A look at the weekly NASCAR Cup Series stock watch after the race at Bristol, including Chase Briscoe and Ryan Blaney’s pit crew.
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The Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway delivered plenty of action throughout the field. Some drivers were able to capitalize on the unique short-track conditions while others struggled to keep up. Ty Gibbs, a recent fixture in our Stock Watch column, ultimately stole the show by capturing his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory.
Naturally, Gibbs’ stock can’t get any higher after his breakthrough win. However, there were plenty of other storylines and developments throughout the field worth filing away as the season moves forward.
Let’s take a closer look at which drivers and teams are trending up and down after Bristol.
NASCAR Cup Series Stock Watch After Bristol
📈Stock Up
Chase Briscoe
We’ve been tough on Chase Briscoe in this column early in the season, so it’s only fair to give the No. 19 team some credit after a strong showing at Bristol.
Briscoe qualified third and spent most of the race inside the top 10. By the end of the day, he had piled up 45 points between stage results and a fifth-place finish — the fourth-most of any driver in the field.
That performance has him just one point outside the top 16 in the NASCAR Cup Series standings. While simply making the field won’t be enough under the current format, Briscoe has clearly stabilized after a rough start and now has momentum on his side.
RFK Racing
RFK Racing may not be regularly contending for wins just yet, but the consistency across multiple track types has been impressive. Ryan Preece led the group at Bristol with an eighth-place finish, while Chris Buescher (13th) and Brad Keselowski (14th) weren’t far behind.
Through eight races, the three RFK Fords have combined for eight top-10 finishes — a significant step forward for an organization that struggled to produce consistent results in recent years.
All three drivers continue to hold position inside the top 16 in points, joining only Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports as teams with three cars currently in position to make The Chase.
23XI Racing at Short Tracks
The biggest question surrounding Tyler Reddick’s NASCAR Cup Series Championship outlook has been 23XI Racing’s short-track performance. After a frustrating showing at Martinsville, Bristol provided a much-needed step forward.
Reddick delivered one of his strongest short-track runs to date, qualifying on the front row and rallying from an early speeding penalty to finish fourth. That kind of recovery speaks volumes about both driver and team.
The rest of the organization showed encouraging signs as well. Bubba Wallace ran inside the top 10 for much of the race before finishing 11th, while Riley Herbst posted a career-best qualifying effort.
There are still areas to clean up — including lingering brake issues — but this weekend marked clear progress for 23XI on short tracks.
📉Stock Down
Ryan Blaney’s Pit Crew
Ryan Blaney continues to produce strong results in spite of his pit crew, and Bristol was the latest example.
After qualifying on the pole and showing one of the best cars throughout the race, Blaney was forced to settle for a runner-up finish. While the final pit stop was relatively clean, earlier issues cost him valuable track position and likely kept him from controlling more of the race.
Through eight races, the No. 12 crew has lost Blaney a staggering 88 positions on pit road — by far the most of any team in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Blaney has shown race-winning speed multiple times this season, but unless the pit crew improves, it will continue to limit his ability to convert those opportunities into victories.
Ross Chastain & Trackhouse Racing
Ross Chastain showed promise early at Bristol, qualifying sixth as the top Chevrolet in the field. That momentum didn’t carry into the race, however, as he faded to a 20th-place finish.
Outside of Atlanta, Chastain has yet to finish better than 16th this season, and the inability to maintain track position at Bristol raises further concerns.
More broadly, Trackhouse Racing continues to trend in the wrong direction. Shane van Gisbergen has been the team’s most consistent performer, but he also struggled mightily this weekend.
It’s still early, but it’s becoming increasingly realistic that none of the Trackhouse entries will be in position to make The Chase if this form continues.
William Byron
William Byron’s weekend at Bristol unraveled before the race even began. After a poor qualifying effort, the No. 24 team made unapproved adjustments to the steering system, forcing him to start at the rear of the field.
From there, things only got worse. Byron was unable to make meaningful progress, was lapped midway through Stage 1 and ultimately finished five laps down.
While a rebound is likely given the strength of Hendrick Motorsports, this result reinforces a concerning trend. Byron has just one finish better than 12th in his last five starts at Bristol, making this a performance worth noting for future NASCAR betting and fantasy considerations.
