It’s back to Bristol for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series this Saturday. Here is what to watch for in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race.
The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will once again be heading into a race weekend after a “big three” victory. This weekend’s race will be held at Bristol Motor Speedway, and it will be the 116th race held at “The Last Great Colosseum”. If you’re thinking someone other than Kyle Busch will be the winner, then you’re probably going to be wrong.
Kevin Harvick was once again able to dominate Cup Series race when by leading 108 of the 200 laps this past Sunday in the Consumers Energy 400 at Michigan International Speedway. The talk of the town however, is the decision not to throw a debris caution before Ty Dillon ran over a battery over, which ended his day.
The main question is, why was a caution flag not thrown out well before that happened? The Cup Series has seen several “phantom” debris cautions over the years, yet when something was actually on the track, why no flag? Seems a bit odd to me.
By and large, the next stop is Bristol for some good old-fashioned short track racing. This will be another opportunity to see if a driver can shock the field and come out with a win to better their playoff chances.
Here is what to watch for this Saturday in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
What to watch
Kyle Busch
I feel like there really won’t be a whole lot to watch other than Kyle Busch driving around lapping the field. There may be some bumping and banging in the background, but nothing too crazy like we’re used to seeing at Bristol.
Busch has won at Bristol seven times in his Cup Series career, includes the last two races held at the track. In a year that has been dominated by three drivers, it’s hard to think that one of the other drivers will even has a shot.
Quick trigger on the debris cautions
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It’s still very strange to me to watch the replay of Ty Dillon running over that battery while trying to figure out why the yellow flag wasn’t thrown beforehand. Anyway, I think this weekend we can expect to see the debris caution get thrown much sooner to avoid any more questions about why it wasn’t thrown. It could even be for something little like a hot dog wrapper that makes its way to the track.
Multiple grooves?
One thing Bristol has been known for is the infamous “bump and run”, where a driver’s only option to make a pass is to bump the car in front of them to get them out of the groove. The addition of the PJ1 TrackBite traction compound allows for two grooves to be used and changes the game a bit. You can now see less follow-the-leader type of racing and more passes made to the inside or outside of drivers.
What will you be watching for this weekend in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race? Tune in to the action on NBC Sports Network at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 18 for this weekend’s action at Bristol Motor Speedway.