The 2023 Bass Pro Shops Night Race was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on September 16, 2023, at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. Contested over 500 laps on the .533-mile (0.858 km) short track, it was the 29th race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, the third race of the Playoffs, and the final race of the Round of 16.
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 29 of 36 in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | September 16, 2023 | ||
| Location | Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility .533 mi (.858 km) | ||
| Distance | 500 laps, 266.5 mi (429 km) | ||
| Average speed | 94.99 miles per hour (152.87 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 15.109 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 187 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | USA | ||
| Announcers | Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | PRN | ||
| Booth Announcers | Doug Rice and Mark Garrow | ||
| Turn Announcers | Rob Albright (Backstretch) | ||
Report
editBackground
edit
The 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. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes the driver ineligible for series driver points.
- (P) denotes playoff driver.
- (OP) denotes owner’s playoffs car.
Practice
editKyle Larson was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 15.186 seconds and a speed of 126.353 mph (203.345 km/h).[10]
Practice results
edit| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.186 | 126.353 |
| 2 | 17 | Chris Buescher (P) | RFK Racing | Ford | 15.262 | 125.724 |
| 3 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (P) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 15.333 | 125.142 |
| Official practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editChristopher Bell scored the pole for the race with a time 15.109 of and a speed of 126.997 mph (204.382 km/h).[11]
Qualifying results
editRace
editRace results
editStage results
editStage One Laps: 125
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (P) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 24 | William Byron (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 45 | Tyler Reddick (P) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 1 | Ross Chastain (P) | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 6 | Brad Keselowski (P) | RFK Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 5 | Kyle Larson (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage one results | |||||
Stage Two Laps: 125
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 10 |
| 2 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 5 | Kyle Larson (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (i) | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 6 | 34 | Michael McDowell (P) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 17 | Chris Buescher (P) | RFK Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 24 | William Byron (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 41 | Ryan Preece | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 9 | Chase Elliott (OP) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results | |||||
Final Stage results
editStage Three Laps: 250
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 500 | 47 |
| 2 | 36 | 5 | Kyle Larson (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 46 |
| 3 | 1 | 20 | Christopher Bell (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 500 | 54 |
| 4 | 20 | 17 | Chris Buescher (P) | RFK Racing | Ford | 500 | 37 |
| 5 | 8 | 54 | Ty Gibbs (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 500 | 42 |
| 6 | 4 | 34 | Michael McDowell (P) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 500 | 36 |
| 7 | 7 | 9 | Chase Elliott (OP) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 31 |
| 8 | 6 | 6 | Brad Keselowski (P) | RFK Racing | Ford | 500 | 33 |
| 9 | 3 | 24 | William Byron (P) | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 38 |
| 10 | 25 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (P) | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 500 | 27 |
| 11 | 16 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (i) | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 499 | 0 |
| 12 | 17 | 41 | Ryan Preece | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 499 | 27 |
| 13 | 13 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 499 | 24 |
| 14 | 9 | 23 | Bubba Wallace (P) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 499 | 31 |
| 15 | 12 | 45 | Tyler Reddick (P) | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 499 | 28 |
| 16 | 30 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 499 | 21 |
| 17 | 18 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 499 | 20 |
| 18 | 26 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 499 | 19 |
| 19 | 5 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. (P) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 498 | 20 |
| 20 | 15 | 8 | Kyle Busch (P) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 498 | 17 |
| 21 | 24 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 498 | 16 |
| 22 | 11 | 12 | Ryan Blaney (P) | Team Penske | Ford | 498 | 15 |
| 23 | 23 | 1 | Ross Chastain (P) | Trackhouse Racing | Chevrolet | 498 | 19 |
| 24 | 31 | 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | Chevrolet | 497 | 13 |
| 25 | 10 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 497 | 21 |
| 26 | 35 | 15 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 495 | 0 |
| 27 | 14 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 495 | 10 |
| 28 | 32 | 21 | Harrison Burton | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 495 | 9 |
| 29 | 21 | 4 | Kevin Harvick (P) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 495 | 8 |
| 30 | 22 | 16 | A. J. Allmendinger | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 491 | 7 |
| 31 | 34 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Chevrolet | 490 | 0 |
| 32 | 29 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Ford | 488 | 5 |
| 33 | 33 | 77 | Ty Dillon | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 263 | 4 |
| 34 | 28 | 22 | Joey Logano (P) | Team Penske | Ford | 262 | 3 |
| 35 | 19 | 31 | Justin Haley | Kaulig Racing | Chevrolet | 261 | 2 |
| 36 | 27 | 51 | Ryan Newman | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 260 | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
edit- Lead changes: 10 among 6 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 6 for 53 laps
- Red flags: 1 for 14 minutes
- Time of race: 2 hours, 48 minutes, and 20 seconds
- Average speed: 94.99 miles per hour (152.87 km/h)
Media
editTelevision
editUSA covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. called the race from the broadcast booth. Dave Burns, Kim Coon, Dillon Welch and Marty Snider handled the pit road duties from pit lane.
| USA | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color-commentator: Jeff Burton Color-commentator: Steve Letarte Color-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
Dave Burns Kim Coon Dillon Welch Marty Snider |
Radio
editPRN had the radio call for the race, which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice and Mark Garrow called the race from the booth when the field races down the frontstretch. Rob Albright called the race when the field races down the backstretch. Brad Gillie, Brett McMillan, Alan Cavanna, and Wendy Venturini handled the duties on pit lane.
| PRN | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Doug Rice Announcer: Mark Garrow |
Backstretch: Rob Albright | Brad Gillie Brett McMillan Alan Cavanna Wendy Venturini |
Standings after the race
edit
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References
edit- ^ "2023 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
- ^ "Bristol Motor Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. Archived from the original on April 28, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
- ^ Taranto, Steven (September 14, 2022). "NASCAR releases 2023 Cup Series schedule highlighted by new Chicago, All-Star race stops". CBS Broadcasting Inc. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- ^ "NASCAR unveils 2023 schedule for its national series". National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC. September 14, 2022. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- ^ "Entry List" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ^ "Practice Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. September 15, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
- ^ "Qualifying Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. September 15, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
- ^ "Bass Pro Shops Night Race Results". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
- ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. September 16, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
- ^ Utter, Jim (September 9, 2023). "Kyle Larson fastest in NASCAR Cup practice at Bristol". Motorsport.com. Bristol, Tennessee: Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
- ^ Utter, Jim (September 9, 2023). "Bell beats Hamlin for Bristol Cup pole in all-JGR front row". Motorsport.com. Bristol, Tennessee: Motorsport Network.