NASCAR Sprint Cup Bristol Night Race | Bristol Motor Speedway Open Race Thread

Thuder Valley.

The very name of Bristol Motor Speedway is reminiscent of danger, excitement and drama. The finishes are some of NASCAR's most used highlights and the winners go on to become the sport's most prominent champions.

Wallace, Earnhardt, Gordon and Busch have all tamed Bristol and followed it up with Cup Series Championships. Who joins them on the winner's list of NASCAR's hardest ticket?

Find out after the jump!

Bristol was resurfaced between races in 2007 and hasn't been the same since. Since the renovations, Bristol has become a follow-the-leader affair in the same vein of Texas and Charlotte. But at Bristol, that leader has typically been Kurt Busch.

The elder Busch has absolutely dominated Bristol. Since 2001, Kurt has compiled five wins, six top fives and an average finish of 13.2. His driver rating of 96.1 is the fifth best in the series and a win tonight could have him join Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick as A+ Championship contenders.

Speaking of Harvick, the points leader is coming off a win at Michigan and is now officially locked in the Chase. Harvick could miss the next three races and still start the Chase for the Championship as low as fifth.


Expect Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon to battle for the top ten with pole-sitter Jimmie Johnson (94.5 driver rating) the unlikely dark horse. The official pick of this writer is the streaky Greg Biffle who is the owner of a 101.2 driver rating in the Bristol soup bowl

Pre-race coverage was provided by ESPN Countdown and SPEED Raceday. Live prerace coverage has already begun on ABC. Green flag is set for 7:15 with Marty Reid, Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree providing the call.