WHAT TO WATCH FOR: BRISTOL

HOT DRIVERS

• Zack Saunders-BBR-Chevy- Zack has put his 4th win of the season on the board, tying his teammate Thomas Wolfe as the co-win’s leader. Zack rang off a 2nd place finish in the spring Bristol race and with the winner of that race nowhere to be found, tonight may be a walk in the park for the 91 team.
• Nic Vasquez-FMS-Ford- Some may argue that the driver of the 22 Ducks unlimited Ford Mustang is more lukewarm than hot. We on the other hand haven’t forgot about the points penalty he faced coming into the playoffs and with two top ten finishes here in the first round of the playoffs, Nic has all but erased what could have been a detrimental mistake.
• Steven Carlile-Ethix RT-Chevy- Week in and week out we talk about how no one is yelling from the mountain tope that Carlile is a threat and seems like a shoe in for the final four. If you haven’t gotten the message by now, you must be living under a rock. Three top 5 in his last three races and he is one of 3 that we can say are safe on points to advance to the round of 12.

NOT DRIVERS

• Caleb “The Uberman” Tipton-Uber MS-Ford- Caleb didn’t sneak his way into the playoffs by any means but his performance in the first two playoff races would make you seem like he was a sure first round exit. We have seen what he is capable of all seasons long if he can keep the car clean, but now he really has to show us.
• Garth Griswold-Hollywood MS-CHEVY- Garth is the Cinderella story that Ben Lawson has become. But who’s to say there can’t be two princesses at the ball. Luckily for Garth the clock hasn’t struck 12, even after 2 finishes outside of the top ten here in the playoffs. Currently sitting six points under the cut line, He knows it’s time to strap in and make something happen tonight. Hope those glass slippers are on tight.

DRIVER NEWS

• Zach Johnson won last night’s Bob Henry’s Xfinity series race at Bristol. He and his team hope to translate what they learned last night into a solid finish.
• Cody Porter has exited the TCSP Cup Series. A serious threat for next season’s championship has stated they will not be returning.
• Mathematically only 3 drivers are safe for tonight’s race at Bristol depending on attendance.
  Zack Saunders (1 win), Thomas Wolfe (1 win), Steven Carlile (points).
• Bristol was formerly known as Sapling Grove
• Bristol is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia.
• Bristol Motor Speedway is the third largest sports venue in America and the seventh largest in the world, housing up to 162,000 people.

PLAYOFF PICTURE

DRIVER PICK OF THE WEEK

WINNER- THE FANS
Us fans tonight get 500 rock em, sock em laps at Bristol Motor Speedway under the lights to see who will survive to see another 3 races and a chance to life the trophy in Phoenix, and who will end up crushing their car into the inside wall along with their hopes of a championship. For the analytical fans here, the obvious pick is Zack Saunders. He finished 2nd in the spring race and is red hot right now (+375). For the hopeful underdog fan, you have Tommy Carrol Jr who is staring down a first-round exit (-35) but finished 4th in the spring race (+3750). Whoever you decide to pick it won’t matter because someone who we thought would make it to the next round won’t, and someone who we never thought might have a chance will. And that my friends, is the beauty of racing.