New Surface At Bristol Raceway This Weekend

The racing this weekend at Bristol should be different from what was seen back in March. Since then the concrete surface was shaved down to bring back the kind of racing that fans used to love at Bristol – all the fender bumping and grinding. It was about five years ago they made a change that allowed more side-by-side racing and eliminated most of the bumping, but the fans didn’t like it.

There were only five cautions back in March and there was just one major crash. Years ago there could be as many as 20 wrecks during a typical night of racing. The fans loved it – it’s why they went to Bristol. And that's why they’re bringing that type of racing back.

 That’s the intent anyway, but the drivers aren’t sure what to expect. Points leader Greg Biffle says, "I just hope that they didn't screw it up." But he adds, “We just have to wait and see when we get there. I think it’s going to be exciting either way."

Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton and defending series champion Tony Stewart did a one day tire test there a few weeks ago and said the areas along the wall are pretty slick. As a result there’s less room to race, reducing the track from three grooves to two and it’ll tighten things up.

With three races to go before the start of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, 10 drivers have a chance to clinch a spot in the Chase. One of them is Brad Keselowski who’ll be looking for his third straight Sprint Cup win at Bristol. Darrell Waltrip has the Bristol record with seven straight victories from 1981 to 1984.

The race is being carried nationally on ABC, but since Channel 7 is carrying the Bills game on Saturday night the race will be moved to ESPN.