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Bristol Provides One of the Most Surreal Races in NASCAR History
Publish Date: March 18, 2024
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When NASCAR announced that the spring race at Bristol would return to concrete after three years of running on dirt, it was a sigh of relief. Bristol on its traditional surface has been one of the top races on the schedule for years, and losing it to an artificial dirt race was controversial.
Even with this optimism, nobody could have expected what was in store for the concrete’s return.
It became clear early in the race that tires were getting chewed up quicker than anticipated. Cars were dropping off the pace or completely blowing a right side tire just 40 laps into a green flag run. With 500 laps to run and only ten sets of tires, the race quickly became one of conservation.
With everybody saving their tires, the field was bunched up for much of the early run. Cars raced side by side, swapping positions up and down the field. It was a mental battle as much as anything, with drivers needing to focus on not overdoing their tires in their quest to gain positions.
When the green flag run reached that 40 lap mark, chaos unfolded, Drivers who saved the life in their tires pierced their way through the ones who did not. It might just have been the closest NASCAR has gotten to multi-class racing. It was a sight to behold.
Most of the time this happened, it ended in a caution. Either a car spinning on their own or a multi-car incident. But to finish the race, a full green flag pit cycle occurred. The winner needed to manage their tires and competition best over 120 laps of green flag racing.
The Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas were the class of the field all day. Of the four, Denny Hamlin prevailed and took the win after fighting off Martin Truex in the final laps.
A giant exhale might have come out of every pit box once the checkered flag flew.