Why these five drivers could break through at Bristol with first NASCAR win of season
Jimmie Johnson took himself out of the when’s-he-going-to-finally-win conversation when he found victory lane April 9 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Coming off the first idle week of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule, most everyone else remains in that unwanted company heading to Bristol Motor Speedway.
Fortunes can be undone in moments on the high-banked short track, but a select group of drivers – several of whom have made the playoffs - have hope to finally bank the first victory of the season, and in two cases, in their careers.
USA TODAY Sports' Brant James selects five drivers who could break through Sunday (2 p.m. ET, Fox):
Denny Hamlin: His middling campaign has been in keeping with Joe Gibbs Racing’s sluggish follow-up to a dominating 2016 effort in which it helped Toyota win a first manufacturer’s title in Cup. He is 15th in points with an average finish of 20th and is coming off a 25th-place result at Texas. Hamlin can be encouraged entering the Bristol bullring, though. He won there in 2012 and has finished third twice since then. Full disclosure: all of those came in the fall race, held at night.
MORE NASCAR COVERAGE:
Moonlighting in professional racing comes with some risk
Jimmie Johnson overcomes dehydration, miscues to find more Texas magic
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: The Roush Fenway Racing driver has four top-10s in eight Cup starts at the .533-mile track, finishing second for the second time last fall. He also was second in the spring race three years ago. After a long slog through the Cup hinterland, both he and the organization have shown glimmers of hope on smaller tracks this season, with Stenhouse finishing fourth at Phoenix and 10th at Martinsville. A first Cup win could be close.
Jamie McMurray: The Ganassi Racing teammate of current points leader Kyle Larson is wielding cars being produced by arguably Chevrolet’s most consistent team right now. With 11 top-10s in 28 starts - including an eighth-place finish last fall – McMurray has been a steady producer at Bristol in recent seasons.
PHOTOS: CLINT BOWYER THROUGH THE YEARS
Clint Bowyer: He’s been generally eager for another chance at any track in his first season with Stewart-Haas Racing, but Bowyer could be angling for his first victory since 2012. He has six top-5s in 22 starts at Bristol and was eighth last spring in his stop-gap season with HScott Motorsports. That finish marked his second-best result of the year. Now ninth in points and a weekly competitor, Bowyer might be ready for that bottled-up celebration.
Austin Dillon: The Richard Childress Racing driver has made just six starts at Bristol, but has two top-10s – and finishes of 11th and 13th – and was fourth last fall. A fifth-place result at Martinsville began his spring southern short track campaign. It could continue with a first Cup victory.
Follow James on Twitter @brantjames
PHOTOS: 2017 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES RACE WINNERS
