NASCAR Cup Series

Kenseth on racing at Bristol Motor Speedway: “I’m really not sure how the changes to the track surface at Bristol will affect the racing, but it should be interesting to see how it all works this weekend. If it turns out to be as slick as people are thinking it’s going to be, it’s going to be really tough to run side-by-side. It could be trouble if you’re running along someone and they decide to push you up into that top groove, so we’ll see how it all plays out.”

Brad Keselowski is the most recent winner at Bristol Motor Speedway. At the fourth race of the 2012 season in March, he qualified fifth and led 232 laps en route to his second consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win at the .533-mile track.

Biffle on racing at Bristol Motor Speedway: “Bristol is always a race everyone looks forward to. The night race is exciting, lots of sparks, under the lights, the stands are packed and it’s kind of just the ambiance of the race and everything is pretty cool. Who knows what to expect there with the repave, or modification to the track surface. Will there be a second grove? How hard is it going to be to pass? What’s the track going to be like? I don’t think anyone knows until we get there.”

NASCAR announced today penalties and fines to the No. 18 team that competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, as a result of rule infractions at Michigan International Speedway.

While there is definitely a new feel to the revamped Bristol Motor Speedway, the iconic track remains firmly rooted in its history. In August of 1978, Cale Yarborough won the first Night Race held at the .533-mile oval. Sparks flew under the lights, from the cars and from some drivers, and the event quickly became one of NASCAR’s crown jewels. This year’s edition of the IRWIN Tools Night Race Aug. 25 will be the 35th running of the event at night.

As the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series return to companion events this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway, fans will see a lot of black and yellow cars streaking around the famous half-mile oval. Joey Logano will return to the wheel of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota this Saturday night in the Sprint Cup Series event at Bristol and will double up by also competing with a Dollar General Toyota in the NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Bristol on Friday night.

Carl Edwards on racing at Bristol Motor Speedway: “I haven’t seen the track since they changed it so I’m not exactly sure what to expect. Who knows what will happen. Any time you change a track like that there is no telling. It might make it a completely different race and I guess in the end that is what they are trying to do. I think all of us are hoping for a really good race."

In 134 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway, Richard Childress Racing boasts nine wins - seven with Dale Earnhardt, one with Kevin Harvick and one with Jeff Burton - three poles, 32 top-five and 58 top-10 finishes. RCR Chevrolets swept the top three positions in the 2008 Food City 500 when Burton drove to Victory Lane, Harvick finished second and Clint Bowyer rounded out the top three.

In the two races over the weekend at Michigan International Speedway, Toyota drivers earned a total of five top-10 finishes. Camry drivers Clint Bowyer (seventh) and Martin Truex Jr. (10th) registered top-10 finishes in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race, while Dakoda Armstrong (third), Parker Kligerman (fourth) and Kurt Busch (ninth) earned top-10 results in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race.

When it comes to the actual Ford Fusion, there is a big difference between the road-course No. 95 Leavine Family Racing (LFR) Ford that finished 17th two weeks ago at Watkins Glen International and the short-track car that will race this Saturday in the Irwin Tools Night Race at the Bristol Motor Speedway.