NASCAR at Bristol: Start time, lineup, TV schedule and more
BRISTOL, Tenn. — It's NASCAR race day — assuming the weather cooperates — at Bristol Motor Speedway, and we've got some essential information you need to get ready for today's Food City 500.
START TIME: The command to start engines will be given at 1:07 p.m. ET, followed by the green flag at 1:13 p.m. Scheduled to give the command are Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer and Tennessee coach Butch Jones, whose football teams will meet in the first football game at Bristol Motor Speedway during the 2016 season. If you want to skip the pre-race show and just tune in for the race, turn on your TV at 1:13 p.m.
RACE DISTANCE: The Food City 500 is 266.5 miles or 500 laps around the .533-mile oval.
NATIONAL ANTHEM: Performed at 1:01 p.m. by Mississippi country music singer Cheryl LuQuire.
TV/RADIO SCHEDULE: Fox will broadcast today's race and has a prerace show beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Performance Racing Network (PRN) will have the radio call.
WEATHER: Bring your umbrella. The National Weather Service forecasts a 100 percent chance of showers Sunday. Predicted high is 54. Monday's forecast: 60 percent rain chance.
LAST TIME: Matt Kenseth held off a hard-charging Kasey Kahne over a thrilling final 12 laps of side-by-side racing in August's Irwin Tools Bristol Night Race for his fifth victory of 2013. In the Food City 500 last March, Kahne led the final 40 laps, pulling away from second-place Kyle Busch in the closing laps.
STARTING LINEUP:Denny Hamlin turned the fastest qualifying lap — 129.991 mph — in Bristol Cup history Friday to win the pole. Also starting in the top five: Brad Keselowski, Kenseth, Joey Logano, Marcos Ambrose.
Here's the starting lineup for today's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol:
1. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
2. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford
3. (20) Matt Kenseth, Toyota
4. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
5. (9) Marcos Ambrose, Ford
6. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet
7. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota
8. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford
9. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet
10. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet
11. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet
12. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford
13. (41) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet
14. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet
15. (15) Clint Bowyer, Toyota
16. (38) David Gilliland, Ford
17. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet
18. (26) Cole Whitt, Toyota
19. (34) David Ragan, Ford
20. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
21. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford
22. (47) A J Allmendinger, Chevrolet
23. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford
24. (95) Michael McDowell, Ford
25. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet
26. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
27. (4) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet
28. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet
29. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet
30. (51) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet
31. (40) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet
32. (98) Josh Wise, Chevrolet
33. (23) Alex Bowman, Toyota
34. (7) Michael Annett, Chevrolet
35. (36) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet
36. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet
37. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet
38. (55) Brian Vickers, Toyota
39. (32) Travis Kvapil, Ford
40. (83) Ryan Truex, Toyota
41. (30) Parker Kligerman, Toyota
42. (66) Joe Nemechek, Toyota
43. (33) Timmy Hill, Chevrolet