 42nd
These drivers would miss the race if things stay the same:
#23-Scott Riggs, 44th
#7-Robby Gordon, no speed, couldn't get the engine started
(3-16-2012)
Rain Out Procedures: the rain-out qualifying procedure for all three NASCAR national series is as follows: If first practice is run, but qualifying is unable to take place, the starting lineup will be based on speeds from the car's fastest lap from the first practice, with top-35 cars in owner points no longer segregated from the non-top 35 cars. Previously, the top 35 cars lined up in front of all other eligible car owners.
Updated Entry List for the Food City 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway is posted, 46 teams/drivers [for 43 spots] are listed, including:
Brian Vickers is in the #55 Toyota at Bristol.
Not in top 35 of owners points:
#7-Robby Gordon(44th in 2012 owners pts/3 attempts)
#23-Scott Riggs (46/3)
#26-Josh Wise (38/3)
#30-David Stremme (37/3)
#36-Dave Blaney (20/3)
#37-Timmy Hill (45/3)
#49-J.J. Yeley (43/3)
#74-Reed Sorenson (none/0)
#87-Joe Nemechek (41/3)
#98-Michael McDowell (42/3)
withdrawn:
#40-Tony Raines (48/1)
In the event that qualifying is cancelled:
the eight who would make it [8]: #'s 36,30,26,87,98,49,7,23
missing the race would be [2]: #'s 37,74
See the full entry list at my Jayski's Bristol Entry List.(3-12/16-2012)
2012 Sprint Cup Driver Championship Chase Points Standings:
[after Las Vegas, race 2 of 36]
1) #16-Greg Biffle [0 wins], 125
2) #29-Kevin Harvick [0 wins], 115, -10
3) #11-Denny Hamlin [1 win], 113, -12
4) #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. [0 wins], 107, -18
5) #17-Matt Kenseth [1 win], 102, -23
6) #99-Carl Edwards [0 wins], 102, -23
7) #14-Tony Stewart [1 win], 100, -25
8) #56-Martin Truex Jr. [0 wins], 98, -27
9) #20-Joey Logano [0 wins], 98, -27
10) #55-Mark Martin [0 wins], 97, 28
11) #27-Paul Menard [0 wins], 89, -36
12) #18-Kyle Busch [0 wins], 87, 38
(ties broken by 1sts, 2nds, 3rd, etc)
See drivers championship points standings on the Drivers Points Standings page (pdf).
and Owners Points on the Owners Points Standings page (pdf).(3-11-2012)
Bristol Herald Courier
Chattanooga Times Free Press
Greenville Sun
Johnson City Press
Kingsport Times-News
Knoxville News
Nashville City Paper
The Tennessean
ABC 19 WKPT
CBS 11 WJHL
FOX 10 WEMT
NBC 5 WCYB
Weather Channel
Accuweather
National Weather Service
Race Weather
Race Day Forecast
Weather Underground
ESPN's NASCAR Track Guide
Bristol Chamber of Commerce
Earhart Campground
Red Barn Campground
Bristol Campground
Laid Back Racing
NASCAR Camping
Speed Eats
See all Paint Scheme news, links and chart for this race on the:
Paint Schemes Gallery & Race Chart page
Chassis selections for Bristol: see the list of many teams and what chassis were selected by the team to run at Bristol Motor Speedway:
MISSING? why are some teams missing? like the #11, #24, #56 or others? those teams do not report what chassis in the race previews or prs.
#1-Jamie McMurray: Crew Chief Kevin "Bono" Manion and the #1 McDonald's team will be bring Chassis #1106 to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. This chassis competed in both races at Kansas Speedway (finishing 29th and 22nd) as well as Atlanta Motor Speedway (finishing 16th).
#2-Brad Keselowski: and the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-813 during Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS). This is a new chassis to the #2 fleet.
#5-Kasey Kahne: crew chief Kenny Francis has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-696. Kahne piloted the car during an electronic fuel injection test at Charlotte Motor Speedway last October.
#9-Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 743 for this weekend's race at Bristol Motor Speedway. This Mac Tools Ford was previously run last season at several intermediate tracks.
#10-David Reutimann will pilot chassis No. 802. Blaney drove the chassis last season at Bristol, Phoenix, Vegas, Chicago, Charlotte and Kansas. Geoffrey Bodine also drove the chassis at Homestead and Texas last season.
#14-Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-535 debuted at Phoenix in April 2009. After only being tested in the wind tunnel, Chassis No. 14-535 hit the racetrack in impressive fashion, as Stewart used it to qualify sixth and led once for 19 laps before finishing second. Chassis No. 14-535 returned to another flat track in June at New Hampshire, but its time on the racetrack was short after it crashed in practice. It was repaired with new front and rear clips for its return trip to New Hampshire in September where it led four times for 52 laps before a loose axle cap forced an unscheduled pit stop, which resulted in a 14th-place finish. The November trek to Phoenix marked the car's third career start, where it qualified eighth and finished 25th when it was caught up in a multi-car accident on lap 171 of the 312-lap race. With a new body, Chassis No. 14-535 returned to Phoenix in April 2010. It qualified 11th and finishing 23rd. The car was quickly turned around and tested April 26 at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. It sat idle until coming back to Phoenix in November, where it qualified 20th and ran as high as fourth before falling to 17th in a race dictated by fuel mileage. Chassis No. 14-535 spent all of 2011 as a backup and never turned a wheel on the racetrack. With a brand-new body and updated underpinnings, Chassis No. 14-535 will make its sixth career start and first in more than a year at Bristol Motor Speedway.
#15-Clint Bowyer: The 5-hour ENERGY team will race chassis No. 724 at Bristol. Chassis No. 718 will serve as the backup. Chassis 718 also served as the backup in Phoenix. Both chassis are new in 2012.
#16-Greg Biffle: is racing primary chassis RK-749 which last ran Texas and finished fifth. The backup chassis is RK-759 which last ran Phoenix in 2011 as the #6 and finished 33rd.
#17-Matt Kenseth: will run primary chassis RK-802 which is a brand new chassis. Kenseth will pilot the #17 Best Buy Ford Fusion.
#18-Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 322 is a brand new chassis that will make its race debut in Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
#22-A.J. Allmendinger and his Todd Gordon-led Penske Racing #22 Team will be racing their "PRS-815" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger in this weekend's Food City 500 action at Bristol Motor Speedway. This is a brand new car and Friday's opening practice will be the first time it has been on a race track. The "PRS-807" is the backup Dodge Charger for the "Double-Deuce" team. It was in the transporter serving as the backup at Phoenix, but has never seen any track time.
#27-Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 347 from the RCR stable. This #27 Menards / Moen Chevy was last seen on track at Pocono in August 2011, where Menard started seventh and drove it to a 10th-place finish. Menard also drove this Chevy at Pocono in June when he started second and finished 14th, at Dover International Speedway in May where he brought home a 24th-place result and at Auto Club Speedway where he finished 16th.
#29-Kevin Harvick: will utilize Chassis No. 340 from the Richard Childress Racing stable for Sunday's race. This Budweiser Chevy was raced four times in 2011 by the #33 team, scoring a ninth-place finish at Martinsville in April and a sixth-place finish at Richmond that same month.
#31-Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 359 from the RCR stable this weekend. This #31 BB&T Chevy was utilized three times last season including, Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Coca-Cola 600 (started-fifth, finished-21st), Pocono in August (started-eighth, finished-17th) and Dover in October (started-13th, finished-11th).
#33-Brendan Gaughan: will pilot Chassis No. 325 from the RCR stable. This RCR racer was last seen as a #29 entry that scored a third-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010 and a 17th-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2011. Gaughan's #33 South Point Hotel & Casino team will utilize RCR teammate Austin Dillon's pit crew. The pit crew will service the #3 AdvoCare Chevy during Saturday's Nationwide Series event and then head to the Sprint Cup Series garage to pit the #33 Chevy on Sunday.
#36-Dave Blaney will pilot chassis No. 100, which the team bought from Red Bull Racing.
#39-Ryan Newman Chassis No. 39-655 only has one start to its credit last season's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. Newman was making a run on the top-10 when he got tangled in a multi-car melee on lap 303. The accident forced Newman to take his No. 39 to the garage for extensive repairs. He returned to the track more than 40 laps down and finished the race in 31st. Since the incident at Charlotte, the car has undergone extensive work and updates in the shop in preparation for its 2012 debut this weekend at Bristol.
#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: crew chief Chris 'Sunshine' Heroy and the #42 Target team will be racing chassis #1111 to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. This chassis made its debut in last season's finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, leading two laps and finishing 31st after an accident put the #42 four laps down.
#43-Aric Almirola:: The #43 Charter Communications Ford will be chassis number 710. This is the same chassis that raced at Bristol in the fall and finished 12th. The colors of Charter Communications will debut on the Richard Petty Motorsports #43 this weekend as the primary sponsor. Charter, the fourth-largest cable operator in the United States, is a yearlong associate sponsor for the organization.
#48-Jimmie Johnson: Chassis No. 650 serves as the primary for Johnson at Bristol. Chassis No. 590 serves as the backup.
#51-Kurt Busch Chassis No. 665 will be the second race of the 2012 season for this chassis, which was built in June 2011. This car is the same one with which Kurt Busch raced at Phoenix two weeks ago, when he scored a 15th-place finish after starting 19th. The team tested this chassis in January at Nashville Superspeedway during a two-day session in preparation for the upcoming season.
#55-Brian Vickers: The #55 Aaron's Dream Machine is racing a new MWR chassis (No. 722) in Bristol this weekend.
#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr.: crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-657. Earnhardt most recently raced this chassis to a 24th-place finish at Dover last September.
#99-Carl Edwards the #99 Cheez-It team will be unloading chassis RK-788 at Bristol, which last ran Dover in Oct. and finished 3rd.
(from team PR's/sites if reported)(3-15-2012)
Tire: Goodyear Eagle Speedway Radials
Number of Tires:
Sprint Cup: Left-side -- 1,300, Right-side -- 1,300;
Nationwide: Left-side -- 550, Right-side -- 550
Set limits:
Sprint Cup: 5 sets for practice and qualifying, and 10 sets for the race;
Nationwide: 6 sets for the event
Tire Codes:
Left-side -- D-4404;
Right-side -- D-4526
Tire Circumference:
Left-side -- 87.2 in. (2,215 mm);
Right-side --
88.5 (2,248 mm)
Technical Inspection Inflation:
Left Front -- 26 psi; Left Rear -- 26 psi;
Right Front -- 42 psi; Right Rear -- 40 psi
Minimum Recommended Inflation:
Left Front -- 20 psi; Left Rear -- 18 psi;
Right Front -- 41 psi; Right Rear -- 38 psi
Notes: Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series will run the same tire codes at Bristol this weekend . . . while these teams have run this left-side tire code (D-4404) at Bristol since August 2010, this is a brand new right-side code (D-4526) . . . compared to what was run at Bristol last August, this right-side features the same compound with a construction change . . . this tire combination came out of a Goodyear test at Bristol on September 27-28, 2011 . . . participating in that test were Marcos Ambrose in the No. 9 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford, Jamie McMurray in the Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, Casey Mears in the No. 13 Germain Racing Toyota and Regan Smith in the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet . . . unlike on most NASCAR ovals one mile or less in length, on which teams generally do not run inner liners in their tires, teams are required to run liners in their right-side tires only at Bristol . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.
Vegas Insider
NASCAR Race and other odds
Food City 500 Preview by Micah Roberts
NASCAR Top-Five Finish Prediction
2012 Sprint Cup Championship
World Sports Exchange:
Food City 500
2012 Sprint Cup Championship
Bovada Sportsbook:
Food City 500
(this is not to promote gambling but to offer readers odds and ideas on what the 'experts' think about the upcoming race and the Cup series season)