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, March 24, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour and 15 minutes. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Steve Park set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.310 and an average speed of 125.330 mph (201.699 km/h).[3]
The second practice session was held on Friday, March 24, at 1:15 PM EST. The session would last for 30 minutes. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Steve Park set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.243 and an average speed of 125.881 mph (202.586 km/h).[3]
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, March 25, after the 2000 Cheez-It 250. The session would last for one hour. Wood Brothers Racing's Elliott Sadler set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.786 and an average speed of 121.551 mph (195.617 km/h).[4]
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, March 24, 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, March 25, 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 were awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh was 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 was awarded a provisional.[5]
Steve Park, driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., managed to win the pole, setting a time of 15.184 and an average speed of 126.370 miles per hour (203.373 km/h) in the first round.[6]
