newspreview fitzgerald glider 300 nascar xfinity series bristol
Sports

Preview: Fitzgerald Glider 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series at Bristol

Rod Mullins

By Rod Mullins
Augusta Free Press

BRISTOL, Tenn. The World’s Fastest Half Mile will play host to the second round of the XFinity Series Dash 4 Cash Program this weekend as Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 on Saturday.

The race is the second of four races on the 2017 XFinity Series season in which XFinity Racing Series regulars are eligible. The highest finishing two from the race’s first two stages will then compete for a $100,000 bonus in the race’s final stage. The highest finishing of the four, even if neither of the four are the race winner, will earn a nice payout.

“As drivers, we are all looking for the win,” according to Justin Allgaier, the first winner of the Dash 4 Cash prize at Phoenix. “If you don’t win, you want to have a high finish and earn that nice consolation prize. But if you can do both at the same time, it’s even better.”

Allgaier added, “If we could win the Bristol Dash 4 Cash, it would be a huge moment for us.”

The XFinity Series drivers will be also be making circuits around the high banks of The World’s Fastest Half Mile with a new format. Now a feature in all of NASCAR’s top three series, each series race will feature three stages. Stage 1 or Stage 2 winners will earn 10 additional points and a playoff point, with the top 10 also earning regular season points. The winner of Stage 3 will earn the race victory and move closer to a spot in the 2017 playoffs.

The Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 will feature three stages consisting of 85 laps, 85 laps and 130 laps.
Qualifying for the race will be held Saturday morning with the green flag scheduled to drop Saturday afternoon beginning at 1:00 PM from Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, TN.

 

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Rod Mullins

Rod Mullins

Rod Mullins covers NASCAR for AFP, and co-hosts the mid-week “Street Knowledge” focusing on NASCAR with AFP editor Chris Graham. A graduate of UVA-Wise, Rod began his career in journalism as a reporter for The Cumberland Times, later became the program director/news director/on-air morning show host for WNVA in Norton, Va., and in the early 1990s served as the sports information director at UVA-Wise and was the radio “Voice of the Highland Cavaliers” for football and basketball for seven seasons. In 1995, Rod transitioned to public education, where he has worked as a high school English, literature, and creative writing teacher and now serves as a school program coordinator in addition to serving as a mentor for the robotics team.

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