For the first time in over 50 years, the NASCAR Cup Series will feature a race on a dirt track with the upcoming 2021 Food City Dirt event down at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. It’s going to get wild and dirty out there on Sunday. Who’s your pick to win it?
Dirt or not, Larson should be viewed as a favorite for the upcoming Food City Dirt race this weekend. Larson is doing an admirable job of making up for lost time in the NASCAR Cup Series. So far this season, Larson has three top 5s and five top 10s in six races, including a win earlier this month at the Pennzoil 400 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Larson came close to winning the 2018 edition of the Food City Dirt in which he led the most laps but ended up losing to Kyle Busch
Also considered a favorite to win this weekend is Christopher Bell, who’s already got a win this season. Bell secured a sure spot in the playoffs by winning the O’Reilly Auto Parts 253 At Daytona back in February. He’s also finished ninth or better in two of his last three starts. Given his experience in racing on dirt tracks, this could be the race where Bell captures his second win of the season.
Dillon is having a strong year. In fact, his average finish of 14.0 in races so far this year is the best of his career. Dillon kicked off the year with a third-place finish at the 2021 Daytona 500 and is coming off a sixth-place finish in Atlanta. Dillon recently competed at the Bristol 604 (dirt) and won the 20-lap race. Also, he’s won the first-ever Camping World Truck series at Eldora eight years ago.
Wallace hasn’t won anything yet this season, but he’s made progress of late, with back-to-back 16th place finishes in Phoenix and Atlanta. In a two-race stretch from 2019 to 2020, Wallace finished 14th and 10th at Bristol Motor Speedway (albeit not on dirt).
It’s okay to admit that you have never heard Chris Windom before, and the first reaction upon hearing his name was “Who?!” After all, Windom has not raced in a NASCAR Cup Series event before. He’s only getting a shot this weekend because of his experience racing on dirt. He’s got a pretty good resume in dirt racing. He’s a former USAC Midget champion. He’s also the seventh driver to score a Triple Crown win in the USAC.
Speaking of USAC Triple Crown winners, Yeley is another one in the exclusive group. The 44-year-old Yeley has quite extensive experience racing in the NASCAR Cup Series, with 325 starts across 15 years. He has two top 10s in the highest level of stock car racing
