Keselowski Leads Final 111 Laps, Wins Bristol Food City 500

NASCAR Wire Services

Brad Keselowski wins at Bristol for second straight time

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- NASCAR racing has a new Ice Man.

As he completed the final lap of his victory in Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Brad Keselowski needled Paul Wolfe, his crew chief.

"Paul, are you nervous?" Keselowski radioed to Wolfe, his voice exuding of confidence. As he crossed the finish line six car-lengths in front of runner-up Matt Kenseth, Keselowski allowed himself an excited whoop.

The driver of the No. 2 Penske Racing Dodge scored his second consecutive win at the .533-mile short track and the fifth of his Sprint Cup career.

Martin Truex Jr. came home third, followed by Clint Bowyer and Brian Vickers, as Michael Waltrip Racing drivers claimed positions three through five. Vickers scored the top-five in his first Cup action since his contract with Red Bull Racing ended last year.

Jeff Burton, Jamie McMurray, Juan Montoya, Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard completed the top 10.

Keselowski and Kenseth had run away from the rest of the field and were battling for the lead when Tony Stewart's Chevrolet smacked the Turn 3 wall on Lap 478 to bring out the fifth caution of the race.

Unlike a restart earlier in the race, Keselowski chose the outside lane for a restart on Lap 484 and cleared Kenseth off the second corner. From there on, it was smooth sailing.

Food City 500 Results

Bristol Post Race Notes:
• 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.

Final 2012 Bristol Food City 500 Driver Ratings Following All Practices

Micah Roberts’ Top 10 Driver Ratings
Food City 500
Bristol Motor Speedway
Sunday, March 18, 2012 - 10:16 am (PDT)

Rating    Driver     Odds      Practice 1   Qualified   Practice 2   Practice 3

 1. Kyle Busch 5/1                   10th            13th          2nd              2nd
Five time winner, including ‘11 spring race and four of his last six starts; new chassis this week.
 2. Brad Keselowski 15/1         23rd            5th           21st             4th
2011 fall winner; had a great final practice on long runs, using new chassis this week.
 3. Kasey Kahne 12/1              21st           10th           6th               5th
2007 runner-up; best average speeds in practice 3, best 10 consecutive lap average in practice 2.
 4. Jeff Gordon 10/1                  6th             4th          14th              9th
Five-time winner, the last coming in 2002; five top-5 finishes in last 11 starts
 5. Ryan Newman 25/1             5th             3rd            3rd              1st
2004 runner-up, his last top-5 finish. Stellar final practice with best 10 consecutive lap average.
 6. Greg Biffle 12/1                  11th             1st            4th             15th
11.8 average finish in 18 starts with no career short track wins; team is in a groove right now.
 7. A.J. Allmendinger 50/1        2nd             2nd           1st             17th
Outstanding two days of practices with fast average speeds; using new chassis this week.
 8. Martin Truex Jr. 25/1            9th           15th            5th              8th
2011 fall runner-up; had third fastest average speeds in final practice.
 9. Matt Kenseth 12/1               17th           21st           9th              9th
Two time winner with 6.2 average finish in last four starts; using new chassis this week.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 25/1      15th           18th          12th            12th  
2004 winner with 11.7 average finish; second fastest average speeds in final practice.

Note: Kahne, Earnhardt Jr and Truex Jr’s fastest average speeds are based among all drivers that ran at least 60 laps in final practice. Jeff Burton ran a session high 108 laps, Jimmie Johnson 102.    

Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former sports book director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more Roberts insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com, TheLinemakers.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.
      

Betting Notes:
Kasey Kahne has been driving me nuts the last three weeks with his practices. His car has looked the best at Phoenix, Las Vegas and now Bristol. He didn’t fare well in either of the two previous races, but I still have to take a shot on him to win.

Kyle Busch is the driver to beat not only because of his five wins at Bristol, but also because of his speed in Saturday’s practice. He’s got some power, especially on short runs, and if it comes down to Busch on re-start with 10 laps to go, he won’t be beat.

Because Busch’s odds are so low (5/1), it makes the betting equation a little more difficult. You can’t leave him out, but you also can’t deny how good some of the others like Kahne looked. In addition to Kahne, Brad Keselowski, A.J. Allmendinger and Martin Truex Jr look great and all of them have great prices. Ryan Newman and Dale Earnhardt Jr are even worth pondering a play.

Match-up of the week: Anyone against Tony Stewart
For some reason, this just isn’t one of Stewart’s best tracks. He’s only had three top-5 finishes in his last 20 starts and his only win came in 2001. His last three starts have seen him finish 28th, 19th and 27th.    

Bristol Practice Notes: Kyle Busch, Kahne and Keselowski Shine in Final Sessions

Kyle Busch is the driver to beat Sunday

Ryan Newman led the way with the fastest lap and best 10 consecutive lap average during Saturday’s final practice session at Bristol in preparation for Sunday’s for Food City 500, but a few other drivers shined a little brighter on the day.

Five-time Bristol winner Kyle Busch was second fastest with a lap of 121.836 mph giving Busch the second fastest single lap in each of Saturday's two sessions. Brad Keselowski won last fall at Bristol and looks primed to make it two in a row based on his laps. He had the third fastest lap (121.682 mph) and had very impressive average speeds.

Kasey Kahne ran the fifth fastest single lap (121.682 mph), but had the top average speed among all driver who ran at least 60 laps. Kahne might be Kyle’s biggest challenger on Sunday based on his effort from both of Saturday’s practices. This is the third straight week that Kahne has looked to be the best in practice.

Most of the drivers used the final session to maximize their speeds on long runs which make the average speeds very important, more so than the 10 consecutive lap average because a tank of fuel covers more laps at Bristol than most tracks. 10 consecutive laps is too small of a sampling here to get the best read.

Drivers who impressed in average speeds along with Kahne and Keselowski were Martin Truex Jr and A,J, Allmendinger. Truex Jr was in the top-10 of both practices in single lap times and ran 70 laps for a 119.403 mph average.

Allmendinger was fastest in the earlier session, but fell to 17th during the final practice. However, his average speeds (87 laps for 119.384 average) suggest he’ll be competing for a top-5 finish or better in Sunday’s race.

Jeff Gordon is also a driver that showed he can compete for his sixth Bristol win with the ninth fastest single lap and good average speeds.

Greg Biffle didn’t do anything spectacular in practice, but the points leader and pole sitter should be fine as he attempts to win his first short track race.

Top-5 Final Practice Speeds:
1. Ryan Newman 121.883 mph (92 laps for 118.962 average)
2. Kyle Busch 121.836 mph (81 laps for 118.722 average)
3. Brad Keselowski 121.682 mph (94 laps for 119.310 average)
4. David Reutimann 121.682 mph (39 laps for 119.758 average)
5. Kasey Kahne 121.628 mph (60 laps for 119.567 average)

Notes: Kahne’s average lap times were fastest among drivers with at least 60 laps run. Jeff Burton ran the most laps of the session with 108 followed by Jimmie Johnson with 102.

Final Practice Speeds


Allmendinger Fastest in Saturday's First Session

AJ Allmendinger still looking fast in practice (Getty)

The NSCS drivers hit the track early Saturday morning for their second Food City 500 practice session, and it was AJ Allmendinger, with a lap speed of 122.638 mph, posting the fastest lap during the session at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Kyle Busch, with a lap speed of 122.576 mph, was the second fastest with Ryan Newman (122.443 mph), Greg Biffle (122.380) and Martin Truex Jr. (122.341) rounding out the top-5.

Look-out! Five-time Bristol winner Kyle Busch is fast in practice. Here in Las Vegas, a few sports books have him as low as 4-to-1 to win the race...and that was even before this practice.

Kasey Kahne (122.333 mph) was sixth fastest followed by Aric Almirola (122.310), Denny Hamlin (122.217), Matt Kenseth (122.209) and Jeff Burton (122.201 mph).

I'm not surprised that Allmendinger is fast, but what is kind of shocking is how well his former car has run on four vastly different type of tracks thus far. The final results at Daytona and Las Vegas aren't anything great to write home about, but the No. 43 practices, particularly at Phoenix and Vegas, are.

Kahne had the best 10 consecutive lap average followed by Newman, Truex Jr and Brad Keselowski.  

Practice 2 Top-5 Speeds:
#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-Johnson spun and #27-Menard got into the left rear of the #48, causing slight damage to the #48. (Jayski.com)

Practice 2 Results



Edwards Fastest in First Practice Session

Fast start to weekend for Edwards (Getty)

Carl Edwards, with a lap speed of 123.921 mph, posted the fastest lap during the first Food City 500 practice session at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Edwards had laid down the fastest lap within his first laps run in the 90 minute session, but after about 50 minutes into it, A.J. Allmenndinger took the top slot. That only lasted for a few minutes as Edwards went back out and took it right back. Edwards was visibly excited about being the fastest in practice after struggling the last two weeks in practice.

Most of the top times were in qualifying trim, but several teams ran quite a few laps in race trim to get additional information and a head start going into tomorrow's final practices.

Allmendinger remained second fastest and with a lap speed of 123.881 mph and was followed by Marcos Ambrose (123.865 mph), Joey Logano (123.826 mph) and Ryan Newman (123.730).

Jeff Gordon (123.730 mph) was sixth fastest, while Regan Smith and Kevin Harvick with the identical lap speed of 123.658 mph, were recorded seventh and eighth fastest respectively. Martin Truex Jr (123.650) and Kyle Busch (123.594) rounded out the top-ten fastest during practice.

Jamie McMurray ran the most laps (69) of the session followed by Paul Menard (54).

The teams will return to the track later this afternoon for their 3:40 pm (ET) scheduled qualifying session, and then return again on Saturday for two more practice sessions.

Friday Practice Speeds

Biffle on the Pole - Starting Lineup

2012 Bristol Food City 500 Preview

By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

Kyle Busch has been king of the concrete (Getty)

Last week in Las Vegas we got to see some major horsepower displayed, but not a lot of drivers were mixing it up while running in single file for most of the day. This week at Bristol we get some side-by-side short track racing which usually brings and the best and worst of drivers. The drama created on the track translates into must-see TV throughout the race.

“Racing at Bristol is like fighter jets in a gymnasium," said Carl Edwards earlier this week. "The banking is so high, you drive down in the corner and the forces pushing the car into the track seem so much greater than anywhere else we go. The rate at which the car is changing direction is very fast. It always takes me a few laps in the race, 10-15 laps in, to get comfortable with the pace of it because things are happening so quickly there.

Bristol is a high banked half-mile track that has multiple grooves allowing drivers to pass either high or low. We don’t see the type of love taps or punts we used to under the old layout where drivers fought for the bottom line, but the best thing about Bristol stills remains: it’s tight and cramped with all 43 drivers trying to create their own space when very little is available.

The favorite coming into this weeks race is Kyle Busch due to winning four of the last six races run there. He has five wins in 14 starts and it would seem appropriate that a driver with the nickname “Rowdy” would be the driver to beat on a track like Bristol.

“I’m not exactly sure what makes me so good at Bristol," said Busch when asked about his Bristol success. "I’ve just had a lot of success there, but I’ve also had some misfortune there, too. Ever since I got through my rookie year, I’ve just taken a liking to the place. Of course, I’ve been able to get some help from my brother (Kurt). He’s always been really, really good there. But, when they changed the track to this current surface, I just really took to it right away. I really liked it and I’ve been fast there, but also I’ve had great racecars from Joe Gibbs Racing."

The timing for Bristol couldn’t have come at a better time for Busch because he’s still searching for a good run that meets his standards. He’s had only one top-10 finish in the three races run thus far and currently sits 12th in points. The one positive out of Busch so far is that despite not having great cars, he’s been able take the finish allowed by the car and not try and push it more than it was capable of. The fact that he’s 12th right now could be a sign of maturity and finally understanding big picture racing.

Busch will be using a brand new chassis this week with hopes of getting his sixth career Bristol win and make him the active leader among drivers. He'll be half way to the track record of 12 held by Darrell Waltrip.

Carl Edwards is a two-time winner at Bristol that probably feels very fortunate to be where he’s at right now. In the last two races, Edwards did not have a good car, but what they did last week was amazing. After looking terrible in Saturday’s final practices, Edwards crew had to make the car better during the race. Edwards was not a contender throughout running outside the top-15, but during each pit stop, they got progressively better until ultimately finishing in fifth-place. That is the sign of championship team. Edwards best finish over the last six Bristol races was runner-up in this race last season.

Edwards will be using a chassis that saw action last season at Chicago (fourth-place) and Dover (third-place).

Sitting atop the leader board in points is Edwards’ teammate Greg Biffle. After three races, he’s the only driver to finish in the top-5 in all three. Bristol has been one of Biffle’s better tracks over his career. Although he’s never won a Cup race there, he does have an 11.8 average finish position that includes six top-5 finishes. This team is really clicking right now and although it’s early, he might be a driver to take an early shot with to win the championship. The LVH Super Book updated their future odds with Biffle at 12-to-1.

Johnson has adapted well to Bristol's new surface (Getty)

The favorites to win the championship are currently Edwards and Jimmie Johnson at 5-to-1. Just like Edwards, Johnson’s team showed why they are five-time champs. After wrecking their primary car in final practice, the No. 48 team got their back-up off the hauler and set-up in time for Johnson to run the final 20 minutes of practice. They worked on their car making it better in each pit stop and went on to contend for the win until ultimately settling for a runner-up finish.

Bristol had not been one of Johnson’s best tracks, but when they changed to the variable banking it made the track run like a mini-Dover and Johnson excelled. He captured a win in 2010 and has finished no worse than eighth in five of his last six starts.

Johnson has a pretty good car this week as well. In five 2011 starts, the chassis never finished worse than ninth and included runner-up finishes at California and Atlanta.

Matt Kenseth is a two-time Bristol winner, doing so on the old layout. He’s finished in the top-10 in each of his last five Bristol starts with a best of fourth in this race last season. He'll be using a brand new car this week.

Jeff Gordon is a five-time Bristol winner, the last coming in 2002. He’s been competitive on the new layout with three top-5 finishes, including a best of third in the fall race last season.

Tony Stewart has an even larger gap in time from his last win than Gordon does. Stewart thought Bristol was easy after winning in 2001, but since then he’s managed only three top-5 finishes in 20 starts. He was runner-up in 2010, but his last three starts have seen him finish 19th or worse.

Brad Keselowski charged hard for the win last fall and just like Kyle Busch, this track suits his attitude perfect. With all the heat on Kyle Busch from NASCAR and his sponsors, we don’t get to see the true “Rowdy” come out to play anymore, but Keselowski could be that type of villain we like to love and hate at the same time. Here’s to hoping Keselwoski picks a fight Sunday afternoon and shakes some things up in the series.

Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #18 Kyle Busch (6/1)
2) #16 Greg Biffle (14/1)
3) #48 Jimmie Johnson (8/1)
4) #17 Matt Kenseth (12/1)
5) # 2 Brad Keselowski (18/1)

Driver Notes & Quotes for 2012 Bristol Food City 500

Carl Edwards has a 12.3 average finish at Bristol (Getty)

CARL EDWARDS ON BRISTOL: “Racing at Bristol is like fighter jets in a gymnasium. The banking is so high, you drive down in the corner and the forces pushing the car into the track seem so much greater than anywhere else we go. The rate at which the car is changing direction is very fast. It always takes me a few laps in the race, 10-15 laps in, to get comfortable with the pace of it because things are happening so quickly there. It is really fun to race there and we hope to get the Cheez-It Ford in victory lane.”

EDWARDS CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 99 will have Cheez-It as the primary sponsor. The crew will unload RK-788 for the weekend. This car first raced at Chicago (fourth place) in September 2011, and then went on to finish third at Dover a few weeks later.

MATT KENSETH ON BRISTOL: “I like going to Bristol a lot. The track is different there after they reconfigured it, so it’s one that is always a challenge. You need to be ready for it because it’s a really fast track and things happen in a hurry. I’m looking forward to going there this weekend with our Best Buy Ford. It’s one of the most fun races of the year so I think everyone always looks forward to heading to Bristol. We had some decent runs there last year so I’m ready to unload this weekend and see what our team is able to do.”

KENSETH CHASSIS CHOICE: Primary: RK-802 (brand new chassis)

GREG BIFFLE ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is high on my list and it’s one of my favorite tracks to go to. The important keys to getting around Bristol are qualifying well and getting a good pit box to keep your track position. Being the point leader we are still showing up with the same exact plan. What we always try to do is win, and I want to win at Bristol sine I’ve never won there. We know we are capable of running in the top five, we just have to figure out how to be there at the end.”

BIFFLE CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis RK-749 is the same car Biffle claimed the pole position with at Texas in the fall of 2011.

KEVIN HARVICK ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is probably the place that we’ve had circled on the calendar as the place that we ran the worst at last year. As a company, the last race was just bad. For us, we’ve talked about Bristol a lot. I’m looking forward to getting on the race track and running through some different theories and things that we think we needed to do different. Bristol is always a fun place. You never know what can happen there. It seems like it’s just a place where anything can happen at any time. It’s a fun race track and obviously short-track racing is something we all grew up doing.”

HARVICK CHASSIS CHOICE: Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet team will utilize chassis No. 340 from the Richard Childress Racing stable for Sunday’s race. This Chevrolet Impala was raced four times in 2011 by the No. 33 team, scoring a ninth-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in April and a sixth-place finish at Richmond International Raceway that same month.

JEFF BURTON ON BRISTOL BEING TOUGH: “Well, that’s Bristol. It will definitely do that to you. Bristol Motor Speedway is one of my favorite race tracks. We typically run well there with the exception of the August event last season. Every other time we’ve come here, we’ve run well, but just not got the finishes where we deserved. It’s a track that I really like and RCR typically performs well. It’s a hard race. Early in the season, everyone is trying to find their rhythm. Some teams are playing catch up, some are trying to protect their points cushion and some are being really aggressive. You always want to go there and feel you can be aggressive and go attack the race track. Even though it is a track that will bite you, the only way to go fast and win is to attack it. You can’t be passive, you have to be aggressive.”

BURTON CHASSIS CHOICE: Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 359 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This No. 31 Chevrolet Impala was utilized three times last season including, Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Coca-Cola 600 (started-fifth, finished-21st), Pocono Raceway in August (started-eighth, finished-17th) and Dover International Speedway in October (started-13th, finished-11th).

PAUL MENARD CHASSIS: Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 347 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet Impala was last seen on track at Pocono Raceway in August 2011, where Menard started seventh and drove it to a 10th-place finish. Menard also drove this Chevrolet at Pocono in June when the Eau Claire, Wis. native 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.

BRENDAN GAUGHAN ON BRISTOL: “I have a lot of confidence going into this weekend’s Sprint Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway. I have learned a lot over the past few weeks running in the Cup car. The more seat time I have, the more comfortable I feel and the more I learn about these cars.”

GAUGHAN CHASSIS CHOICE: Brendan Gaughan will pilot Chassis No. 325 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This RCR racer was last seen as a No. 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.

BRAD KESELOWSKI ON BRISTOL: “I love racing at Bristol. Normally I don’t pick favorite tracks because if you have tracks that you like, then you have to have places where you despise going. That means you are defeated before you ever get there. But if I had to pick a favorite, Bristol would be right at the top. The feeling I get when I walk through that tunnel is the same feeling I had when I went there for the first time. I’ve never been, but it has to be the same feeling that you get when you walk into the Roman Coliseum."

KESELOWSKI CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 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 No. 2 fleet.

JAMIE McMURRAY CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1106. Manion and the No.1 McDonald’s team will 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).

JUAN MONTOYA CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1111. Crew Chief Chris Heroy and the No.42 Target team will bring 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 No. 42 four laps down.

CLINT BOWYER CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 15 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.

JIMMIE JOHNSON CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis No. 650 serves as the primary for Johnson at Bristol. Chassis No. 590 serves as the backup. The primary has never finished worse than ninth and has two runner-up finishes in five 2011 starts.

The kid is right: 4 wins last 6 starts

KYLE BUSCH CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis No. 322 - This chassis will see its first-ever race action in Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

RYAN NEWMAN CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis No. 39-655 only has one start to its credit – last season’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. 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.

KURT BUSCH CHASSIS CHOICE: This weekend’s Food City 500 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 (Tenn.) Superspeedway during a two-day session in preparation for the upcoming season.

ARIC ALMIROLA CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 43 Charter Communications Ford will be chassis number 710. This is the same chassis that raced at Bristol in the fall and finished 12th.

MARCOS AMBROSE CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 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.

KASEY KAHNE CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-696. Kahne piloted the car during an electronic fuel injection test at Charlotte Motor Speedway last October.

TONY STEWART CHASSIS CHOICE: 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.

AJ ALLMENDINGER CHASSIS CHOICE: AJ 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.

DALE EARNHARDT JR CHASSIS CHOICE: 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.

- From several team press releases

LVH Super Book Odds to Win 2012 Bristol Food City 500

Kyle Busch is the 5-to-1 favorite to win Sunday at Bristol (Getty)

FOOD CITY 500
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, MARCH 18, 2012

JIMMIE JOHNSON 7
CARL EDWARDS 8
KYLE BUSCH 5
MATT KENSETH 12
JEFF GORDON 10
TONY STEWART 8
KEVIN HARVICK 10
KASEY KAHNE 12
DENNY HAMLIN 12
GREG BIFFLE 12
BRAD KESELOWSKI 15
DALE EARNHARDT JR 25
CLINT BOWYER 25
RYAN NEWMAN 25
AJ ALLMENDINGER 50
MARTIN TRUEX JR 25
JEFF BURTON 40
JOEY LOGANO 50
JUAN MONTOYA 40
JAMIE McMURRAY 30
KURT BUSCH 30
PAUL MENARD 60
MARCOS AMBROSE 60
BRIAN VICKERS 100
ARIC ALMIROLA 100
REGAN SMITH 100
BRENDAN GAUGHAN 300
BOBBY LABONTE 500
DAVID RAGAN 500
FIELD 100

2012 Bristol Food City 500 Odds & Ends

At Bristol Motor Speedway:

History

·         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.

Notebook

·         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)

 

Bristol Motor Speedway Data

Race #: 4 of 36 (3-18-12)

Track Size: .533 miles

·     Race Length: 500 laps/266.5 miles

·     Banking/Corners: 26 to 30 degrees

·     Banking/Straights: 4 to 9 degrees

 

Top 12 Driver Rating at Bristol

Kyle Busch............................... 107.0

Jeff Gordon..............................  100.2

Matt Kenseth..............................99.5

Greg Biffle..................................96.9

Kurt Busch.................................95.9

Jimmie Johnson..........................93.1

Carl Edwards..............................92.8

Kevin Harvick..............................90.2

Ryan Newman............................89.8

Tony Stewart..............................89.5

Brad Keselowski.........................88.5

Denny Hamlin.............................87.7

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (14 total) at Bristol.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2011 pole winner: Carl Edwards, 128.014 mph. 14.989 seconds

2011 race winner: Kyle Busch,

91.941 mph, 3-20-11)

Track qualifying record: Ryan Newman (128.709 mph, 14.908 seconds, 3-21-03)

Track race record: Charlie Glotzbach (101.074 mph, 7-11-71)

Driver Ratings for Winners

Driver	Year	Driver Rating	Series Driver Rating Rank
Kyle Busch	2011	106.6	3rd
Jimmie Johnson	2010	115.0	1st
Kyle Busch	2009	113.0	2nd
Jeff Burton	2008	97.0	8th
Kyle Busch	2007	96.7	7th
Kurt Busch	2006	92.1	9th

* Pre-Race Food City 500 Driver Ratings of the year the driver won the Food City 500 (the past 6 spring races).

 

NASCAR in Tennessee

·         There have been 163 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Tennessee.

·         101 drivers all-time in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state recorded as Tennessee.

·         There have been 14 race winners from Tennessee in NASCAR’s three national series:

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Darrell Waltrip	84	13	0
Sterling Marlin	10	2	0
Bobby Hamilton	4	1	10
Joe Lee Johnson	2	0	0
Trevor Bayne	1	1	0
Paul Lewis	1	0	0
Bobby Hamilton Jr.	0	5	0
Jeff Purvis	0	4	0
L.D. Ottinger	0	3	0
Mike Alexander	0	2	0
Casey Atwood	0	2	0
Brad Teague	0	1	0
Chad Chaffin	0	0	2

Bristol Food City 500 Storylines

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES – FOOD CITY 500, FOX, 1 P.M.

Stewart, Addington Check Vegas Off The List

Get ready for some high speed short track racing (Getty)

Tony Stewart’s already short list of winless tracks has dwindled to two, as the three-time champion checked Las Vegas Motor Speedway off the list with a dominant performance that put his career wins total to 45. Now, Stewart remains winless at only Darlington Raceway and Kentucky Speedway.

But the back story of yesterday’s race was Steve Addington, whose tenure as Stewart’s crew chief is now three races old. Addington joined the team for the 2012 season, sliding into an organization that had won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship just a few months ago.

Sunday’s win was his first at Stewart-Haas Racing, and 17th overall in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Addington’s first 16 wins all came with a member of the Busch family driving (12 with Kyle; four with Kurt).

With the victory, Stewart has now won six of the last 13 races and now sits one win behind Buck Baker for 14th on the all-time series wins list.

Who’s Next? Who Knows?
Three different drivers have won the first three races – Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart.

Each of those drivers drive for a different manufacturer. Kenseth’s in a Ford; Hamlin drives a Toyota and Stewart pilots a Chevrolet. Could Dodge be next? Absolutely – the last winner at Bristol was Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge.

Johnson Continues Climb
Daytona seems like forever ago for the five-time champion. A 42nd-place finish in the Daytona 500, coupled with a 25 points penalty for infractions in prerace inspection put Johnson in the red going into Phoenix.

Now, after a fourth-place finish at Phoenix and a runner-up run in Las Vegas, Johnson is back up to 23rd in the points. Johnson won his first Bristol race in March of 2010, and tallied two top fives in last year’s two Bristol events.

Biffle Nabs Top Spot With Personal Triple Crown
With Chassis No. 777 in Las Vegas, Greg Biffle rolled his third consecutive third-place finish to start the season and take over the points lead for the second time in his career (the first was following Sonoma in 2005). Biffle credits crew chief Matt Puccia for helping him attempt to become the first driver to win all three national series titles. To lead the points, Biffle and the No. 16 3M team needed a leader and has found it in Puccia. "Just plain and simply, Matt Puccia is the reason why we're running and competing and finishing where we are," Biffle said. "This team needed leadership. He was willing to step up and take the task on. Done a fantastic job so far."

The Road To 200 Wins Lengthy For Hendrick
Hendrick Motorsports can’t come much closer to their 200th win – and not get it – then it did at Las Vegas. Jimmie Johnson finished second and Dale Earnhardt Jr. led for much of the start.

Leading more laps at Las Vegas (70) than he did all of last season (52), Dale Earnhardt Jr. continues to be the Hendrick Motorsports standard bearer, climbing one spot to fourth in points. Earnhardt earned his second top-10 finish of the season and heads to Bristol as the top Hendrick contender with Jeff Gordon (17th), Jimmie Johnson (23rd) and Kasey Kahne (26th) trailing him.

With its next win, Hendrick will become only the second team to notch 200 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins.

Active Leaders Look Forward to Bristol
Kurt and Kyle Busch, along with Jeff Gordon, lead active drivers with five wins at Bristol Motor Speedway. The Food City 500 comes at a good time after a tough start to the season for all three drivers. Kyle is 12th in points, Gordon is 17th and Kurt is 29th. Kyle has won four of the last six races at the track and hopes to reverse his fortunes after Las Vegas where he and his brother blew left rear tires to bring out the last two cautions of the race.

- NASCAR Media Services

Storylines for IRWIN Tools Night Race at Bristol

Kyle Busch rules Bristol with 5 wins, 4 in last 5 races

Call it a Crown Jewel, call it a spectacle, call it a fan favorite. Whatever the moniker, the annual Bristol Motor Speedway night race has grown in prestige for all kinds of reasons.

Forever a must-see-live for all NASCAR fans, the IRWIN Tools Night Race combines hard, tight racing under the lights in a coliseum setting. But this season there are two wrinkles that ratchet up the anticipation – the Wild Card and the Sprint Summer Showdown Presented by HTC EVO 3D.

After race No. 26 at Richmond, the top-10 drivers are locked into the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field. Spots 11 and 12 – the Wild Cards – go to drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, provided they are in the top 20. A precious three races remain for Wild Card opportunities.

Bristol’s also the final race for drivers to become eligible for the Sprint Summer Showdown. The winners of Indianapolis (Paul Menard), Pocono (Brad Keselowski), Watkins Glen (Marcos Ambrose), Michigan (Kyle Busch) and Bristol become eligible for the $3 million prize. If one of the eligible drivers wins at Atlanta, a million dollars goes to the driver, the driver’s charity and one lucky fan.



NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

Busch Comes “Home” With Some Security
Obviously, Las Vegas Motor Speedway is Las Vegas-native Kyle Busch’s home. But really, shouldn’t Bristol be substituted in this category?

Busch has won the last five NASCAR national series races at Bristol, including his three-series sweep last August. In all, he has 11 wins at Bristol – including five in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, which is tied with Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch for most among active drivers.

He's the only driver with a 100+ average Driver Rating (108.1) and one of two drivers with an average finish over the last 13 races less than 10 (8.7).

Why not another victory? He adds momentum to his past history, winning last Sunday at Michigan International Speedway and clinching the first Chase berth of the season. With his Michigan win, Busch locked up at least a Wild Card spot.

He also became eligible for the $3 million Sprint Summer Showdown sweepstakes. Another win at Bristol would help limit the competition at Atlanta.

And finally, it’s only a matter of time until Busch clinches a top 10 spot. Once he does, every “regular season” win means three bonus points to his Chase total. After Richmond, each Chase drivers’ points total gets reset to 2,000, but only the top 10 get three bonus points added for each victory over the first 26 races.


Busch Brothers Wage A Little Sibling Rivalry
A subplot from Kyle Busch’s Michigan win: It was his 23rd NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory, matching his brother Kurt’s win total.

A friendly rivalry could be in the future, though Kyle made this post-race point: Kurt still has one up on him, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.

Others Can Clinch At Bristol

Jimmie Johnson can clinch a Chase spot this week (Getty)

This weekend’s magic number: 97.

Leaving Bristol, any driver with a 97-point lead over 11th place will clinch a Chase spot.

The top eight drivers are all mathematically able to reach the 97-point mark (including Kyle Busch, who already locked up at least a Wild Card spot, but could clinch a top-10 spot this weekend).

The top eight: Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch.

Edwards is of special interest in the above list. He can clinch despite a 36th-place finish at Michigan. Coming into the race, Edwards was in a points-tie with Busch for the points lead. His finish combined with Busch’s win now has Edwards 39 points off the lead.

Tough Guy Keselowski Continues Roll
What Brad Keselowski is accomplishing right now defies logic.

Just a month ago, he was 23rd in points, and looking like a driver who wasted a Kansas win and the adjoining Wild Card potential.

Just three weeks ago, he broke his ankle in a testing accident, further solidifying the thought that his Chase hopes had crashed.

But now? Now he looks like not only a Chase hopeful, but a legit championship contender.

His last three finishes look like this; a win at Pocono, a runner-up at Watkins Glen and a third at Michigan.

Keselowski has rocketed up to 12th in points, 52 points outside the top 10.

On the other hand, his teammate Kurt Busch has fallen. Over the last four races, he has dropped from third to eighth in the points.

Wild Card Watch Hits High Banks
Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin remain in spots one and two in the Wild Card hunt.

Keselowski’s two wins – at Kansas and Pocono – put him a near-lock for the Chase. Hamlin has one win (at Michigan in June) and the tie-breaker (points position).

Others with a win inside the top 20: Paul Menard in 18th and David Ragan in 20th. Marcos Ambrose and Regan Smith also have victories, but are outside the top 20.

Who Will Land Final Sprint Summer Showdown Spot?
Bristol’s the last chance for drivers to land a coveted spot among those eligible for the $3 million. Best bets for Saturday night’s winner often come from the pre-race Driver Rating rundown. Here it is: Kyle Busch (108.1), Greg Biffle (99.4), Jeff Gordon (97.6), Matt Kenseth (97.5) and Kurt Busch (96.8).

Bubble Boys Looking For Win – And Some Security
Tony Stewart in 10th and Clint Bowyer in 11th are the bubble boys, and share something in common. They’re among six drivers who won in 2010 who remain winless in 2011.

Stewart holds a 24-point lead over Bowyer for the coveted top-10 spot.

Bowyer has five top 10s in 11 starts at Bristol. Stewart has eight top 10s in 25 Bristol starts, including a win in the 2001 night race.

Bristol Milestone Watch
Some interesting Bristol-specific milestones to watch this weekend…

In March, Busch tied Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch for most wins among active drivers with five. Another win would be halfway to Darrell Waltrip's record 12 victories at the track. While 80 of the 101 races have been won from top-10 starting positions, Busch's best starting position on a day he's won is 12th in March…Mark Martin goes for a record 10th Coors Light Pole at the track, snapping a tie with Cale Yarborough.