NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol Motor Speedway 2018: Start time, lineup, TV, more
It's NASCAR race day in Bristol, Tenn., and we've got some essential information you need to get ready for Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
START TIME: Tim Morgan, Chevrolet Dealer in Coeburn, Va., will instruct drivers to start their engines at 1:07 p.m. ET followed by the green flag at at 1:13 p.m. ET.
RACE DISTANCE: The Food City 500 is not 500 miles but 500 laps around the 0.533-mile Bristol Motor Speedway. That's a total of 266.5 miles.
RACE STAGES: After a successful run last season, NASCAR will once again be dividing races into stages and handing out points. Here are the segments for today's Cup race: Stage 1: 125 laps, Stage 2: 125 laps, Stage 3: 250 laps.
NATIONAL ANTHEM: Country-sould singer/songwriter Morgan Myles will perform the national anthem at 1:01 p.m. ET followed by a flyover by four T-38s from the 469th Flying Training Squadron of Shepherd Air Force Base in Wichita, Texas.
TV/RADIO SCHEDULE: Fox will broadcast the race and has a pre-race show beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Performance Racing Network and Sirius/XM NASCAR Radio will call the event on the radio.
LIVE STREAMING: Fox is offering a live stream through its Fox Sports Go app.
PREVIEW: Busch brothers among favorites at 'streaking' Bristol
JOHNSON: Seven-time champ concedes struggles amid slump
JONES: Young driver touring college campuses ... for fun
BRISTOL'S BEST: Darrell Waltrip recalls brutal debut at legendary track
WEATHER: Not good. The Weather Channel is calling for rain beginning late Sunday morning and continuing through the evening. Be prepared for a race delay or possible postponement until Monday.
LAST TIME: Kyle Busch swept the weekend last August, winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race, the Xfinity Series race and the Camping World Truck Series race. In the Bristol Night race, Busch led 156 laps and held off current teammate Erik Jones, who started from the pole. And one year ago, Jimmie Johnson led 81 laps, including the final 21, for his second straight victory of April 2017.
LINEUP: It's a Busch brothers front row as Kyle held off older brother Kurt Busch to take the pole. Kevin Harvick crashed in Friday's practice and will start from the back of the field after going to a backup car.
Here is the starting lineup for the Food City 500 (car number in parentheses):
1. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota
2. (41) Kurt Busch, Ford
3. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford
4. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford
5. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
6. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
7. (21) Paul Menard, Ford
8. (88) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet
9. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford
10. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
11. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet
12. (19) Daniel Suarez, Toyota
13. (20) Erik Jones, Toyota
14. (14) Clint Bowyer, Ford
15. (95) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet
16. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
17. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet
18. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet
19. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford
20. (43) Darrell Wallace Jr., Chevrolet
21. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
22. (37) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet
23. (38) David Ragan, Ford
24. (32) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford
25. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
26. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota
27. (15) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet
28. (23) Gray Gaulding, Toyota
29. (00) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet
30. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet
31. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet
32. (13) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet
33. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford
34. (72) Corey LaJoie, Chevrolet
35. (96) DJ Kennington, Toyota
36. (55) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet
37. (51) Harrison Rhodes, Chevrolet
38. (66) Chad Finchum, Toyota
39. (4) Kevin Harvick, Ford