2018 Food City 500
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 8 of 36 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series | |||
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2018 Food City 500 program cover, featuring "Young Guns" Ryan Blaney, Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott, and William Byron, and "Veterans" Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, and Martin Truex Jr. | |||
| Date | April 15–16, 2018 | ||
| Location | Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.533 miles (0.858 km) | ||
| Distance | 500 laps, 266.5 mi (429 km) | ||
| Average speed | 77.465 miles per hour (124.668 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 14.895 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | |
| Laps | 200 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip | ||
| Nielsen ratings | 1.4 (Overnight)[11] | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | PRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Doug Rice, Mark Garrow and Wendy Venturini | ||
| Turn announcers | Rob Albright (Backstretch) | ||
The 2018 Food City 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on April 15 and 16, 2018, at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. The second half of the race was postponed to April 16 due to rain. Contested over 500 laps on the 0.533 miles (0.858 km) concrete short track, it was the eighth race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.
Report
Background
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Despite its short length, Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating.
Entry list
First practice
Ryan Blaney was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 14.774 seconds and a speed of 129.877 mph (209.017 km/h).[12]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 14.774 | 129.877 |
| 2 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 14.774 | 129.877 |
| 3 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 14.799 | 129.657 |
| Official first practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Kyle Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 14.895 and a speed of 128.822 mph (207.319 km/h).[13]
Qualifying results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 14.879 | 14.878 | 14.895 |
| 2 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 14.946 | 14.871 | 14.897 |
| 3 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 15.124 | 14.988 | 14.960 |
| 4 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 15.074 | 15.052 | 14.961 |
| 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 15.051 | 14.953 | 14.969 |
| 6 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 15.197 | 15.018 | 14.985 |
| 7 | 21 | Paul Menard | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 15.042 | 15.066 | 14.993 |
| 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.051 | 15.053 | 15.010 |
| 9 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 15.108 | 15.183 | 15.029 |
| 10 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 15.004 | 15.176 | 15.041 |
| 11 | 24 | William Byron (R) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.190 | 15.043 | 15.053 |
| 12 | 19 | Daniel Suárez | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 15.132 | 15.069 | 15.153 |
| 13 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 15.195 | 15.071 | — |
| 14 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 15.091 | 15.086 | — |
| 15 | 95 | Kasey Kahne | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 15.178 | 15.095 | — |
| 16 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.138 | 15.105 | — |
| 17 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.103 | 15.112 | — |
| 18 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 15.139 | 15.136 | — |
| 19 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 15.183 | 15.144 | — |
| 20 | 43 | Bubba Wallace (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.163 | 15.178 | — |
| 21 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 15.216 | 15.181 | — |
| 22 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 15.190 | 15.196 | — |
| 23 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 15.135 | 15.204 | — |
| 24 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 15.223 | 15.285 | — |
| 25 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 15.383 | — | — |
| 26 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 15.410 | — | — |
| 27 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 15.256 | — | — |
| 28 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 15.257 | — | — |
| 29 | 15 | Ross Chastain (i) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.320 | — | — |
| 30 | 23 | Gray Gaulding | BK Racing | Toyota | 15.358 | — | — |
| 31 | 00 | Landon Cassill | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 15.360 | — | — |
| 32 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 15.477 | — | — |
| 33 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 15.499 | — | — |
| 34 | 72 | Corey LaJoie | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.755 | — | — |
| 35 | 96 | D. J. Kennington | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 15.807 | — | — |
| 36 | 55 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.810 | — | — |
| 37 | 51 | Harrison Rhodes | Rick Ware Racing | Toyota | 16.253 | — | — |
| 38 | 66 | Chad Finchum (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 16.735 | — | — |
| 39 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 0.000 | — | — |
| Official qualifying results | |||||||
Practice (post-qualifying)
Second practice
Kyle Larson was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 14.874 seconds and a speed of 129.004 mph (207.612 km/h).[14]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 14.874 | 129.004 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 14.880 | 128.952 |
| 3 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 14.881 | 128.943 |
| Official second practice results | ||||||
Final practice
David Ragan was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 15.051 seconds and a speed of 127.487 mph (205.170 km/h).[15]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 15.051 | 127.487 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.100 | 127.073 |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 15.109 | 126.997 |
| Official final practice results | ||||||
Race results
Stage Results
Stage 1 Laps: 125
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 17 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 41 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage one results | |||||
Stage 2 Laps: 125
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 43 | Bubba Wallace (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results | |||||
Final Stage Results
Stage 3 Laps: 250
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 500 | 49 |
| 2 | 6 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 500 | 47 |
| 3 | 17 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 46 |
| 4 | 4 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 500 | 39 |
| 5 | 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 36 |
| 6 | 19 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Hass Racing | Ford | 500 | 34 |
| 7 | 39 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 500 | 33 |
| 8 | 14 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 500 | 37 |
| 9 | 10 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 500 | 28 |
| 10 | 30 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 500 | 36 |
| 11 | 12 | 19 | Daniel Suárez | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 500 | 26 |
| 12 | 23 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 500 | 25 |
| 13 | 7 | 21 | Paul Menard | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 499 | 24 |
| 14 | 25 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 499 | 30 |
| 15 | 21 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 499 | 24 |
| 16 | 20 | 43 | Bubba Wallace (R) | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 499 | 22 |
| 17 | 18 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 499 | 27 |
| 18 | 11 | 24 | William Byron (R) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 498 | 19 |
| 19 | 31 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 498 | 18 |
| 20 | 29 | 00 | Landon Cassill | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 498 | 17 |
| 21 | 24 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 497 | 16 |
| 22 | 2 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 496 | 17 |
| 23 | 3 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 495 | 34 |
| 24 | 33 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 495 | 13 |
| 25 | 34 | 72 | Corey LaJoie | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 494 | 12 |
| 26 | 13 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 494 | 16 |
| 27 | 35 | 96 | D. J. Kennington | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 482 | 10 |
| 28 | 32 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 475 | 9 |
| 29 | 16 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 473 | 8 |
| 30 | 26 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 458 | 7 |
| 31 | 28 | 23 | Gray Gaulding | BK Racing | Toyota | 448 | 6 |
| 32 | 36 | 55 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 342 | 5 |
| 33 | 38 | 66 | Chad Finchum (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 335 | 0 |
| 34 | 15 | 95 | Kasey Kahne | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 236 | 3 |
| 35 | 5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 117 | 2 |
| 36 | 22 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 116 | 1 |
| 37 | 37 | 51 | Harrison Rhodes | Rick Ware Racing | Toyota | 115 | 1 |
| 38 | 9 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 9 | 1 |
| 39 | 29 | 15 | Ross Chastain (i) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 | 0 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
- Lead changes: 8 among different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 13 for 114
- Red flags: 4 for 18 hours 58 minutes and 48 seconds
- Time of race: 3 hours, 26 minutes and 25 seconds
- Average speed: 77.465 miles per hour (124.668 km/h)
Media
Television
Fox Sports covered their 18th race at the Bristol Motor Speedway. Mike Joy, five-time Bristol winner Jeff Gordon and 12-time Bristol winner – and all-time Bristol race winner – Darrell Waltrip had the call in the booth for the race. Jamie Little, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum handled the pit road duties for the television side.
| Fox Sports Television | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip |
Jamie Little Vince Welch Matt Yocum |
Radio
PRN had the radio call for the race which was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice, Mark Garrow and Wendy Venturini called the race in the booth when the field was racing down the frontstretch. Rob Albright called the race from atop the turn 3 suites when the field raced down the backstretch. Brad Gillie, Brett Mcmillan, Jim Noble, and Steve Richards covered the action on pit lane.
| PRN Radio | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Doug Rice Announcer: Mark Garrow Announcer: Wendy Venturini |
Backstretch: Rob Albright | Brad Gillie Brett McMillan Jim Noble Steve Richards |
Standings after the race
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References
- ^ "2018 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2017. Archived from the original on December 24, 2017. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ "Bristol Motor Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 9, 2018. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
- ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ "Second Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 14, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
- ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 14, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
- ^ "Food City 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. April 16, 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
- ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. April 17, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 21, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
- ^ "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. April 17, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 21, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
- ^ "Bristol final TV ratings". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. April 17, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
- ^ Utter, Jim (April 13, 2018). "Ryan Blaney leads Cup practice at Bristol; Harvick wrecks". Motorsport.com. Bristol, Tennessee: Motorsport Network. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ Reed, Steve (April 13, 2018). "Busch brothers will start on the front row at Bristol". Associated Press. Bristol, Tennessee: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 14, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ Southers, Tim (April 14, 2018). "Kyle Larson sets pace during Saturday's first Cup practice in Bristol". Motorsport.com. Bristol, Tennessee: Motorsport Network. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
- ^ Utter, Jim (April 14, 2018). "David Ragan tops final practice at Bristol; Kurt Busch crashes". Motorsport.com. Bristol, Tennessee: Motorsport Network. Retrieved April 14, 2018.