Asterisk Mark Report – Bristol Dirt
Alex Bowman – Last year at Bristol Dirt, Bowman looked great, until he lost 4th gear. In the race, Bowman started 7th and climbed up to 2nd on lap 56, but then during a restart he lost 4th gear and things went downhill after that which led to his asterisk mark 22nd.
Kyle Larson – Kyle Larson had a phenomenal car last year at Bristol Dirt that might’ve just been the best, but his race was far from incident free which led to him finishing an asterisk mark 29th. In the race, Larson started in the rear of the field, but that wasn’t a problem. He sliced and diced his way up thru the running order and got up to 5th on lap 54, but then Christopher Bell who was in 2nd spun, and Larson nailed him. That severely wounded the #5, and then later to add insult to injury, he got more damage from contact with Suarez when he was getting lapped.
Christopher Bell – Christopher Bell had a great car last year at Bristol Dirt, but he finished an asterisk mark 34th. In the race, Bell started in 15th, but raced his way up to 2nd on lap 54, but then he spun and was nailed by Larson which marked the end of his race.
Kyle Busch – Kyle Busch looked strong at Bristol Dirt last year, but his race went downhill quickly. In the race, Busch started in 4th, took the lead on lap 2, led the next 7 laps and then he ducked down pit road because his car was overheating from dirt on his grill. That dropped Busch a lap down, but he battled back. On lap 150, Busch was up to 14th at the time of the competition caution, but then during the next restart he was collected in the carnage and got quite a bit of damage. When the checkered flag waved, Busch finished 17th.
Martin Truex Jr. – Martin Truex Jr. looked great last year at Bristol Dirt, but his race went south right at the end, and he finished an asterisk mark 19th. In the race, Truex won Stage #1, finished 4th in Stage #2, led a race high 126 laps (49% of the laps), had a 2.3 average running position and had the 2nd best driver rating. During the final restart for overtime while he was in 3rd, Truex had a flat tire.
Chase Briscoe – Last year on the dirt, Chase Briscoe likely had a solid car, but he walked away with a misleading 20th. In the race, Briscoe started 25th, was up to 17th on lap 45 but then on lap 48 he got into the wall really hard after contact with Harvick as they were avoiding a spinning Ryan Newman. Later, Briscoe spun into the inside wall.
Ross Chastain – Ross Chastain looked respectable last year, but his race was cut short. In the event he started 17th and raced his way up to 11th, but then on lap 54 he was collected in the carnage of the Larson/Bell wreck which led to his asterisk mark 35th.
Aric Almirola – Last year at Bristol Dirt, Aric Almirola never ran well, and he finished a clunker 36th. On lap 40 while he was back in the mid 20’s he hit a “Durtle” and spun in front of a bunch of cars which marked his demise.
