Asterisk Mark Report – Bristol (2022)
Bubba Wallace – Bubba Wallace was sporty last fall at Bristol and looked like a top five contender but power steering problems while running in 4th on lap 176 dropped him many laps down and led to his asterisk mark 29th. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Wallace ranked 7th.
Martin Truex Jr. – Martin Truex Jr. looked respectable last summer at Bristol but he finished an asterisk mark 36th after getting sidelined due to “power steering” issues on lap 198. In the race, Truex finished 10th in Stage #1 and was running in 13th on lap 194 just prior to his evening being over. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Truex ranked 13th.
Brad Keselowski – Last fall at Bristol, Brad Keselowski was one of the best but finished an asterisk mark 13th. In the race, Keselowski won Stage #1, led 109 laps but then in the final Stage on lap 412 while leading, Keselowski had a flat tire and made an unexpected pit stop.
Kyle Busch – Last year, Busch looked extremely competitive, but his race ended early due to an engine failure early in the final Stage which led to his 34th. In the race, Busch started 21st, finished 3rd in Stage #1, 5th in Stage #2 and had the 8th best Green Flag Speed.
Joey Logano – Joey Logano was a top five contender last summer at Bristol but multiple problems derailed his evening and led to his 27th. On lap 398 while running in 6th, Logano had a flat tire and made an unexpected pit stop. Later, Logano had more problems further dooming his evening.
Tyler Reddick – Last fall at Bristol, Tyler Reddick was a top ten contender, but he crashed and finished 25th. Prior to his accident, Reddick finished 8th in Stage #1 and had the 11th best Total Speed Ranking over segment #1.
Alex Bowman – Last fall, the #48 was fast but Bowman crashed. In the race, Bowman finished 6th in Stage #1, 6th in Stage #2 but was then collected in the lap 277 “Big One” which marked the end of his race. In a post DNF interview, Bowman said his car was capable of running in the top five but he lost power steering.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has really been down on his luck at Bristol in recent races. Last year, Stenhouse had a short race and finished 33rd. In the race, Stenhouse showed low double-digit potential at times, was running in 13th on lap 277 but then later that lap Suarez got loose and ran into him which marked the end of his race and caused a “Big One.”
Ty Gibbs – Last fall, Ty Gibbs had power steering problems like many in the field and it led to his 35th. At the time of his issue, Gibbs was running in the high 20’s.
Daniel Suarez – Last summer, Daniel Suarez showed low double-digits potential but caused a “Big One” which led to him finishing 6 laps down in 19th. On lap 277 when he got loose and into Stenhouse which caused the crash, he was running in 14th.
Austin Dillon – Last year, Dillon didn’t show a lot of muscle and then finished 31st after getting collected in the lap 277 “Big One.” “Performance Wise”, I really can’t say he was any better than a 20’s performer.
Ryan Blaney – Ryan Blaney had all sorts of issues last summer which led to his asterisk mark 30th. I’ll note on lap 90 when he had his first “random” flat tire he was running in 5th.
Aric Almirola – Aric Almirola, last year’s polesitter didn’t have a good race and finished 28th. In the race, Almirola led 36 laps but then faded back. On lap 90 when he faded back to 10th he spun which brought out the caution. Then later, Almirola was in 19th on lap 412 but then shortly after that his race was over, due to a “Power Steering” issue.
