BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY (0.533-MILE OVAL)
LOCATION: BRISTOL, TENNESSEE
EVENT: NASCAR CUP SERIES (RACE EIGHT OF 36)
TUNE IN: 2 P.M. ET, SUNDAY, APRIL 7 (FS1/PRN/SIRIUSXM)
Chase Elliott
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Chase Elliott Hometown Dawsonville, Georgia
Age 23 Resides Dawsonville, Georgia
2019 Season
9th in standings
7 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
1 top-five finish
2 top-10 finishes
84 laps led
Career
120 starts
3 wins
4 pole positions
34 top-five finishes
61 top-10 finishes
1,327 laps led
Track Career
6 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
3 top-10 finishes
128 laps led
SHORT-TRACK PROWESS: In Chase Elliott’s last five short-track finishes, he collected top-10 finishes at all five events, four of which were top-five finishes including two runner-up results. In those last five races, Elliott holds the best average finish of all active drivers (3.6). His current streak of five top-10 finishes on a short track is currently the second longest active streak. Elliott led a total of 195 laps at the last five races at tracks less than one mile in length (Martinsville, Richmond, Bristol). He will make his 22nd NASCAR Cup Series short-track start this weekend. In the 21 previous starts, he has led 354 laps and garnered nine top-10 finishes.
2019, SO FAR: Seven races into the 2019 season, Elliott has collected one top-five finish, two top-10s and a total of 84 laps led. He averages a starting position of 10.3 and finishing position of 12.1. In the first seven races of the season, the driver of the No. 9 Chevy has spent more than 500 laps inside the top five. Elliott’s runner-up result at Martinsville is currently the highest finish of the season for any Chevrolet driver.
GREAT PERFORMANCE: Throughout last season and so far in 2019, Elliott has had strong performances on non-aero tracks (ISM, Martinsville, Bristol, Richmond, Sonoma, New Hampshire, Watkins Glen). The 23-year-old driver has finished inside the top five in eight of the last 13 non-aero track races – five were top-three finishes.
ELLIOTT AT BRISTOL: Elliott is set to make his seventh career NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. In his previous six starts at the track, he has led 128 laps and collected two top-five finishes and three top-10s. He averages a starting position of 8.2 and finishing position of 12.7. In Elliott’s five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, he earned one top-five finish and finished in the top 10 in all five events.
LAST TIME AT BRISTOL: The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 led a season-high 112 laps en route to a third-place finish in the 500-lap Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 2018. The result gave Elliott his fifth top-three finish of the season.
William Byron
No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver William Byron Hometown Charlotte, North Carolina
Age 21 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2019 Season
18th in standings
7 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
0 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finish
83 laps led
Career
43 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
0 top-five finishes
5 top-10 finishes
144 laps led
Track Career
2 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
0 top-10 finishes
0 lap led
TAMED TEXAS: Having one of his best career NASCAR Cup Series weekends, William Byron qualified a track-best second on Friday at Texas Motor Speedway. Running near the front almost all race, including leading 15 laps, Byron brought home a career track-best sixth-place finish in Sunday’s race – tying his previous career-best Cup finish from last season at Pocono Raceway – coming up a position short of capturing his first Cup Series top-five to his teammate Jimmie Johnson.
BATTLE AT BRISTOL: Heading to the “Last Great Colosseum” this weekend, Byron is set to make his sixth national series start at Bristol Motor Speedway. With two NASCAR Cup Series starts last season, two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts and one NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series start at the 0.533-mile concrete oval, Byron also has one regional touring series start in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. Byron was strong in qualifying for both Cup Series races, qualifying 11th in the spring and fifth in the fall – his best qualifying effort of 2018. Fighting handling issues in both races, he posted a best finish of 18th. In the Xfinity Series, his best finish was a 12th-place effort in the spring, while he collected a fourth-place finish in his lone Truck Series start, leading one lap in the process. In his K&N start, Byron led 44 laps before coming up just shy of the win with a runner-up result. If Byron were able to win this weekend, he would become the sixth driver to earn their first career Cup win at Bristol, as well as become the youngest Bristol winner of all time, which is currently held by Kyle Busch when he drove for Hendrick Motorsports in 2007.
AT IT AGAIN WITH AXALTA: For the sixth time in 2019, Byron will carry the iconic Axalta flames on his No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. This weekend will complete a stretch of five races in a row for Axalta on board the No. 24 car before returning to Byron’s machine for the spring race at Dover International Speedway in May.
KNAUS’ KNOWLEDGE: Set to call the shots for his eighth race with Byron this weekend, Knaus will be making his 35th start at Bristol as a Cup Series crew chief. With two pole awards and two wins in his career at the 0.533-mile concrete track, Knaus’ most recent win came in the spring race in 2017. At the notoriously tough track, Knaus also has 12 top-five finishes and 20 top-10s to his credit.
Q&A WITH BYRON: Byron will take part in a question-and-answer session with fans at the Trackside Live stage in the Bristol Motor Speedway Fan Zone on Sunday, April 7, at 11 a.m. local time.
Jimmie Johnson
No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hometown El Cajon, California
Age 43 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2019 Season
15th in standings
7 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
1 top-five finish
3 top-10 finishes
64 laps led
Career
622 starts
83 wins
36 pole positions
225 top-five finishes
355 top-10 finishes
18,767 laps led
Track Career
34 starts
2 wins
1 pole positions
12 top-five finishes
20 top-10 finishes
914 laps led
POLE AT TEXAS: Last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson scored his 36th career pole position by sweeping all three rounds of qualifying. It was Johnson’s second pole at Texas and his first pole since July 2016.
FIRST TOP-FIVE: Johnson scored his first top-five finish of the season Sunday at Texas. He led the first 58 laps of the race, finished second in Stage 1, 10th in Stage 2 and rounded out the day in fifth place.
LAST SEASON AT BRISTOL: Johnson turned in two top-10 performances last season at Bristol Motor Speedway. He had his best finish of 2018 at Bristol in April with a third-place result. Johnson turned in a ninth-place finish at the 0.533-mile track in August 2018.
STAGE SOLID: Since the implementation of stage racing in 2017, Johnson is one of only two drivers to finish in the top-10 in both Stage 1 and Stage 2 in all four races at Bristol.
BEST AVERAGE FINISH: Out of all current drivers who have competed in the last 10 races at Bristol Motor Speedway, Johnson boasts the best average finish with a mark of 8.3.
LAST WIN AT BRISTOL: Johnson scored his 82nd career win at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 24, 2017. Johnson started 11th, finished fifth in Stage 1, third in Stage 2 and led 81 laps en route to victory. It was Johnson’s second win at Bristol, with the first coming on March 21, 2010.
MEN’S JOURNAL FEATURE: Men’s Journal, a lifestyle publication, followed Johnson during the season-opening weekend at Daytona International Speedway. The article, which discusses Johnson’s Boston Marathon training is on newsstands now.
ALLY SWAG(GEAR): Ally will help longtime No. 48 fans get their “Ally Swag(gear)” on this weekend. Ally brand ambassadors will roam the Earhart Campground (adjacent to Bristol Motor Speedway) on Saturday (9 a.m. – 1 p.m.) and Sunday (9 a.m. – 2 p.m.) handing out new Jimmie Johnson No. 48 Ally swag.
Alex Bowman
No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Alex Bowman Hometown Tucson, Arizona
Age 25 Resides Mooresville, North Carolina
2019 Season
19th in standings
7 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
0 top-10 finishes
0 laps led
Career
124 starts
0 wins
2 pole positions
3 top-five finishes
14 top-10 finishes
274 laps led
Track Career
6 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
1 top-five finish
2 top-10 finishes
0 laps led
Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, will be available to members of the media on Friday, April 5, at 4:25 p.m. local time in the media center at Bristol Motor Speedway.
NATIONWIDE ON BOARD: The primary blue-and-white colors of Nationwide will be featured on the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in 20 NASCAR Cup Series events in 2019. Nationwide will adorn the hood of Alex Bowman’s Chevrolet for this weekend’s event at Bristol Motor Speedway, next weekend at Richmond Raceway and at Talladega Superspeedway later this month. Last August, Hendrick Motorsports and Nationwide extended their primary partnership with Bowman and the No. 88 team for an additional two years beginning in 2019.
BOWMAN AT BRISTOL: Bowman will make his seventh start in the NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol Motor Speedway this Sunday. His best finish of fifth came in the spring race in 2018 in the No. 88 Nationwide machine after qualifying eighth. The finish was Bowman’s first top-five finish in his Cup Series career. In his previous six starts at the track, the Arizona native has two top-10 finishes. Last fall, the No. 88 team finished eighth after starting the event in the 22nd position.
IVES IN TENNESSEE: Crew chief Greg Ives will call the shots for the ninth time for the No. 88 team in Bristol this weekend. The Michigan native has two top-five finishes and four top-10s at the track, with a best finish of second coming in 2016 with Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ives’ drivers have an average finish of 14.0 at the Tennessee-based track. Ives joined Hendrick Motorsports as a mechanic in 2004. He won five championships with the No. 48 team in 2006-2010 as the lead mechanic. During that time, he was a part of one win, two pole awards and eight top-10 finishes at Bristol.
TEXAS REWIND: Last weekend, Bowman and the No. 88 team battled a tough weekend in Texas. During qualifying on Friday, the 25-year-old driver was involved in an incident in Turn 2 and the team was forced to pull out the backup Chevy Camaro ZL1. The team had one practice to dial in the new car and by Sunday, it had made massive improvements. Bowman had to start from the rear of the field and was able to bring home an 18th-place finish after battling handling conditions throughout the 501-mile event.
Hendrick Motorsports
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT BRISTOL: At Bristol Motor Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports has 11 wins, 11 pole positions, 58 top-five finishes and 104 top-10s. Jimmie Johnson most recently won there for the organization in April 2017. Last time at Bristol, Hendrick Motorsports had three drivers finish in the top 10. Eight of the organization’s 11 wins at Bristol have come in the spring race.
SIX OR MORE: Bristol Motor Speedway is one of nine tracks on the schedule where Hendrick Motorsports has won with at least six different drivers. It is joined by Talladega Superspeedway, ISM Raceway, Dover International Speedway, Daytona International Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Pocono Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway.
OVER 100 TOP-10s: With 104 top-10 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway on the organization’s résumé, the Tennessee track ranks fifth among the six venues where Hendrick Motorsports has earned 100 or more top-10s. The organization has also achieved the feat at Martinsville (126), Pocono (123), Richmond (105), Dover (105) and Charlotte (100).
SHORT-TRACK PROWESS: Hendrick Motorsports has accumulated 50 wins on short tracks, the most among all active teams, 15 wins ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing’s 35. Ten different Hendrick Motorsports drivers have contributed to those wins. Junior Johnson and Associates holds the record for most different drivers to win on a short track for one team with 11. Hendrick Motorsports also leads all active teams on short tracks with 50 poles, 221 top-five finishes, 376 top-10s and 20,813 laps led.
WINNING WAYS: Hendrick Motorsports has won at least one short-track race in 27 different seasons. The organization’s most short-track wins in a season was five, accomplished in both 1996 and 2007. Hendrick Motorsports has won at least one short-track race in 15 of the previous 17 seasons.
HOME SWEET HOME: Chris Burkey, the pit crew coach for the Nos. 9 and 24 teams, hails from Greeneville, Tennessee, only 47 miles southwest of Bristol Motor Speedway. Burkey played football for Wingate University, where he eventually started his coaching career. From 1992 to 2005, he coached for Wingate, East Tennessee and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2005, he became a scout for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins. Burkey made the transition from football to NASCAR when he was hired as Hendrick Motorsports’ developmental pit crew coach in 2009. He moved up to the head coach position for the former Nos. 5 and 24 teams in 2014.
FIRST-TIME WINNERS: Hendrick Motorsports holds the record for the most first-time Cup Series winners with nine. If William Byron or Alex Bowman win at Bristol, it will extend the record to the 10th time a driver has recorded their first career Cup Series win while driving for Hendrick Motorsports.
ORGANIZATION STATS: To date, Hendrick Motorsports has totals of 12 championships, 252 race victories, 217 pole positions, 1,047 top-five finishes and 1,793 top-10 finishes in points-paying NASCAR Cup Series competition. Its teams have led almost 68,000 laps since 1984.
QUOTABLE /
Chase Elliott on racing at Bristol:
“I really enjoy racing at Bristol. I think it’s one of the coolest places we go to just environment-wise and then racetrack-wise. Just a lot of fun. Short-track racing in general is fun. I’ve enjoyed it. We’ve had some OK runs there. Feel like we had a really good car there last fall and had a realistic shot that I didn’t do a very good job of capitalizing on. I think it’s been kind of hit-or-miss. I remember the spring race of, I think, ’16 being really good and then this past fall race being pretty fast and kind of in-between I feel like has just been mediocre. So, it’s hard to get right. You can just be off a little bit one way or the other and it makes a big difference there.”
Elliott on speed at Bristol:
“It was already really fast before. I don’t know. I’m excited. Bristol is a fun place. I am not sure what they are going to do with the grip stuff on the bottom. That has been a big deal in the past as to how the racetrack evolves and how the day can change and how the racetrack groove can change. I think it has been a fun dynamic. I think they are down the right path there, so hopefully they keep going that direction and they can just make that a little better. I feel like that has been a nice mix of bottom to top there the last couple of races.”
William Byron on Bristol:
“The atmosphere is great at Bristol. The cars are fast and it feels really fast inside the car. I would say all of that stuff just contributes to the overall atmosphere there. It’s just a really fun track to go to as a driver. It’s challenging but also very rewarding to be able to get around there fast.”
Jimmie Johnson on going from Texas to Bristol:
“I’m really so proud of our organization as a whole for the performance last week in Texas – running well in practice, the first pole for Ally, leading a bunch of laps and finishing with a solid top-five. We have some momentum heading into Bristol, which as of late has been one of my better tracks. It’s one of the most physical tracks we run and you have to stay on top of things while there is just chaos everywhere.”
No. 48 team crew chief Kevin Meendering on Bristol:
“We’ve had a lot of different packages over the years at Bristol and so this weekend the biggest unknown is probably the tires. We will look at a lot of past history and back to the 2015 notes. The short tracks don’t seem to change and are less aero sensitive. Jimmie’s had some strong runs at Bristol the last few times there, so we have a lot of good notes to look back on.”
Alex Bowman on Bristol:
“I can absolutely carry over what we learned at Bristol last year and put that to use this weekend. It is a strong racetrack for us. Last fall we went down a lap due to an issue and were still able to bounce back and get a top-10 finish. I think Bristol can be a great place for us and I am really looking forward to getting back there this weekend.”
Bowman on April Fools’ Day prank:
“The Hendrick Motorsports video group got me good. As a driver, you do anything for your partners. I went with it, but I am glad I wasn’t the only one that got fooled. Kevin (Meendering) and William (Byron) were hilarious, but again, you do anything for a partner and we proved that! That video was great.”
