NASCAR began the 2024 season with the Busch Light Clash exhibition race at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. This weekend, the series heads to the venue nicknamed “The Last Great Colosseum.”
The NASCAR Cup Series speeds into Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday and will race on the track’s traditional concrete surface after using a dirt track for the past three spring races. Bristol in 2021 covered the high-banked, .0533-mile bullring in red Tennessee clay for its spring race, but as the novelty wore off, drivers grew tired of the gimmick and the sub-par racing.
So, NASCAR has returned to its roots, and teams will face their first true short-track test of the season with a Next Gen car that has disappointed both drivers and fans on its smaller tracks and was redesigned to improve performance – specifically on short tracks – for 2024.
Who will conquer the ‘Colosseum’ on Sunday? All the information you need to get ready for the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway:
What time does the Cup race at Bristol start?
The Food City 500 starts at 3:30 p.m. ET at Bristol Motor Speedway.
What TV channel is the Cup race at Bristol on?
Fox is broadcasting the Food City 500 and has a pre-race show beginning at 3 p.m. ET. Fox Sports 1 (FS1) has an earlier pre-race show at 2 p.m. ET.
Will there be a live stream of the Cup race at Bristol?
The Food City 500 can be live streamed on the FoxSports website and on the FoxSports app.
How many laps is the Cup race at Bristol?
The Food City 500 is 500 laps around the .0533-mile track for a total of 266.5 miles. The race will feature three segments (laps per stage) — Stage 1: 125 laps; Stage 2: 125 laps; Stage 3: 250 laps.
Who won the most recent races at Bristol?
Brad Keselowski, then driving the No. 2 Team Penske Ford, won the spring 2020 race, the last time a scheduled day race at Bristol was held on the traditional concrete. Keselowski led 115 laps and edged Clint Bowyer in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford by 0.471 seconds.
Denny Hamlin won the Bristol Night Race on Sept. 16, 2023 after leading 142 laps, including the final 135, and pulled away from Kyle Larson by 2.437 seconds in last year’s playoff race.
What is the lineup for the Food City 500 at Bristol?
(Car number in parentheses)
1. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
2. (4) Josh Berry, Ford
3. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
4. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
5. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
6. (14) Chase Briscoe, Ford
7. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford
8. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet
9. (23) Bubba Wallace, Toyota
10. (5) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
11. (19) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota
12. (20) Christopher Bell, Toyota
13. (21) Harrison Burton, Ford
14. (8) Kyle Busch, Chevrolet
15. (43) Erik Jones, Toyota
16. (71) Zane Smith, Chevrolet
17. (6) Brad Keselowski, Ford
18. (7) Corey LaJoie, Chevrolet
19. (54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota
20. (31) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet
21. (2) Austin Cindric, Ford
22. (10) Noah Gragson, Ford
23. (45) Tyler Reddick, Toyota
24. (38) Todd Gilliland, Ford
25. (41) Ryan Preece, Ford
26. (42) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota
27. (47) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet
28. (99) Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet
29. (48) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet
30. (16) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet
31. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
32. (51) Justin Haley, Ford
33. (15) Kaz Grala, Ford
34. (17) Chris Buescher, Ford
35. (77) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet
36. (1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet