FORD PERFORMANCE: NASCAR BRISTOL 2 NOTES
After a week off the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to action on Saturday with the annual running of the Bristol Night Race. Ford has won 36 times at the half-mile track, which is tied for the most at any single track in the manufacturers’ history (Michigan). Here’s a look at some of the most memorable triumphs.
FIREBALL BURNS BRIGHT IN FORD DEBUT
Ford won it’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 31, 1963 when Fireball Roberts won the Southeastern 500. What made the win so noteworthy is that it marked the debut of Roberts with Ford as a teammate of Fred Lorenzen’s at Holman-Moody. The duo put on a dominant show that day as they combined to lead 329 of 500 laps with Roberts leading 165 and Lorenzen 164. Roberts passed his new teammate with eight laps to go and won by five seconds as the race saw only one caution for nine laps. Roberts went on to win four races in 1963 while Lorenzen won six times.
A WEEKEND THREE SERIES SWEEP
One of the most memorable weekends the last couple of years came in August of 2014 when Ford swept all three NASCAR series races – Camping World Truck, XFINITY and Sprint Cup at Bristol Motor Speedway. Brad Keselowski captured his first NCWTS victory while Ryan Blaney took the XFINITY event. Joey Logano capped the weekend sweep when he passed Matt Kenseth with 45 laps to go and then had to hold off Keselowski to post his third win of the 2014 season. Logano was in control until caution came out with 69 laps to go. While he pitted for four tires, Kenseth and others stayed out which put Logano sixth on the ensuing restart with 63 to go. With fresh tires, however, he was able to move to the front in less than 20 laps and then hold off his Penske teammate down the stretch. It marked the first time Ford swept all three divisions in the same weekend since 2006 when Mark Martin (NCWTS) and Kenseth (NNS and NSCS) did it, ironically, at Bristol.
LOGANO WINS BACK-TO-BACK NIGHT RACES
The last time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series came to Bristol Joey Logano held off a hard-charging Kevin Harvick over the final 25 laps to win the IRWIN Tools Night Race for the second consecutive year. Logano led four times for 176 laps, including all but four of the final 147 laps and that was because he pitted when the caution came out with 71 laps to go while Penske teammate Brad Keselowski opted to stay out for track position. Even though Keselowski had the lead on the ensuing restart, Logano’s four fresh tires enabled him to get the lead immediately and he held on over the final 64 circuits to post his 11th career victory.
BRISTOL RANKS FIRST
Ford has won 640 all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races and of the active tracks currently on the schedule, Bristol Motor Speedway ranks tied for first as the manufacturer’s most successful with 36 victories (Michigan). Rusty Wallace leads the way with five career Ford wins at BMS from 1994-2000 while Fred Lorenzen and Kurt Busch each won three consecutive races at the half-mile oval. In addition, Alan Kulwicki won five races during his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career and two of those came at Bristol Motor Speedway (1991-92). Ford has swept both Bristol races seven times with the last coming in 2014 when Carl Edwards won the first event in March and Logano followed with his Night Race triumph in August.
FORD MULTIPLE RACE WINNERS AT BRISTOL
5 – Rusty Wallace (1994, ’96, ’99, 2000*)
4 – David Pearson (1968*, ’69, ’71)
3 – Carl Edwards (2007, ’08, ‘14)
3 – Fred Lorenzen (1963, ‘64*)
3 – Kurt Busch (2003*, ‘04)
2 – Alan Kulwicki (1991, ’92)
2 – Mark Martin (1993, ’98)
2 – Matt Kenseth (2005, ’06)
2 – Joey Logano (2014, ’15)
* Denotes season sweep
