Kyle Larson nearly pulled off the mythical Bristol Trifecta in 2025, which has only been accomplished by Kyle Busch in NASCAR history (2010 and 2017), by winning both the Food City 500 Cup Series race and the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race, now with a new sponsor that’s called the Suburban Propane 300. Larson just missed turning the triple when he finished second in last year’s Craftsman Truck race.
Larson is back to try to add another O’Reilly Series victory to his resume and will be driving the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet entry when the green flag drops Saturday night at The Last Great Colosseum. Another Cup regular will join him as a part of the Suburban Propane 300 starting-lineup under the lights at the famed Tennessee bullring when Cup Series rookie Connor Zilisch takes over the controls of the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevy.
Larson had a ball last year weaving his way to the victory on the ultra-challenging track, his second in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series at Bristol (also 2018 Food City 300).
"I just love this place, especially in (the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series)," Larson said after winning this race one year ago. "You can move around, and traffic is just a lot of fun. Just felt like when I could get to traffic, I could get to picking people off. But Justin [Allgaier] did a good job kind of hanging with me there that last run. The pressure was on a little bit. We just had a good enough car to get into the lead, stay in the lead, and be good enough in traffic."
Both Larson and Zilisch will have their hands full with a strong cast of characters who compete each week in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series, including defending series champ and three-time season winner Justin Allgaier, who pilots the No. 7 Chevy for JR Motorsports. Jesse Love, who drives the No. 2 Chevy for Richard Childress Racing will be in the mix of contenders as will Haas Factory Team’s Sheldon Creed, who recently scored his first O’Reilly Series victory. Creed has posted a couple of recent second place finishes at Bristol and will be hungry to cash in for another victory Saturday night.
Creed enjoys racing at Bristol and says the atmosphere there is really second to none.
“I look forward just Bristol in general," Creed said. "It’s our one and only stadium race track where you feel like you’re in a football or baseball stadium. That’s really cool, and the vibes are always great. The racing is always good. I feel like the last two years they’ve applied resin instead of PJ one, and that really helps the racing.”
Creed says finally getting that hard-earned victory in the series has been a major boost for the team and he's looking forward to seeing how many more they can win together this season.
“Five years of trying, to finally get that win and then just have some confidence back in myself, the team, having confidence that we can win together,” Creed said. “I feel like it just kind of built some momentum for us, and it’s helped that we've been strong most places.”
A whole host of drivers are on the watch list, including Austin Hill, Corey Day, Carson Kvapil, Taylor Gray, Sammy Smith, Brandon Jones, Rajah Caruth, who will be driving the No. 32 Chevy for Jordan Anderson Racing in this event, and Harrison Burton, who is driving the No. 26 for Sam Hunt Racing.
Category rookie Brent Crews, who won the ARCA race at Bristol this past September, and his Joe Gibbs teammate William Sawalich, who earned his breakthrough win last weekend at Rockingham and has a pair of Bristol ARCA wins himself, are definitely at the front of the radar screen for possible winners from the younger generation on Saturday night.
Sawalich entered his rookie year last year with a lot of high expectations but failed to get a win. Now with that first victory past him he feels like more could be on the way.
“Obviously last year did not go to plan,” Sawalich said. “We started to pick it up in the second half of the season and my guys stood behind me and that helped keep my head up after having some back luck and making some mistakes. But I’ve learned from my mistakes and I honestly believe they helped to get where I am now. Even the start for this year hasn’t gone great, but I have a lot of confidence going to Bristol and I think our points situation is good. This team is showing what we can do now.”
The race weekend kicks off with the Craftsman Trucks on the Bristol high banks on the evening of April 10 for the Tennessee Army National Guard 250 Truck Race (7:30 p.m., FS1, PRN Radio, SiriusXM Radio); On Saturday, April 11, it will be action-packed with the Suburban Propane 300 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race (7:30 p.m., The CW, PRN Radio, Sirius XM Radio) and Bush’s Beans Qualifying for both the Cup Series and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series; The tradition-rich Food City 500 NASCAR Cup Series race will thrill fans on Sunday afternoon, April 12 (3 p.m., FS1, PRN Radio, Sirius XM Radio) and bring the fun weekend to a triumphant finish.
In addition to cheering on their favorite drivers on the track, fans at Bristol Motor Speedway will want to take advantage of so many activities to make a complete weekend of family fun. There will be great video entertainment provided by Colossus TV, the world's largest center-hung video screen, plenty of music throughout the event including post-race concerts Friday and Saturday night and a pre-race concert Sunday before driver introductions, premium VIP experiences, tailgating, on-site camping, a pre-race track walk on the legendary oval, and other entertainment at the Food City Fan Zone Stage headlined by Trackside Live with Kenny Wallace and John Roberts, great food and beverages in the concession stands throughout the property, and so much more.
Fans can purchase tickets to the Food City 500 weekend of races or any events at Bristol Motor Speedway, please visit the track’s website or call the BMS Ticket Sales Center at (866) 415-4158. You can also purchase tickets at any neighborhood Food City store while supplies lasts.
