The Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCARshort track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Despite its short length, Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.
The first practice session was held on Friday, April 9, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for two hours and 25 minutes.[3]Bobby Hamilton, driving for Morgan–McClure Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.406 and an average speed of 124.549 mph (200.442 km/h).[4]
The second practice session was held on Friday, April 9, at 1:15 PM EST. The session would last for 45 minutes.[3]Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.339 and an average speed of 125.092 mph (201.316 km/h).[5]
The third practice session was held on Saturday, April 10, at 9:30 AM EST. The session would last for one hour. Joe Nemechek, driving for Team SABCO, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.564 and an average speed of 123.284 mph (198.406 km/h).[3]
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, April 10, after the preliminary 1999 Moore's Snacks 250. The session would last for one hour.[3]Bobby Labonte, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.956 and an average speed of 120.255 mph (193.532 km/h).[6]
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, April 9, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, April 10, at 11:30 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[7]
Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 15.333 and an average speed of 194.957 miles per hour (313.753 km/h).[8]
