Bristol Night Race Schedule, How to Watch, Stream, Odds for NASCAR – NBC Chicago

What is the Bristol Night Race schedule?

Before the race in Bristol there will be practice and qualifying. The field of 36 cars will be divided into two groups and each group will receive a 15-minute practice session on Friday, September 16 starting at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Qualifying begins immediately after practice at approximately 5:20 p.m. ET. Each car completes two laps, with the five fastest drivers in each group advancing to the final lap. In the final round, the 10 drivers drive two laps and pole goes to the fastest driver.

The Bass Pro Shops Night Race begins Saturday, September 17 at 7:30pm ET.

What’s the NASCAR TV schedule this weekend?

All NASCAR coverage from Bristol will be available on USA Network and the NBC Sports App.

Every time the drivers hit the track – including practice, qualifying and the race – you can watch it live on USA Network and the NBC Sports appor here online. Practice and qualifying will air Saturday at 4:30pm ET.

Pre-race coverage begins Saturday with “NASCAR Countdown to Green” at 6:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, followed by the race at 7:30 p.m. ET on the same channel.

2022 NASCAR Playoff Rankings Crucial Scenarios

Sixteen of the world’s best drivers are now fighting for a championship, using an elimination format to decide everything. Before the championship race at the end of the season there are three races with three races each.

Bristol marks the first elimination race of the year, with four drivers eliminated from the playoffs after Saturday. The four drivers with the lowest total points are eliminated unless they win the race, which automatically advances you to the next lap.

Here’s a look at the playoff standings before the final round of 16 race, with clinch scenarios if any (drivers can only make up a maximum of 59 points in a race). Riders obviously have multiple clinch scenarios depending on how everyone else is performing, but the ones listed below are the scenarios within their power:

1. Christopher Bell, +58 points from 13
   • Mathematically advanced to the round of 16
2. William Byron, +48 points from 13
   • Progress with a 29th place at Bristol
3. Denny Hamlin, +47 points from 13th
   • Progress with a 29th place at Bristol
4. Joey Logano, +40 points from 13th
   • Progress with a 21st place finish at Bristol
5. Ryan Blaney, +36 points from 13th
   • Progress with a 17th place finish at Bristol
6. Alex Bowman, +30 points from 13
   • Progress with an 11th place at Bristol
7. Chase Elliott, +28 points from 13th place
   • Progress with a ninth place finish at Bristol
8. Kyle Larson, +27 points from 13th
   • Progress with an eighth place finish at Bristol
9. Ross Chastain, +26 points from 13th
   • Progress with a seventh place finish at Bristol
10. Daniel Suarez, +6 points from 13th
    • Requires 50 points to advance automatically
11. Tyler Reddick, +2 points from 13
    • Requires 54 points to advance automatically
12. Austin Cindric, +2 points from 13
    • Requires 54 points to advance automatically

—

13. Kyle Busch, -2 points from 12th
    • Requires 55 points to advance automatically
14. Austin Dillon, -2 points from 12th place
    • Requires 55 points to advance automatically
15. Chase Briscoe, -9 points from 12th place
    • Can only advance automatically with a win or help
16. Kevin Harvick, -35 points from 12th
    • Can only advance automatically with a win or help

Which drivers won at Bristol?

Six of the 36 drivers starting on Sunday have won at Bristol: Busch, Harvick, Logano, Hamlin, Larson, and Brad Keselowski.

Busch leads all active drivers with an impressive eight Bristol wins, most recently in 2019. Harvick and Keselowski have three Bristol wins each, while Logano and Hamlin have two. Larson only has one, but he came in this race last year.

Who is considered the favorite to win NASCAR this weekend?

The Bristol Night Race is one of NASCAR’s premier events, so it makes sense that champions often prevail. Eleven of the last 13 night races have been won by a former champion, the lone exception being Hamlin – widely regarded as one of the best drivers not to win a title.

But when you look at the top average finishers in Bristol, one non-champion – and non-playoff rider – stands out. Erik Jones, who won at Darlington two weeks ago, leads all riders with an average result of 12.4 from nine Bristol starts.

Busch (13.0 avg from 32 starts), Harvick (13.2 from 41 starts), Elliott (13.3 from 11 starts) and Larson (13.4 from 13 starts) are some of the other usual contenders at Bristol. Busch leads all drivers with 2,592 career laps conducted at Thunder Valley.

As previously mentioned, Larson won the Bristol Night Race last year after Elliott and Harvick made contact on the final laps. There were fireworks between the two after the race as Larson celebrated another win.

Here are some of the Bristol odds, courtesy of our partner: PointsBet:

• Denny Hamlin, +675
• Kyle Bush, +700
• Chase Eliot, +750
• Kyle Larson, +800
• Kevin Harvick, +900
• Christopher Bell, +900
• Tyler Reddick, +1200
• Ryan Blaney, +1400
• Joey Logano, +1500
• William Byron, +1600
• Ross Chastain, +1600
• Martin Truex Jr., +1600
• Bubba Wallace, +2500
• Alex Bowman, +3000
• Eric Jones, +4000
• Brad Keselowski, +10000

Editor’s note: All odds are provided by our Partners, PointsBet. PointsBet is our official sports betting partner and we may receive compensation the first time you place a bet at PointsBet after clicking on our links.