COLUMN: Yes, The Car Needs Work... But Maybe Bristol Does Too

First off, just so there isn't any confusion; Bristol Motor Speedway is an institution.

The 0.533-mile short track dubbed "The Last Great Colosseum" has been associated with NASCAR racing for nearly 65 years (since 1961), and has hosted 126 NASCAR Cup Series, 82 NASCAR Xfinity Series, and 29 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series events.

As a venue, it's iconic, and as long as the racetrack is still operational, it deserves a place on the schedule at least once (if not twice) in NASCAR's National Series. The history of the racetrack is incredible. and to this day, it still means a lot to those who are able to triumph.

But, truth be told, there have been some major issues with the on-track product at the half-mile short track that has produced so many iconic moments over the years.

In Sunday's Food City 500, Kyle Larson led 411 of 500 laps on the way to a victory, in an event that boasted less than 10 lead changes -- and only one that wasn't the result of a green-flag pit stop cycle. Last Fall? The same thing.

There’s nothing wrong with a good old-fashioned butt-whooping either. In fact, it’s a substantial part of the track’s history. In 1977, Cale Yarborough led 495 of 500 laps to win the Southeastern 500, just four years after he led wire-to-wire to win it by more than two laps in 1973.

But, times are different: In the age of social media where everybody’s opinions are public, these dominant performances aren’t appreciated, but instead lamented, and usually reduced to one “easy-fix reason” why the race was subpar.

It’s really not that simple, though.

Yes, NASCAR needs to continue working on its short track product, something it has struggled with dramatically since the implementation of the seventh-generation car in 2022. They tried aerodynamic fixes, to no avail, and have moved on to working with Goodyear to race softer tires, where they have found success at places like Richmond and Martinsville.

The product isn’t the same as it was with the sixth-generation car, or even earlier in 'the glory days' as many on social media refer to it.

SIDENOTE: I guarantee you will see at least one clip of a short-track race from the mid-2000s on your social media timeline this week, with a caption like "take me back to the good ol' days".

When it comes to Bristol Motor Speedway, though, the reality of the situation is that the car doesn’t appear to be the only problem. All three of NASCAR’s National Series competed at the track this past weekend, and none of them really produced a stellar event.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series events were alright, but there really weren’t a ton of memorable moments during either race. Really, only the Truck Series event had any kind of notable tire fall-off, which happened at the end of an extremely long run.

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But later in the evening, Rajah Caruth was able to stay on the racetrack with 60-lap-old tires and maintain the lead over Chandler Smith and Bayley Currey, who had been fighting for the lead before that pit stop happened.

The track itself has been hit-or-miss for many, many years now.

In 2007, the track was reconfigured to include a variable banking system, which left the banking ranging from 24 to 30 degrees in the corners. After much backlash, Speedway Motorsports Inc. elected to grind the top lane, with the banking now ranging from 24 to 28 degrees.

Since these alterations were made, taking us away from the traditional single-file on the inside Bristol that many fans hold in high-regard, the quality of racing has plummeted, and so has attendance, with the track seeing its streak of 55 consecutive sellouts coming to an end after these changes were made.

So, maybe, by looking for something to change, we’re looking at the wrong thing?

The softer tires are a step in the right direction on the short tracks like Richmond, Phoenix, and Martinsville, but they weren’t tried at Bristol Motor Speedway this year. We could continue in that direction and implement that at Bristol.

We could also make a change to the horsepower of the NASCAR Cup Series cars, like many people within the industry have been saying for several years, however, the sanctioning body doesn’t seem into that idea at this time.

Or we could make some changes to Bristol Motor Speedway… Whether that be the banking on the half-mile racetrack, or something else, there needs to be something that changes.

Last Spring’s Food City 500 was widely enjoyed by fans (and apparently by NASCAR, as well) after the cooler temperatures didn’t allow rubber to be picked up on the racetrack, causing severe tire wear and creating a captivating race and a record-breaking 54 lead changes.

Does NASCAR consider moving the Spring race to an earlier date and the Fall race to a later date, to take advantage of statistically cooler temperatures? That wouldn’t be a sure-thing, and in the case of the Spring could invite us to relive the Bristol pit road snowball fight but is the risk worth it for a better on-track product.

The fact of the matter is something needs to change. The reality of the situation is it may be some kind of hybrid combination of the three things; the racecar, the racetrack, and the tires, that ultimately lands us with some better racing at Bristol Motor Speedway.

It’s sad to see an iconic racetrack like Bristol Motor Speedway unable to draw attention due to a lackluster on-track product, and while things have been going well on the other short tracks, trouble in Bristol, Tennessee, one of NASCAR’s most beloved short tracks, is definitely a warning sign that there needs to be a change.

So, let’s make that change and restore Bristol to its former glory… please.

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