By Rod Mullins
Augusta Free Press
BRISTOL, Tenn. Thanks to a heavy dose of Mother Nature in the form of drenching early rain, Friday’s Bush Pole Day for Sunday’s running of the 25th Anniversary edition of the Food City 500 / Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race will be set by championship points.
NASCAR and Bristol Motor Speedway officials made the announcement after an early downpour washed out early practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup teams, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR K&N Racing Series, all running this weekend at the World’s Fastest Half Mile.
Series leader Kyle Larson will lead the field to the green flag on Sunday from the pole, with Chase Elliott on the outside followed by Martin Truex, Jr., Brad Keslowski, and Joey Logano.
Ryan Blaney will pilot the Wood Brothers Ford in the sixth starting position with Kyle Busch starting in seventh. Jamie McMurray will follow up in eighth with Clint Bowyer in ninth and Kevin Harvick rounding out the top ten.
Chesterfield’s Denny Hamlin will roll off 16th with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. starting 20th. Earnhardt makes his return to Bristol for the spring race after sitting out the August race due to a concussion. Danica Patrick will start 26th on the grid, seeking her best finish at Bristol since 2015 when she started 26th and finished 9th for her career best on the high banks of The Last Great Colosseum.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series Fitzgerald Gliders 300 will roll off beginning at 1:00 PM on Saturday afternoon with the NASCAR K&N Series Zombie Auto 150 to follow, beginning at 4:00 PM. Qualifying for the Xfinity and K&N Series races will be held on Saturday.
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