FOX NASCAR at Bristol Motor Speedway Quotes & Programming Schedule

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES Live on FOX; NASCAR XFINITY SERIES Live on FS1 from Bristol

Harvick in NASCAR XFINITY SERIES Booth as Analyst Saturday on FS1

CHARLOTTE, NC – NASCAR heads to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend, with FOX Sports set to offer 18 hours of live action from the half-mile concrete oval. Included are FOX’s live race coverage of the MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES on Sunday, April 23 (2:00 PM ET) and FS1’s live coverage of the NASCAR XFINITY SERIES on Saturday, April 22 (1:00 PM ET).

During the week, FS1’s NASCAR RACE HUB, NASCAR’s most-watched daily news and information program, continues Mondays through Thursdays at 6:00 PM ET. Additionally, the NASCAR RACE HUB PODCAST launched recently and is available on iTunes, SoundCloud and Google Play Music.

Below are programming information and quotes from FOX NASCAR analysts Darrell Waltrip (winningest NASCAR premier series driver in Bristol history with 12) and Jeff Hammond and play-by-play announcer Mike Joy.

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES

• Date/Time: Sunday, April 23 (2:00 PM ET)
• Network: FOX
• Announcers: Mike Joy, Hall of Famer and three-time champion Darrell Waltrip, four-time champ Jeff Gordon and Larry McReynolds
• Pit reporters: Jamie Little, Chris Neville, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum
• Hosts: Chris Myers and Michael Waltrip
• Pre-race:
  • FOX NASCAR SUNDAY (1:30 PM ET on FOX); hosted by Myers with Michael Waltrip, Gordon and Darrell Waltrip; reporters Little, Neville, Welch and Yocum
  • FOX NASCAR SUNDAY goes behind-the-scenes at Hendrick Motorsports this week to feature the men and women working at the shop to make the No. 48 a winning team.
  • NASCAR RACEDAY (12:30 PM ET on FS1); hosted by John Roberts with analysts Jeff Hammond and Wally Dallenbach; reporters Kaitlyn Vincie and Kenny Wallace
  • NASCAR RACEDAY offers a Kenny Wallace “Riding Shotgun” feature with Kyle Larson, in addition to live interviews with Kurt Busch, Erik Jones and Kasey Kahne.
• Post-Race: NASCAR VICTORY LANE (8:30 PM ET on FS1; delayed)

NASCAR XFINITY SERIES

• Date/Time: Saturday, April 22 (1:00 PM ET)
• Network: FS1
• Announcers: Adam Alexander, Michael Waltrip and driver analyst Kevin Harvick
• Pit reporters: Chris Neville, Jamie Little and Matt Yocum
• Pre-race: NASCAR RACEDAY-XFINITY (12:30 PM ET on FS1); hosted by Shannon Spake with analysts Michael Waltrip and Larry McReynolds; reporters Kenny Wallace and Kaitlyn Vincie
• Hosts: Spake and McReynolds

FOX NASCAR QUOTES

On how stage racing has evolved in the first seven races of the season:
“I originally was concerned about how drivers would adapt to putting it all on the line to win stages. But when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch got together at the end of the second stage at Martinsville, it proved the importance of a driver’s finishing position in a stage, in addition to the significance of knowing a caution is coming and they must get back on the lead lap. That moment validated previous assertions that stage racing has elevated the sport. Anytime drivers used to race against the rain, racing would intensify because they knew the race could end any minute. That’s what we have now at the end of stages 1 and 2.”
–Mike Joy, FOX NASCAR play-by-play announcer

“It’s not only about money but points and how they affect drivers as they go into the Championship Round, because points now put a value on the different stages. I wasn’t too sure how it would work out in the beginning, but I completely embrace stage racing now.”
–Jeff Hammond, FOX NASCAR analyst

On the favorite to win this weekend at Bristol:
“It should be an interesting battle between Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch. Beyond that, it’s anyone’s game. I can promise you it won’t be a repeat winner from last spring, though [Carl Edwards].”
–Darrell Waltrip, FOX NASCAR analyst

On the effect of Bristol Motor Speedway adding VHT resin to the race track last year:
“The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series ran on it first, so we already had one race with the compound when the XFINITY and Cup cars raced on it. By then, it had worn down considerably but still allowed drivers to use the bottom groove and make passes. That was the goal – to be able to use the bottom to at least maintain position or even pass the guy who was on the outside groove, which has so much grip. Honestly, I don’t know why they don’t move the compound further up the track — maybe coat the bottom plus another half a groove.”
–Darrell Waltrip, FOX NASCAR analyst

On the possibility of Jimmie Johnson going on a run now that he has his first win of the season:
“Lots of drivers get one win and people say, ‘Well, they finally figured it out.’ That could happen with multiple teams this weekend. If it were anybody but seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, I’d say wait and see. But a lot of times with the No. 48 team, they win and their momentum carries over. I hardly ever look at Bristol, though, and say a team has finally figured everything out. The track is an anomaly, so I don’t necessarily judge a team’s strength by what they do there. If you do well at Texas, Bristol and then Richmond, then we can claim progress. Johnson might go through some races without the expected success, but he won’t stay down.”
–Darrell Waltrip, FOX NASCAR analyst

On whether Kyle Larson will maintain his hot streak:
“He just needs to win more and at more varied tracks. He and his team have shown phenomenal consistency this year, and their car is fast. Bristol and Richmond will be a good test for them because they’ve run well on the bigger tracks, but these short tracks require more driver finesse. We always knew Larson was talented, but the cars weren’t as good as he was. Now they match up a little more. It will be interesting to see where they go from here.”
–Darrell Waltrip, FOX NASCAR analyst

FOX NASCAR AT BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY PROGRAMMING SCHEDULE
(All times live/Eastern unless otherwise indicated & subject to change)

Friday, April 21
MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES practice (11:30 AM-1:00 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES practice (1:00-2:00 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES final practice (3:30-4:30 PM) (FS1)
MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES qualifying (4:30-6:00 PM) (FS1)

Saturday, April 22
MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES practice (8:30-9:30 AM) (FS1)
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES qualifying (9:30-11:00 AM) (FS1)
MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES final practice (11:00 AM-12:00 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR RACE HUB WEEKEND EDITION (12:00-12:30 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR RACEDAY-XFINITY (12:30-1:00 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES Racing (1:00-3:30 PM) (FS1)
NASCAR RACE HUB WEEKEND EDITION (3:30-4:00 PM) (FS1)

Sunday, April 23
NASCAR RACEDAY (12:30-1:30 PM) (FS1)
FOX NASCAR SUNDAY (1:30-2:00 PM) (FOX)
MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES Racing (2:00-5:30 PM) (FOX)
NASCAR VICTORY LANE (8:30-9:00 PM) (FS1) (delayed)