Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – The Food City 500 was a lengthy race for many Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers, but Kevin Harvick’s was longer than most. Harvick had to start last after crashing in practice and opting not to attempt qualifying. In the end, he managed to finish inside the top-10. On the final restart, Harvick was inside the top-10, one of only 12 cars still on the lead lap. His No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Fusion just didn’t have the speed his primary carRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor For the first time since last September, Jimmie Johnson has finished in the top-five in a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race after leaving Bristol with a third-place result. In a flashback to last year’s running of the Food City 500, Johnson had his No. 48 Chevrolet up front and hunting for the lead throughout the two-day affair, leading many to believe he may just break his winless streak dating back to June of 2017. After qualifying 17th, Johnson was relegated to a back ofRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – Few if any Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers had a more eventful weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway than Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Although the Food City 500 was interrupted by the weather on four separate occasions, three resulting in red flags, it went the entire 500-lap distance. Stenhouse looked to be a threat to win late before finishing inside the top five. During the longest green flag run of the day, Stenhouse’s No. 17 SunnyD Ford Fusion was the fastest car onRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – Based on forecasts prior to the race weekend, many did not think NASCAR would get any laps of the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 15. In an attempt to get the entire race in, NASCAR moved the start of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race up from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Although there were three red flags for weather, NASCAR was able to get 204 of the 500 laps in at Bristol Motor Speedway, but that was not enoughRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – For the second day in a row, the most dominant car will not win the race. Ryan Blaney was swept up in a multi-car accident on lap 117 of the Food City 500. The third-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver was leading at Bristol Motor Speedway with eight laps to go in Stage 1 at the time. Contact between Chris Buescher and Trevor Bayne sent both drivers spinning down the backstretch. Harrison Rhodes, Jamie McMurray, and Blaney had nowhere to go.Read More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – The final practice for the Food City 500 had several different Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers inside the top-10. David Ragan set the fastest lap early in session at Bristol Motor Speedway. Ragan ran a 15.051 second, 127.487 mph lap in the No. 38 The Pete Store Ford Fusion. He out-paced Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott by 0.049 seconds. Denny Hamlin was third fastest with Kurt Busch fourth fastest. Ragan’s Front Row Motorsports teammate, Michael McDowell was fifth fastest. McDowell earned bothRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer  BRISTOL, Tenn. – For someone who is known for running the high line, Kyle Larson was fastest running the bottom. Larson’s No. 42 McDonald’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ran a blistering 14.874 second, 129.004 mph lap in the second practice for the Food City 500. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series veteran was just 0.006 seconds faster than the No. 78 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota Camry of 2017 Champion Martin Truex Jr., who starts deep in the field for Friday’s race. Larson’s speed at Bristol is expectedRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – Congestion and patience were the stories of Busch Pole qualifying for the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. For the third time in history, the Busch brothers, swept the front row. Kyle Busch won the pole each time. Kyle beat his older brother Kurt Busch by 0.002 seconds to score his 29thcareer Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole position. “It was you know tough going years ago obviously for a few times,” Kyle Busch said about racing with Kurt, “but latelyRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – In recent years, the Monster Energy All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway has become a testing ground. Last year, NASCAR and Goodyear, tested an ‘option’ tire for teams to utilize in addition to the traditional tire. Cold temperatures negated most of the advantages that option tire provided. The All-Star Race has led to the inclusion of Double-File Restarts and ultimately Stage Racing. This year, the All-Star Race will test a different aero-package and restrictor plates. The package is very similar to theRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer BRISTOL, Tenn. – The speed of Ford Performance continues as Ryan Blaney paces the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice session for the Food City 500. Blaney ran a 14.774 second, 129.827 mph lap in his No. 12 REV Ford Fusion at Bristol Motor Speedway. He narrowly edged out Erik Jones to win the first practice as the duo ran nearly identical lap times. The 2003 and 2004 summer race winner, Kurt Busch, was third fastest with his brother, and most recent Premier SeriesRead More