The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) heads to Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, for the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 12, at 3 p.m. ET on FS1.
On April 12, 2025, Alex Bowman captured the pole with a lap of 128.675 MPH (14.912 secs.), and Kyle Larson led twice for a race-high 411 of the 500 laps in a dominant run with an emotional NCS victory for the Hendrick Motorsports organization in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday, April 13, 2025.
Track & Race Information for the Food City 500
Season Race #: 8 of 36 (April 12, 2026)
The Purse: $11,233,037
Track Size: 0.533 miles
Banking/Turns: 24-28 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 4-8 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 4-8 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 650 feet
Backstretch Length: 650 feet
Length and Race Stages for the Food City 500
Race Length: 500 laps / 266.5 miles
Stages 1 Length: 125 laps
Stages 2 Length: 125 laps (Ends on Lap 250)
Final Stage Length: 250 laps (Ends on Lap 500)
Who and what should you look out for at Bristol Motor Speedway?
Kyle Busch leads the NCS among active drivers in wins at Bristol with eight victories in 38 starts, and Busch is the youngest Bristol Cup race winner at 21 years, 10 months, 23 days on March 25, 2007.
| Active Bristol Winners (7) | Wins | Seasons |
|---|---|---|
| Kyle Busch | 8 | 2019, 2018, 2017, 2011, 2010, 2009 sweep, 2007 |
| Denny Hamlin | 4 | 2024, 2023, 2019, 2012 |
| Kyle Larson | 3 | 2025, 2024, 2021 |
| Brad Keselowski | 3 | 2020, 2012, 2011 |
| Joey Logano | 2 | 2015, 2014 |
| Christopher Bell | 1 | 2025 |
| Chris Buescher | 1 | 2022 |
The pole or first starting position is the most productive starting position in the field at (27 wins, 21.3%), and more than half of the NCS winners at Bristol have started in the top-five (74 wins, 58.3%). Also, more than three-quarters of the winners started in the top-10 (100 wins, 78.7%).
The deepest in the field that an active race winner has started is 20th, by Chris Buescher in 2022.
A total of 16 different drivers have won from the pole in the NCS at Bristol. The most recent driver to win from the pole or first starting position was Brad Keselowski on March 31, 2020.
| Starting Position | Wins | Winning % | Starting Position | Wins | Winning % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | 21.3% | 13 | 4 | 3.1% |
| 2 | 15 | 11.8% | 14 | 2 | 1.6% |
| 3 | 11 | 8.7% | 15 | 1 | 0.8% |
| 4 | 10 | 7.9% | 17 | 1 | 0.8% |
| 5 | 11 | 8.7% | 18 | 2 | 1.6% |
The Driver Picks For Bristol Motor Speedway
- Christopher Bell has one pole, one win, four top fives, seven top 10s, and a series-best average finish of 10.778.
- Ryan Blaney has one pole, four top fives, eight top 10s, and an average finish of 17.056.
- Denny Hamlin has four poles, four wins, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s, and an average finish of 13.459.
- Kyle Larson has one pole, three wins, eight top fives, 13 top 10s, and an average finish of 11.579.
- Chase Elliott has one pole, five top fives, nine top 10s, and an average finish of 12.824.
