MLB, NASCAR stars talk the legends of Bristol as racetrack transforms for historic ballgame

Winnipeg Free Press

3 days ago

NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. advises the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves to watch a couple of night races at Bristol Motor Speedway before the Speedway Classic. Once at the racetrack, he recommends a walk up the banked walls to truly appreciate the half-mile bullring.
MLB's Speedway Classic on Aug. 2 means either the Reds or Braves will win at Bristol before Stenhouse reaches victory lane at his favorite track. He still plans to watch as they play an MLB game on a ballpark built inside the Bristol infield.
'Hopefully, if they get one over the wall, kind of see where that ball ends up landing,' Stenhouse said of the track where going over the wall usually means injuries and ambulances. 'But, yeah, just a really cool venue and something that I'll be looking forward to watching.'
Two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip, now a Fox racing analyst, said search his 1990 crash where his car disintegrated after hitting a wall to learn how challenging Bristol can be.
He joined Stenhouse, former Braves centerfielder Andruw Jones, 2009 World Series champ Nick Swisher and three-time All-Star Reds first baseman and now MLB Network analyst Sean Casey in promoting the first MLB game in the state of Tennessee.
Waltrip said the banking of the track has to be seen to be believed and is a big part of its intensity.
'The banking is straight up,' Waltrip said. 'You can barely climb up it, and it's condensed down to a half-mile track. So you're just constantly in the corners and speeds upwards of 150 miles an hour. It's just crazy how precise and how technical you have to be to be successful there.'
Trying to hit a baseball might be a bit easier than stepping into a racecar at Bristol. At those speeds, Stenhouse said he forgot to breathe for 10 laps his first time there.
Bristol still has tickets available for an event that will feature a pregame concert with Tim McGraw and Pitbull. A fan zone outside the track will feature more music, a 110-foot Ferris wheel, a food truck row, pitching tunnels and batting cages and team mascots.
'It's going to be one of those special nights that goes down in history,' said Jerry Caldwell, president of Bristol Motor Speedway. 'People are going to want to be there and want to be a part of it or tune in on Fox and take in this event.'
Casey played in a March 2008 exhibition between the Red Sox and Dodgers at Los Angeles Coliseum that drew 115,300 for the largest crowd ever to see a baseball game. Casey said this crossover gives baseball fans a reason to check out Bristol and NASCAR fans the chance to see something different.
Players like Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz and Atlanta outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. will get an experience to remember.
'These guys that are going to be able to have that memory of playing at Bristol, it's going to be a one of a kind thing,' Casey said.
Stenhouse said he played some wiffle ball during the last stop in Bristol. NASCAR will be in Iowa with a Cup race Aug. 3, but he hopes to sneak over from his North Carolina home for a chance to hit some hard balls over the fence at Bristol — or pitch off the mound.
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'I hit a wiffle ball over the fence,' Stenhouse said. 'Yeah, it would be cool to get there and take the field in all at the same time.'
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AP Baseball Writer Ron Blum contributed to this report from New York.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing