After a one day rain delay, for the 490th time the NASCAR Cup Series ran on the dirt at Bristol. It was a historic day with tons of action and craziness. It was an amazing day of racing and it was easily the most memorable races in a very long time.
Stage 1
Early problems would arise for Kyle Busch as he was dealing with the engine overheating due to the grill being completely covered in dirt. A big crash would then bring out the caution as Aric Almirola spun out and he collected a few cars in the process. This wreck involved Anthony Alfredo, Aric Almirola, Corey LaJoie and Shane Golobic. Later more problems began as Ryan Newman spun out then afterwards Kevin Harvick bumped into his teammate Chase Briscoe putting Briscoe into the wall. In that same wreck there were more cars that wrecked. This wreck involved Cody Ware, Quin Houff and Chris Windom.
More trouble in stage one as Kyle Larson bumped into Christopher Bell. Ross Chastain would hit Bell and all three cars were seriously damaged. Kevin Harvick was also hit in the right rear during this incident. At the end of the first stage Martin Truex Jr would take the win. Following him in the second position was the 24 of William Byron. In the third spot was Denny Hamlin.
Stage 2
In the second stage things were finally begin to calm down. This only lasted for so long as a big wreck happened on the front straightaway. This wreck involved Cody Ware, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Michael McDowell, Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, J.J. Yeley and Austin Dillon. More trouble following the restart as Chase Briscoe spun out on the front straightway. Once again the caution came out as Cody Ware spun out in the corner. When all was said and done Joey Logano would win stage two. Following him in the second position was Daniel Suarez. In the third spot was Denny Hamlin.
The Final Stage
As time was running down issues would once again arise as Bubba Wallace blew a left rear tire causing him to spin out. Even though he spun there was no caution flag thrown. More problems with four laps remaining as Mike Marlar would crash with 4 laps remaining. As a result of this caution this led to overtime. With 2 laps remaining Martin Truex Jr blew a right front tire and hit the wall. No caution was thrown and Joey Logano would win the Bristol Dirt Race with only 1 overtime run.
Outlook from Bristol
This past weekend was filled with plenty of excitement. It wasn’t a perfect weekend as both races were postponed to Monday. The race was wild as was extremely action packed. After all of this it seems very obvious that the race was a success and that it looks as if NASCAR will look to run at the Bristol Dirt Race again next year.
Next Stop
This next weekend will be a week off for NASCAR as the drivers will look to enjoy an Easter Break as usual. After their week off they will head to the paperclip Martinsville Speedway for a Saturday night showdown.
