Final Bristol Driver Ratings Following All Practice Sessions: Jeff Byrd 500

Micah Roberts Top 10 Driver Ratings
Jeff Byrd 500
Bristol Motor Speedway
Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 10:16 am (PDT)

Rating     Driver      Odds            Practice 1    Qualified    Practice 2    Practice 3

1. Denny Hamlin 7/1                    23rd           25th          10th             3rd
Fastest 10 consecutive lap average in final practice; finished sixth or better in five of 10 starts.
2. Tony Stewart 10/1                    9th            13th           1st               5th
2001 winner; using his Bristol and Dover chassis from 2010 that scored two top-10 finishes.
3. Mark Martin 30/1                  11th            9th            3rd               1st
Two-time winner with average finish of 13.2. Top 10 consecutive lap average in practice 2.
4. Jamie McMurray 25/1          12th           24th            4th               6th
Tied career best with third in the fall 2010 race; using winning Charlotte chassis from 2010.
5. Kyle Busch 7/2                       7th            12th           26th             24th
Four-time winner, including three of the last four; using fouth-place Martinsville car from 2010.
6. Carl Edwards 7/1                    1st              1st            17th             33rd
Two-time winner, but no top fives since 2008 win. Using his winning Homestead chassis.
7. Kurt Busch 10/1                    17th            20th            5th              10th
Five-time winner, hasn't finished worse than 15th since 2007. Using Homestead chassis.
8. Kevin Harvick 12/1              15th            15th           12th             18th
2005 winner with four runner-up finishes. Using Richmond and Loudon chassis from 2010.
9. Jeff Gordon 12/1                  21st             7th             27th              7th
Five-time winner -- last came in 2002 -- with 11.7 average finish; finished 11th and 14th in 2010.
10. Jimmie Johnson 7/1            2nd              6th             13th             23rd
Won this race last season, his first Bristol win; using runner-up Kansas chassis from 2010.

Drivers just missing the cut: David Reutimann, Greg Biffle and Joey Logano.
Note: Final Practice was the only session to use the new right side tire compound that will be used on race day.

Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book

Micah Roberts, a former race and sports 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.

Jayski.com Practice Page

Roush Duo Up Front at Bristol; Edwards on Pole

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 18, 2011) – Carl Edwards covered the .533-mile oval of “Thunder Road” at Bristol in 14.989 seconds (128.014 mph) to score Roush Fenway’s third consecutive pole in 2011 and Edwards’ second pole in four races.

“It’s unreal,” said Edwards. “I sure hope it keeps going. This is a lot of fun. The guys at the shop have done a great job on this Scotts EZ Seed Ford Fusion. Greg (Biffle) motivated me, as I didn’t think he would get that fast of a lap. I could not hear (crew chief) Bob (Osborne) on the radio so I thought I must be slow on the first lap and I drove my guts out on the second lap. Finally I saw the board. Just really happy, this is really cool.”

Edwards will be joined on the front row by teammate Greg Biffle to give the field an all Roush Fenway front row for Sunday’s Jeff Byrd 500 on Sunday.

David Ragan gives Roush Fenway three cars in the top five, after qualifying fifth in the session. Matt Kenseth will start 11th based on his qualifying effort.

The pole is Roush Fenway’s 10th in Bristol Sprint Cup action at Bristol and its 15th overall at BMS.

Sunday’s race is set for 1:13 p.m. EDT and will be televised live on FOX.

- Roush Fenway Racing, Press Release

Friday practice for the Jeff Byrd 500 Presented by Food City Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor:
#99-Edwards 128.675
#48-Johnson 128.022
#16-Biffle 127.954
#4-Kahne 127.929
#27-Menard 127.826
slowest: #71-Lally 121.605 and #92-Setzer 123.459
incident: #4-Kahne got loose and tapped the wall with the right rear, doing slight damage. Late in practice, #22-Busch scraped the wall on the front stretch
qualifying order: qualifying order will be set how a driver practices, the top 35 first, slowest first to fastest, then the go-or-go homers after, slowest to fastest.

Bristol Practice Speeds

Driver Chassis Selections: Jeff Byrd 500 at Bristol

Note: Not all teams list the chassis in their press releases 

Stewart using his Spring Bristol & Dover chassis this week

1. Tony Stewart: Finished second in this event last year; 19.8 average finish in four starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; 17.5 average finish in the eight races with the COT; Scored seven top-10s in 20 starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; Winner of the 2001 summer race; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 530) that he posted two top-10s with last year at Bristol Motor Speedway and Dover International Speedway in the spring.

2. Kurt Busch: Coming off 12th top-10 in 20 starts; Ninth-place finish last summer was third consecutive top-10; One win and five top-10s in 10 starts with Penske Racing; Four other wins came with Roush Racing; Sixth-best average finish (11.5) in the eight races with the COT; Fifth-best driver rating in the last 12 races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 739) that finished 18th at Homestead-Miami Speedway last season.

3. Carl Edwards: Finished sixth in this event last year for fifth top-10 in 13 starts; Winner of the 2007 and 2008 summer races; Third-best average finish (9.9) in the eight races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 709) that he won with at Homestead-Miami Speedway last season.

4. Juan Pablo Montoya: Coming off second top-10 in eight starts; 16.8 average finish in four races driving an Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet; 18.8 average finish in the eight races with the COT; Only laps led (29) came in this event last year; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1003) that he last finished 28th with in the second race at Texas Motor Speedway.

5. Ryan Newman: 8.8 average finish in four starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; Sixth-place finish last summer was 10th top-10 in 18 starts; Only top five finish (second) came in the 2004 summer race with Penske Racing.

6. Paul Menard: 22.9 average finish in seven starts; Best finish (16th) came in the 2008 night race; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 326) in the Jeff Byrd 500.

7. Martin Truex Jr: Has yet to score a top-10 finish and lead a lap in 10 starts; Finished 12th in this event last year in track debut with Michael Waltrip Racing; 22.9 average finish in the eight races with the COT.

8. Denny Hamlin: Coming off worst finish (34th) in 10 starts; Last of five top-10s (fifth) came in the 2009 summer race after starting at the back of the field and going a lap down; 15.8 average finish in the eight races with the COT.

9. AJ Allmendinger: Has yet to score a top-10 finish and lead a lap in seven starts; Finished 17th in this event last year; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 710) in the Jeff Byrd 500.

Gordon hand-me-downs may work for Dale Jr.

10. Dale Earnhardt Jr: Best track on the circuit based on 11.5 average finish; Second-best average finish (9.8) in the eight races with the COT; 11.0 average finish in six starts with Hendrick Motorsports; Scored one win and nine top 10s with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. in previous 16 starts; Will pilot the same car (chassis No. 611) that Jeff Gordon drove to a ninth-place finish at Auto Club Speedway last fall.

11. Mark Martin: Won both poles and posted an average finish of 4.0 in first two starts with Hendrick Motorsports in 2009; Finished 35th and 23rd, respectively, in 2010; Previous 21 top 10s came with Roush Racing; Last of two victories came in 1998; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 625) in the Jeff Byrd 500.

12. Jimmie Johnson: Scored first win in 18 starts in this event last year; 35th-place finish last summer ended a streak of three consecutive top-10s; Has combined to lead 454 laps in the last four races; 16.9 average finish in the eight races with the COT; Will be back in the same car (chassis No. 592) that he drove to a runner-up finish at Kansas Speedway last fall.

13. Kasey Kahne: Will make first track start with Team Red Bull; Coming off fifth top-10 (fifth) in 14 starts; Led 305 laps en route to a runner-up finish in 2007 summer race; 17.5 average finish in the eight races with the COT.

14. Kyle Busch: Coming off fourth win in 12 starts; Swept both races in 2009; Leads all drivers in average finish (5.1) and laps led (1,183) in the eight races with the COT; 5.2 average finish in six starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 277) that he last finished fourth with at Martinsville Speedway last fall.

15. Bobby Labonte: 20.4 average finish in 36 starts; Last of 10 top-10s came in the 2007 summer race with Petty Enterprises in eighth; Will make first track start in a JTG-Daugherty Racing Toyota.

16. Matt Kenseth: Coming off 14th top-10, and third consecutive, in 22 starts; Winner of the 2005 and 2006 summer races; 15.9 average finish in the eight races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 704) that he last raced to a ninth-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010.

17. Marcos Ambrose: 16.5 average finish in four starts; Finished in the top-10 in both races in 2009; Will make first track start in a Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports.

18. Clint Bowyer: Finished fourth last summer for fifth top-10 in 10 starts; Recorded four-straight top-10s from 2007 to 2008; Finished 40th in this event last year due to an engine failure; Seventh-best average finish (12.4) in the eight races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 310) that he finished in the top-10 with at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway.

19. Jeff Gordon: Five-time winner; Fifth-best average finish (11.2) in the eight races with the COT; Third-best driver rating in the last 12 races; Started fifth and finished 14th in this event last year; Leads all drivers with 2,440 laps led.

Harvick won at Bristol in spring of 2005

20. Kevin Harvick: Ninth-best average finish (14.9) in the eight races with the COT; Winner of the 2005 spring race; Started 33rd and finished 11th in this event last year; Will race the same car (chassis No. 304) that he scored top-10s with at both races at Richmond International Raceway and at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in June.

Notable Drivers Outside the Top 20

Brad Keselowski: Led 26 laps and finished 13th in this event last year; 16.0 average finish in two starts; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 747) in the Jeff Byrd 500.

Brian Vickers: Has yet to finish in the top-10 in 12 starts; 21.7 average finish in six starts with Team Red Bull; Finished 15th in this event last year.

David Reutimann: Coming off first top-10 with a runner-up finish; Led 25 of his 26 totals laps led last summer; 19.0 average finish six starts; Finished 38th in this event last year after an engine failure.

David Ragan: Only top-10 (10th) came in the 2008 summer race; Has yet to lead a lap in eight starts; Will pilot the same car (chassis No. 711) that he finished 20th with at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010.

Regan Smith: 26.3 average finish in six starts; has yet to lead a lap; Best finish came in the 2008 summer race in 14th.

Jamie McMurray: Finished in the top-10 in both races last season; Five of his six top-10s have come with Chip Ganassi; Led laps (11) for the first time in the last 12 races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1006) that he scored one win (Charlotte) and three poles with in 2010.

Joey Logano: 29.3 average finish in four starts; Won the pole and finished 27th last year in this even; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 278) that he most recently finished sixth with at Martinsville Speedway last fall.

Greg Biffle: Coming off third consecutive top-10; Eighth-place finish was 10th top-10 in 16 starts; Has combined to lead 154 laps in two of his last three starts; Fourth-best average finish (10.6) in the eight races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 700) that he finished 33rd with at Martinsville last fall.

Jeff Burton: Winner of the 2008 spring race; Scored seventh top 10 in 13 starts with Richard Childress Racing in this event last year; Eight-best average finish (13.6) in the eight races with the COT; Will pilot the same car (chassis No. 317) that he most recently finished 23rd with at Auto Club Speedway last fall.

compiled by Jeff Wackerlin, MotorRacingNetwork.com

Driver Notes & Quotes: Jeff Byrd 500 at Bristol

Johnson won first career Bristol race last season

JIMMIE JOHNSON ON BRISTOL: “I’m just excited to go back. I think we were in position in the fall race to fight for the win and race with Kyle (Busch). I feel good. After we won in the spring and coming back in the fall, just didn’t want to be too full of myself. Wanted to be able to go there and run well, but we backed it up there in the fall and had an awesome weekend. Unfortunately we crashed late in the race on the back straightaway. Looking forward to going back. We’re sitting decent in the points, but a good run at Bristol would move us in the right direction in the points. Look forward to going back.”

JOHNSON ON WHETHER THE BRISTOL CAR ONE IS ONE HE'S STILL DEVELOPING: “Fortunately the short track stuff — over the years it does migrate a little bit toward the new technology, but Martinsville, Bristol — it doesn’t change. Guys joke around that their Bristol setups that they’re running today is what they ran in the 90s with the old, old car — Luminas and stuff like that. Some tracks, especially where down force isn’t involved, there’s very little change over the years there’s more change due to tires and the evolution of the tire than much of anything else.”

JOHNSON CHASSIS SELECTION: Johnson will pilot chassis No. 592 in Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series event. He last drove that car to a runner-up finish at Kansas Speedway in Oct. 2010. Backup chassis No. 553 crossed the finish line first at Auto Club Speedway in Feb. 2010.

JOEY LOGANO ON BRISTOL: "I like Bristol. It’s a fun track. I don’t think you will find a driver or a fan that doesn’t get excited for Bristol. But as for luck, I don’t have any there. Every time I go there now all I want is one uneventful race in the Home Depot Toyota. Hopefully we’ll have an uneventful race this weekend, that’s what I’m looking forward to there. We were doing great for 400 laps last March at Bristol, and then I got a speeding penalty on the only green-flag stop of the day. Fast cars have never been an issue, and we’ve always qualified well which is huge at Bristol, but for some reason I can’t get to the finish without something happening. That’s kind of been the story of this season too, so maybe Bristol is the place that will change all that. Heck, why not?

LOGANO CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 20 Home Depot Team is taking chassis #278 for Logano this weekend in an attempt to turn this 2011 season around. This is the chassis Logano drove to a fourth-place finish at Richmond last fall and to a 17th-place finish at Kansas Speedway. The back-up chassis is #275 that Logano most recently drove to a sixth-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in October.

BRAD KESELOWSKI ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is one of those tracks where you always have to be mindful of your pace, where you are on the track and who you are around. But you also have to be looking forward so that you can avoid that wreck that happens half of a straightaway in front of you. Short track racing and restrictor-plate racing are very similar in that you can get caught up in a wreck that you had nothing to do with. Bristol is a very aggressively-paced race. You have to stay tuned in to what’s going on the entire time if you want stay out of trouble. Penske Racing was able to win the 50th Daytona 500 and it would be great to pick up a win in the 50th anniversary year of Bristol."

KESELOWSKI CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will use chassis PRS-747 during Sunday’s Jeff Byrd 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS). This is a brand new chassis to the No. 2 team.

Bowyer using 4th place Indy car from last year

CLINT BOWYER will pilot chassis No. 310 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This chassis was utilized during two races last season where Bowyer scored two top-10 finishes – the first at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he finished fourth, and Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he scored a seventh-place finish.

JEFF BURTON will pilot chassis No. 317 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend’s Jeff Byrd 500. Built new for the 2010 season, Burton drove this Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala to an eighth-place finish at Pocono Raceway in August before piloting this No. 31 racer to a 24th-place result at Michigan International Speedway two weeks later. Before going through offseason modifications, this RCR entry last competed at Auto Club Speedway in October where Burton was credited with a 23rd-place finish.

KEVIN HARVICK ON BRISTOL BEING FIRST SHORT TRACK OF THE YEAR: “Well, technically, we consider it the second because we consider Phoenix a short track. I think Bristol is the first full-contact, short track race that we’re going to go to. It’s obviously a lot different complexion than it used to be. You can race all over the race track, and you have to really work on your car to get it to turn sooner into the corner. You never know whether you’re going to end up at the top or the bottom. It’s become an interesting track."

HARVICK CHASSIS CHOICE: Will pilot chassis No.304 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. He raced this Chevrolet four times in 2010 and collected three top-10 finishes, including third at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway in May, fifth at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in June and ninth at Richmond International Raceway in September.

Edwards comes off huge Vegas win

CARL EDWARDS ON RACING AT BRISTOL: "This is two weeks in a row with Scotts on board and hopefully we can make it two wins in a row. We’ve had success at Bristol in the past and the Cup cars are a lot of fun to drive there. The track has three grooves and there are probably 20 guys who can win that race every time we go there since they repaved it. Hopefully we’ll go and have a solid run for Scotts. It’s the beginning of spring and we’ve had a lot of luck in Scotts cars in the past."

EDWARDS CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 99 will have Scotts EZ Seed as the primary sponsor. The crew will unload RK-709 for the weekend. This car first raced at Charlotte in October, and then went on to win at Homestead in November.

DENNY HAMLIN ON WHO HE LIKES IN THE NCAA'S: “I am going to have to go with Duke this year. I think they have the coach and the experience to make a deep run in the tournament. It seems like a couple of those guys have been there forever, but that’s what you need when it’s ‘one-and-done.’ All of those guys went through it last year. I’m just surprised that the (Virginia Tech) Hokies didn’t make it. I thought they were in after they beat Duke a couple weeks ago, but I guess not.”

McMurray bringing winning Charlotte car this week

JAMIE McMURRAY CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1006. Kevin “Bono” Manion and the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boat team will bring chassis #1006 to Bristol this weekend. This chassis was last used in the season-finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway last season resulting in a 21st place finish. McMurray has a victory (Charlotte, 2010), three poles (Kansas, Chicagoland, Darlington) a second and fifth, leading 143 laps with this chassis.

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1003. Brian Pattie and the No. 42 Target team are bringing chassis #1003 to Bristol this weekend. This chassis was last used in the second Texas race in 2010 where Montoya drove to a 28th-place finish. The No. 42 team has had success qualifying with this chassis, scoring three top-10 qualifying positions of fourth (Auto Club, Oct.), ninth (Atlanta, Sept.) and 10th (Chicagoland). Montoya has finishes of ninth (Atlanta), 14th (Auto Club) and 16th (Chicagoland) with this chassis.

MATT KENSETH ON RACING AT BRISTOL: “We’ve had a lot of success at Bristol over the years. Being a concrete, high-banked track that is so small, really makes Bristol stand out from other tracks on the circuit. Racing at Bristol feels like the seats are on top of you so it’s just a place with a really great atmosphere to race. It has changed a lot since they re-configured the track surface a few years ago; but it’s still such a fast short-track and problems can definitely happen in an instant. Qualifying is really important at Bristol since track position can really make or break your race sometimes. I’m looking forward to this weekend at Bristol and hope to have a great weekend for the Crown Royal Black team.

KENSETH CHASSIS CHOICE: Primary: RK-704 (last raced at Homestead in 2010)

GREG BIFFLE ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is just so intense. You can’t relax at all. It’s like walking a tightrope for 500 miles and holding your breath the whole time. No other track is like that. It obviously takes a good racecar to win at Bristol but it helps to qualify well. Sometimes it can be hard to pass and if the field gets backed up, it doesn’t take long for the leader to start lapping cars. If you have a bad qualifying run or have to start in the back for some other reason, it can be difficult even with a good car to get back through the field."

DAVID REUTIMANN heads to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend looking for the speed he showed on the Tennessee high banks in 2010. Reutimann qualified 10th and ran second in the spring race before a mechanical failure ended his race on lap 113. In August he started fifth and led 25 laps before finishing second just .677 seconds behind race winner Kyle Busch despite fighting food poisoning. Based on his 2010 performances, Reutimann will likely be one of the favorites for victory in the fourth NASCAR Sprint Cup race of 2011. But as Reutimann points out, “every time you go back, the race track is different."

DAVID REUTIMANN ON BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY: “I like Bristol. I love going there. It’s a cool facility. I’m looking forward to getting back there and looking forward to getting our season turned around. That’s going to be our main objective. Going into Bristol is not exactly the ideal place to try to turn things around. Every time you go back, the race track is different. Sometimes the overall temperature is different or you have a little different tire or a little different rule change. Obviously we have a new nose now and things are a little different in that area. Just because you ran good there once, it doesn’t mean you’ll go back and it will be the same. In theory the splitter should be a little more safe as far as contact. It’s never seemed to stop us in the past. I think it will be the same rooting and gouging that you always see at that place."

Hamlin looking for first Bristol win & rooting for Duke

DENNY HAMLIN ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is such a special place to every driver. When you pull off Exide Blvd. and see this huge arena where we actually get to race, it’s unbelievable to me. My family attended a lot of races when I was growing up, and Bristol was one of the tracks we had to see. I came here for the first time when I was 13 or 14 years old and it has been special ever since. Pre-race gets your chills going and it’s awesome to hear the rumble of the cars inside the track.”

KYLE BUSCH ON WHAT HE'S FIGURED OUT AT BRISTOL: “It’s just kind of really worked well together. It’s a fun place that you go to that you like going to. You enjoy the race around there. We grew up at the (Las Vegas Motor Speedway) Bullring and stuff like that. Maybe not as banked as Bristol is, but I love going and racing at Winchester (Ind.), Slinger (Wisc.), and Salem (Ind.), where I’ve raced before. Those are all really high-banked racetracks that are a half-mile in distance, or a quarter. They’re really fun to race around and you kind of get a great feel for racing in a bowl. You go down the straightaway and you slam it into the corners and you mash the gas and you kind of sling right back out of the corners. It’s a lot of fun to do that. It’s kind of an art. Some guys are really good at it, and some find a knack that makes them really good at it and make it seem easy. I remember last spring we were horrible there. You can definitely snap that string pretty quickly."

Bristol Preview: All Is Well In NASCAR

By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

Everything is good in NASCAR 

Everything is good in the NASCAR world right now. Ratings are way up over last year, a new driver in Trevor Bayne burst onto the scene with a win at Daytona, an old driver in Jeff Gordon won at Phoenix, and Jimmie Johnson hasn’t won a race, nor is he in the top-10 in points. The only thing missing to make it the perfect season for the typical NASCAR fan is a Dale Earnhardt Jr. win, and that just may happen sooner than later.

NASCAR has made a lot of changes to ensure the 2011 season would be sexier with hopes of recapturing some of the lost audience that the ratings show. But before we start patting them on the back for a job well done, lets keep in mind that the beginning of 2010 was going head to head with the winter Olympics. The Las Vegas race saw nearly a 30% increase in rating from last year, but at the same time last years race was going on, the USA hockey team was playing Canada for the Gold Medal.

I must say that I have been caught up in the season thus far with an anxiousness for each race like never before. I’m not sure if it’s just withdrawals from the off-season or if I’m actually enjoying the racing more, but whatever it is, I’m all in and ready for the next green flag to drop.

For instance, I was bored and miserable with no racing this past week. Despite all the great college basketball conference tournament games and analyzing new talent in spring training baseball, I was in dire need of a NASCAR fix of Saturday practice followed by a Sunday race.

I’m not a Jimmie Johnson hater, in fact, I marvel at his talents and consistency, but maybe I am getting excited about the fact that someone else looks like they have a great shot at knocking him off this year. The last four seasons, I honestly didn’t see it happening. Johnson two levels above everyone, but this year we have Carl Edwards who looks to be the King in waiting.

This week at Bristol we get to see another hopeful to dethrone Johnson in Kyle Busch who has won three of the last four Bristol races. He is the current king of the half mile high banked track having won four times in his 12 career starts and it‘s likely he‘ll continue the domination this week.

Over the years at Bristol we’ve seen a few drivers come in and just dominate for long stretches at a time. We’ve seen it passed on down the line from Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon to Kurt Busch, and now Kyle. Waltrip compiled 12 wins over his career at Bristol.

Bristol celebrates it’s 50 year anniversary this week and it also marks the 10 year anniversary of the Wood brothers last win on the track with Elliott Sadler. That was the last win for the famed team before Bayne won at Daytona. For Bayne, born in Knoxville, he now gets a chance to race in a Cup race in front of his home state fans for the first time. It should be a nice moment, but definitely not worth a bet.

Kyle Busch is the large favorite because of all his exploits, but his brother should be right in the mix of things battling for a win. Kurt Busch is a five time winner at Bristol and finished in the top-10 in both races last season.

Edwards is rolling strong into Bristol

Carl Edwards is a two-time winner of the fall night race and looks to be back on track with horsepower under the hood to make him a solid contender there once again.

Jimmie Johnson won for the first time at Bristol in this race last season and should be expected to do well again this week, but it still is going to come down to Kyle. Chances are, if he stays on the track, he‘ll be in position to win again.

The wild cards on the track this week will be Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle from the Roush stable. Even before we saw a resurgence with their program late last year, they each had top-5 finishes in the spring race.

For good measure we can also throw in Dale Earnhardt Jr who has been pretty consistent at Bristol despite his team woes everywhere else. He hasn’t finished worse than 18th since the spring of 2001. Last season he finished ninth and 13th and has a 2004 win under the lights to go his resume as well. Junior currently finds himself in the top-10 in points for the first time since April of last season.

Top 5 Finish Prediction:
1) #18 Kyle Busch (6/1)
2) #99 Carl Edwards (8/1)
3) #16 Greg Biffle (15/1)
4) #22 Kurt Busch (12/1)
5) #48 Jimmie Johnson (8/1)

Bristol Storylines: Track Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Johnson won at Bristol last year while Kurt Busch has 5 Bristol wins 

Anxious. That’s probably a good way to describe both the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series competitors after an open week.

What better place to unleash all that pent up competition than Bristol Motor Speedway, a spot where emotion and anticipation are already ratcheted up to a boiling point high.

Bristol celebrates its 50th anniversary of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing with the Jeff Byrd 500 Presented by Food City – named in honor the former track president who passed away last year.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series will run Saturday, with the Scotts EZ Seed 300.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads into an open week after last Saturday’s race at historic Darlington Raceway.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

Racers Continue To Make History As Bristol Celebrates 50th Anniversary
This season marks the 50th anniversary of Bristol Motor Speedway, a track at which the sport has generated heaps of history – and storylines.

The all-time Bristol wins leader list is practically a one-stop shop for NASCAR history in itself. Eight of the top nine are all series champions, and five of those are either NASCAR Hall of Famers, inductees or nominees. The top nine: Darrell Waltrip (12), Dale Earnhardt (9), Rusty Wallace (9), Cale Yarborough (9), Kurt Busch (5), Jeff Gordon (5), David Pearson (5), Bobby Allison (4) and Kyle Busch (4).

Wood Brothers Bristol Return Sparks Fond Memories
The return to Victory Lane for the legendary Wood Brothers at the Daytona 500 coincides with the 10-year anniversary of it last win before 2011: at Bristol in 2001, with Elliott Sadler.

A couple of Wood Brothers storylines mesh together this weekend. There’s the anniversary on the heels of the Daytona 500 win. But there’s also its driver returning to his hometown track. Trevor Bayne, a Knoxville, Tenn. native returns home to race for the first time since his win in The Great American Race.

2011 Features Some Interesting Comebacks and Slow Starts
Statistically speaking, some drivers are having starkly different seasons this year compared to last.

Some of that might have to do with a wrinkle in the schedule. Last season opened with races at Daytona, Auto Club Speedway and Las Vegas. This season opened with Daytona, Phoenix and Las Vegas.

Still, it’s interesting to see the peaks and valleys. For instance…

Stewart-Haas Racing is having the biggest comeback start. Ryan Newman has had the biggest Driver Rating jump after three races. After three events in 2010, his Driver Rating was 66.1. Currently, Newman has a rating of 101.5, a jump of 35.4 points – the largest gain in the series. Second is Tony Stewart, who improved 30.3 points – from 88.1 in 2010 to a series-best 118.4 now.

The biggest drops are all members of the 2010 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The biggest drop is Kevin Harvick, who had a Driver Rating of 116.4 after three races last year. He now has a 73.4, a drop of 43 points. Jimmie Johnson dropped 36.7 points, from 113.0 last year to 76.3 after the first three races this season.

Storylines Season The Standings

Earnhardt Jr back in the top 10 for the first time since last April

There are some interesting stories up and down the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings – especially in the top 10. For instance…

The points lead is shared by two past champions – Tony Stewart (2002 and 2005) and Kurt Busch (2004).

Two 2009 Chasers are enjoyed resurgent years after missing in 2010 – Ryan Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Some surprise success stories from Paul Menard in sixth, Martin Truex Jr. in seventh and AJ Allmendinger in ninth. Can they keep continue their early-season strength?

Eight-time defending NASCAR Most Popular Driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. is back in the top 10 for the first time since April of last season.

And a couple of “usual suspects” are in there too – Carl Edwards and Denny Hamlin. Both made the Chase in 2010.

- NASCAR Media Services