BRISTOL, Tenn. (Oct. 30, 2018) – Many of the best short track racers in the world will once again try to tame the hallowed high banks of Bristol Motor Speedway when the Short Track U.S. Nationals returns in 2019 with a brand new date and reconfigured racing program.
The excitement will run Friday, May 31 and Saturday, June 1, and will showcase four exciting classes, headlined by the powerful Super Late Models. Along with Super Late Model, the event will feature race action in Pro Late Model, Street Stock and Compacts. The restructured two-day format will provide competitors with additional practice opportunities throughout the day on Friday and will be followed by a full day on Saturday that will include practice, qualifying and racing.
“This new date and format will allow teams and spectators the opportunity to enjoy plenty of quality racing over the weekend,” said Jerry Caldwell, executive vice president and general manager of Bristol Motor Speedway. “We’ve seen some of stock car racing’s new generation emerge at this event by having great success and we’re anxious to discover more of the sport’s future stars.”
Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Raphael Lessard, from Canada, won the Super Late Model race this past May and he shared Victory Lane with local driver Josh Reeves, who powered his Wade Lopez Wealth Management sponsored machine to the 100-lap Pro Late Model victory, a race that included NASCAR veterans Mike Skinner and Jack Smith. Current NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series star Bubba Wallace took the Super Late Model title at the inaugural Short Track U.S. Nationals in 2017.
Four sanctioning bodies will be affiliated with the event in 2019, including Champions Racing Association (CRA), CARS Tour, Southern Super Series and Vore’s Compact Series.
Additional details regarding the event will be announced in the coming months.
About Bristol Motor Speedway
Forged amid the scenic mountains of Northeast Tennessee near the Virginia state line, Bristol Motor Speedway is The Last Great Colosseum, a versatile multi-use venue that hosts major auto races, football games, concerts and many other captivating events. The facility features a 0.533-mile concrete oval race track with 28-degree corner banking and 650-feet straightaways that offers racing in several NASCAR touring series, highlighted by two major Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series weekends. While at the track, fans are offered a unique viewing experience courtesy of Colossus, the world’s largest outdoor center-hung four-sided video screen with a 540,000-watt audio system. The adjacent quarter-mile dragstrip, Bristol Dragway, offers more than 70 events annually, including the marquee NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Three football games have kicked-off inside the oval, most notably the 2016 Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol, where border rivals the University of Tennessee and Virginia Tech met before an NCAA-record crowd of 156,990. In existence since 1961, Bristol Motor Speedway was purchased in 1996 by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., a publicly traded company that is a leading marketer and promoter of motorsports entertainment in the United States. For more information, please visit www.bristolmotorspeedway.com.
