Bristol Pit Road Perils: How Drivers Tackle One of NASCAR’s Trickiest Challenges

Pit road in the Bristol Motor Speedway is one of NASCAR’s toughest because it presents unique challenges for teams and drivers. For instance, it is one of the few tracks with two pit roads. One is on the frontstretch and the other is on the backstretch. Ahead of this Sunday’s Round of 16 race at the track, a particular Cup Series stalwart spoke about how he overcomes such tricks.

In a press conference, Richard Childress Racing driver and two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch was asked how he manages to get through the multi-speed zones on the pit road.

He replied, “Yeah, Bristol’s really tough with pit road speeds. You’re up and down on your speeds and managing your lights and things like that as you go through the turns and on the straights.

“We’ve kind of found over the years the hot sections that read a little bit faster than you think you’re going. You try to pick those to eliminate those and knock them out.”

He also acknowledged that he has some difficulties with the dual pit roads at the track. He likes getting sorted with the one on the backstretch since he can enter it off Turn 2. Whether he has to run the full pit road under yellow or he has to exit under green, it makes things far simpler.

Busch continued to point out that the four corner stalls on the pit road are the most advantageous ones. He noted, “Whether it’s spot number one, I think it’s 15, 16, and then 43. Those are the ones that you want. Everything in between, there are no openings there.”

The other issues with the pit road at Bristol

The pit stalls at Bristol are tighter and narrower than in most other venues. This makes getting in and out harder with the Next Gen car. Cars are often forced to back up a bit to get out of the stall, and this increases the chance of contact. With nearly 40 cars on the track, pit road congestion is always a risk.

Moreover, the backstretch pit road entry is easy to miss in heavy traffic. And the exit off Turn 4 puts a driver directly on incoming traffic, making it a dangerous position to be in. Because the track is so short, a driver can easily go multiple laps down if he or she pits under the green flag.

At the end of the day, many more such quirks are what make Bristol what it is. This track requires the utmost dedication and practice to overcome.