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08.19.17

Bristol Night Race Race Report

Date: Aug. 19, 2017
Event: Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race (Round 24 of 36)
Series: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval)
Format: 500 laps, broken into three segments (125 laps/125 laps/250 laps)
Start/Finish: 24th/25th (Running, completed 496 of 500 laps
Point Standings: 28th (352 points, 599 out of first)

Race Winner: Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Matt Kenseth of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

 

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-125):

- Danica Patrick started 24th and finished 33rd.

- Patrick said her No. 10 One Cure Ford Fusion’s tires were chattering at the beginning of the stage.

- After a lap-62 caution, crew chief Billy Scott called Patrick to the pits for four tires, fuel and wedge adjustments. Shortly after the pit stop, Scott told Patrick that the issue was caused by a bolt lodged in the front-left tire.

 

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 126-250):

- Started 29th and finished 28th.

- Patrick said her No. 10 One Cure Ford Fusion was loose into the turns and tight to the center during Stage 2.

- At the conclusion of the stage, Scott called Patrick back to the pits for four tires, fuel and adjustments.

 

Final Stage Recap (Laps 251-500):

- Started 32nd and finished 25th.

- Scott called Patrick to the pits during a lap-354 caution for four tires, fuel and adjustments to correct tight-handling conditions.

- After a lap-396 caution, Patrick noted that her One Cure Ford Fusion’s balance improved from prior adjustments.

- Patrick battled through traffic for the remainder of the race with improved handling conditions.

 

Notes:              

- This was Patrick’s 11th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway and her 178th career NASCAR Cup Series start.

- Patrick earned 12 points in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, which puts her at 352 total points for the season. She is ranked 28th in the championship standings.

- There were eight caution periods for a total of 53 laps.

- Only 15 of the 40 drivers in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race finished on the lead lap.

- Kyle Busch won the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race to score his 40th career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory, his second of the season and his sixth at Bristol Motor Speedway. His margin of victory over second-place Erik Jones was 1.422 seconds.

- Martin Truex Jr. leads the championship standings with 951 points and has a 101-point margin over his nearest pursuer, Kyle Busch.

 

Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 One Cure Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“It was a long, tough battle here at Bristol, and I wish we could have run better. We just didn’t have it this weekend, but we’ll move on. Thanks to all of the guys for working hard on my One Cure Ford Fusion this weekend.”

 

Next Up:

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Bojangles’ Southern 500 on Sunday, Sept. 3 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. The event starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN.