Four drivers will be eliminated from NASCAR Cup playoff contention after Saturday night’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Chase Briscoe and Ty Gibbs hold the final two transfer spots. The four drivers below the cutline entering the race are Denny Hamlin (-6 points to the cutline), Brad Keselowski (-12), Martin Truex Jr. (-14) and Harrison Burton (-20).
Hamlin has won the past two races at Bristol.
Details for Saturday’s Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway
(All times Eastern)
START: The command to start engines will be given at 7:26 p.m. … The green flag is scheduled to wave at 7:35 p.m.
PRE-RACE: Garage opens at 3:30 p.m. … Drivers meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. …Driver introductions will be at 6:50 p.m. … The invocation will be given at 7:18 p.m. by Derrick Hudson, The Discipleship Pastor at Calvary Church in Johnson City, Tennessee. … The national anthem will be performed by the children of Motor Racing Outreach at 7:19 p.m.
Bristol tradition unlike any other on NASCAR circuit
Since 1999, the children of competitors have sung the national anthem before the Bristol night race. Choir leader Melanie Self tells the kids that “they are the stars and they know it.”
DISTANCE: The race is 500 laps (266.5 miles) on the 0.533-mile concrete track.
STAGES: Stage 1 ends at Lap 125. Stage 2 ends at Lap 250.
STARTING LINEUP: Cup qualifying is scheduled to begin at 5:05 p.m. Friday.
TV/RADIO: USA Network will broadcast the race at 7:30 p.m. Coverage begins at 7 p.m. on USA. … Performance Racing Network coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. … SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will carry the PRN broadcast.
FORECAST: The Weather Underground forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with a high of 74 degrees and a 5% chance of rain at the start of the Cup race.
LAST TIME: Denny Hamlin in a race that featured excessive tire wear and contributed to 54 lead changes. Martin Truex Jr. was second. Brad Keselowski placed third.
