Racing in Bristol and Pocono
NASCAR set for Saturday, IndyCar on Sunday
In a sport in which three competitors have controlled much of the story for much of the season, the logical question becomes: Which one wins next? The logical answer is Kyle Busch. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rolls into eastern Tennessee and Bristol Motor Speedway for Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race (7:30 ET, NBCSN), and he will be the overwhelming favorite.
Busch owns seven Cup wins and 21 total in NASCAR’s top three national series at BMS. He swept all three races — Cup, Xfinity and Camping World Trucks — last August and won this year’s spring Cup race in April at Bristol.
The only other active driver with more than two Bristol Cup wins grew up in the same house as Kyle — his brother, Kurt, who has won at the fast half-mile oval five times.
As for the remainder of the so-called Big Three, Kevin Harvick owns two Bristol victories and Martin Truex Jr. is winless there in 25 races. Harvick won last weekend at Michigan.
Someone outside the Big Three could win Saturday, of course, but it’s not likely. In the past 11 Cup races, one of the trio has won eight times, a ridiculous statistic in a sport built on the idea of an even playing field and parity.
“Obviously, we’re kind of on a hot streak with Bristol,” Busch said. “We love going there. I would like to think that we can go there, be fast and be able to respond, absolutely. So we’ll see what we can do getting there, and hopefully having a fast race car and doing what we normally do there, just try to stay out of trouble. It’s a tough place to stay out of trouble.”
Indeed, single-car wrecks are rare at BMS, a track where speeds are ridiculously fast for a half-mile track. Denny Hamlin owns the qualifying record of 131.6 mph, which means he turned the half-mile in 14.5 seconds.
The stunning speeds and tight racing make it a favorite track of many fans.
“Bristol Motor Speedway is one of the best racetracks on the circuit,” Busch said. “All the fans love it because of the excitement, the run-ins and the closequarter action with all the cars being packed on top of one another at a halfmile racetrack with us 40 lunatics running around in a tight circle. With the fans, the atmosphere there always makes for a good time.”
Three races remain in the Cup regular season. After Bristol, the series races at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina and at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Entering Bristol, Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman is in the 16th and final playoff spot before the cutoff line. He is 62 points in front of 17thplace Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Paul Menard is 18th, 70 behind Bowman.