POINTS STANDINGS
1st #5 Ryder (1 WIN)
2nd #45 Everest (1 WIN)
3rd #11 Marshall +49
4th #24 Arrby +41
5th #6 Shade +33
6th #12 Ella +25
7th #8 Rocky +24
8th #1 Sweetie +18
9th #17 Rory +13
10th #20 Skye +13
11th #22 Rubble +12
12th #4 Zuma +7
—
13th #19 Liberty -7
14th #23 Claw -19
15th #47 Wheeler -22
16th #34 Hubcap -40
Location: Bristol Motor Speedway, Tennessee
Track type: Short track
We're in the third and final of the Round of 16. The Bristol Night Race on the pavement. At the end of the race, we say goodbye to four drivers as their championship hopes will end Saturday Night.
SUNDAY NIGHT (AFTER KANSAS)
Everest was celebrating in her hauler with Cinder after her move to win the race, but something didn't feel right.
"Hey Cinder. Where's Marshall?" Everest inquired.
"He's sitting in the corner watching footage." Cinder pointed out.
Marshall was looking at a TV screen watching the final restart of the race. He saw he didn't get the jump which cost him the win.
"Everything okay?" Cinder thought to her brother.
"Kinda…" Marshall sadly thought back.
"Hey Marshall." Everest said as she tapped the Dalmatian's shoulder with her paw.
"GAH! Oh, hey Everest. You startled me." Marshall said.
"Sorry about that Marshall. I know you wanted to win that race. I almost didn't want to go for it, but I had to give it my all on that last restart." Everest told her boyfriend.
It's okay. At least the win went to another driver deserving." Marshall said as he smiled at the husky.
"Thanks, but you could have won both races had it not been for bad luck. You need to win Bristol on Saturday if you want fans to see that you're still a championship contender." Everest said.
"She's right Marshall. Promise us you'll do whatever it takes to win next week." Cinder said.
Marshall looked down for a moment and breathed in, then looked up with a confident look.
"I promise." Marshall said with dedication.
FRIDAY (QUALIFYING)
Jeff: Ryder is on his qualifying lap- Oh he gets loose in turn 3, and is gonna be a terrible lap. He'll start in last tomorrow night.
"Sorry guys. I messed up." Ryder apologized.
Dale Jr.: Marshall is the last driver to cross the line! To try and beat his teammate!
Jeff: BY SEVEN ONE-THOUSANDTHS OF A SECOND, HE MISSES OUT ON POLE!
Rick: I can't believe this! Skye has three poles in a row! First driver to ever sweep the Round of 16 with all three poles.
#20 Radio: Skye… that's another pole. Haha.
"You're kidding. Now if only this car was capable of winning races." Skye said.
#20 Radio: Go do it tomorrow.
SATURDAY NIGHT (RACE DAY)
STARTING LINEUP
#1. #20 2. #11 3. #24 4. #34 5. #19 6. #6 7. #9 8. #54
9. #23 10. #7 11. #12 12. #45 13. #48 14. #14 15. #8 16. #42
17. #41 18. #3 19. #31 20. #17 21. #4 22. #16 23. #1 24. #99
25. #47 26. #10 27. #51 28. #22 29. #2 30. #38 31. #43 32. #21
33. #77 34. #478 35. #15 36. #5
STAGES: 125/125/250
PACE LAPS
NASCAR Officials: BRING THE CARS BACK DOWN PIT LANE. WE HAVE PRECIPITATION IN THE AREA.
#20 Radio: They're gonna bring y'all back down for rain.
"Oh come on! The track is fine!" Skye protested.
About 10 minutes of waiting, and the cars would be allowed to get back on the track.
#22 Radio: Rubble all we gotta do is finish and we're in.
#4 Radio: Zuma, all you need is a top 15, and you'll be safe.
#23 Radio: We're going for points Claw. Every point matters tonight.
#34 Radio: Winning is the only answer Hubcap. Go do it.
#47 Radio: Just try your best tonight Wheeler.
#19 Radio: Liberty, don't worry about points right now. You know what you have to do.
Rick: The field is in Skye's paws! She gets into the gas! We're racing at Bristol!
GREEN FLAG
Dale Jr.: Hubcap got a great restart and clears Marshall for second! These laps go by really fast as Skye leads the first lap!
LAP 2/500 Leader: Skye
Jeff: Marshall gets to the inside of Hubcap, and takes second place back, but still a great restart for the French Bulldog.
#11 Radio: Clear of the #34. Decide if you want to race the #20.
"I think it's way too early to race hard. We should hold position until later on." Marshall suggested.
#20 Radio: Skye, the #11 is not gonna race you right now. He said he wants to keep this 1-2 for now.
"Alright, sounds good." Skye replied.
LAP 69/500 Leader: Skye
Rick: Marshall dives to the inside of Wildcat who is a lap down already. Oh he hit the wall! And Tuck has nowhere to go! The #2 got off the ground for a second, and the caution is out for the first time today.
CAUTION
#2 Radio: Left front is damaged Tuck.
"Yeah, sorry guys. I had nowhere to go." The golden retriever replied.
#16 Radio: How's the right front? "It feels bent for sure." The feline told his team.
LAP 71/500 Leader: Skye
Rick: And here comes most of the leaders to pit road. Alex, both 23XI cars, Sweetie, Rubble, and Al all stay out.
Jeff: It's a mixed strategy call, and Hubcap and Shade take two tires while everyone else takes four tires.
Dale Jr.: And we got penalties. The #11 for speeding and the #5 for running over equipment. Two very fast cars going to the rear for this restart.
#11 Radio: Speeding for us.
"Damnit." Marshall told himself.
#5 Radio: Running over equipment.
"Guys, it's a long race, but come on." Ryder said.
LAP 77/500 Leader: Alex
GREEN FLAG
Jeff: Claw fighting on the inside, but Alex is clear off of turn 2, and he'll pull away from the #23.
LAP 105/500 Leader: Alex
Dale Jr.: Skye has 4 fresh tires as she goes to the inside of Claw and takes second from him. Claw stayed out to try and gain stage points, and so far, he's done a good job.
#20 Radio: Good job Skye. Go get the #7.
"Already on it." The cockapoo replied.
LAP 106/500 Leader: Alex
CAUTION
#7 Radio: Caution's out for rain. Cool your tires down. #20 just got by the #23.
"Heard loud and clear." Alex replied.
Only a few cars would come to pit road, but no one at the front would come in. Fortunately, it was a short drizzle, so track dying was not needed.
LAP 114/500 Leader: Alex
GREEN FLAG
Rick: 12 laps to go in stage 1, and Alex gets the jump on Skye and clears her into turn 1! Can he hold her off?
#20 Radio: Take your time Skye. You'll get him.
LAP 120/500 Leader: Alex
Jeff: Alex misses the corner in turn 1! Skye gets alongside him and they're side by side off of turn 2!
Dale Jr.: Skye will easily clear Alex as she goes into turn 3! "Woo! That's what I'm talking about!" Skye exclaimed.
LAP 125/500 Leader: Skye
#20 Radio: No pressure.
Rick: So far she's been the dominant car of the night and Skye has won stage 1! And Claw hangs on to third which will be eight stage points. That's huge for him!
LAP 126/500 Leader: Skye
CAUTION
#20 Radio: That's the stage win.
"Really good car guys. Let's keep pushing!" Skye replied.
LAP 130/500 Leader: Skye
#7 Radio: Good effort Alex. Pit for tires this time by.
#23 Radio: Nice work Claw. You got points, now come get tires.
The drivers who stayed out came to pit road while the others who took tires would stay out this time.
LAP 135/500 Leader: Skye
Everyone was ready to go back racing, but it was raining a bit heavier than what it was at the start.
"Yeah, we cannot go racing in these conditions." Ryder told his team.
NASCAR Officials: BRING ALL THE CARS DOWN PIT ROAD!
LAP 138/500 Leader: Skye
RED FLAG
The car covers went on the cars because of how heavy the rain was. Thankfully, it was only a small cell, so it would pass by quickly.
(15 MINUTES LATER)
Once the track was dried and ready to go, race officials allowed the cars to rejoin the track.
#20 Radio: #5 will be on your inside. He has a quick car.
"Yeah, I have to keep him behind." The cockapoo said.
LAP 141/500 Leader: Skye
GREEN FLAG
Rick: No more rain to ruin this race! We're back under the green flag!
Dale Jr.: Skye with a phenomenal restart! She cleared Ryder before they even got to turn 1!
Jeff: And Ryder is losing spots! Coral got by for second, Arrby for third, and now Hubcap for fourth!
LAP 142/500 Leader: Skye
Dale Jr.: Hubcap has been fast all race. He's in a must win situation, but there's a good chance he could get it done tonight.
#34 Radio: Great restart, you are P4.
"I DON'T CARE! I WANT TO WIN!" Hubcap shouted back.
LAP 155/500 Leader: Skye
Rick: Ryder fell back a bit, but now on the outside, he passes Hubcap for fourth!
#5 Radio: You are definitely the fastest car on the track right now.
"Good to know." Ryder replied.
LAP 161/500 Leader: Skye
Jeff: He's doing it again! He's going for it again on the outside! Ryder up to third now! That car is incredible in the top lane!
#20 Radio: Ryder just got by the #24. He's still 2 seconds behind.
"Keep me updated on him." The cockapoo told her team.
LAP 171/500 Leader: Skye
Rick: Lap traffic has been a struggle for the cockapoos as Coral is under pressure from Ryder! To the inside, and Ryder is now so close to the lead!
#20 Radio: Come on Skye. You have to get around them.
"I'm trying, but they're almost as fast as I am!" Skye replied.
LAP 179/500 Leader: Skye
Dale Jr.: Sweetie running in 30th keeps holding up Skye and Ryder is on the outside! Jeff: Ryder has the momentum and takes the lead away from Skye! But, can he get around the lap traffic?
#5 Radio: Nice job. Try to pull away now.
#20 Radio: Try to hang with him. He's gotta pass the lap traffic now.
LAP 199/500 Leader: Ryder
Jeff: Ryder having trouble getting around the #14! Here comes Skye on the outside! A full head of steam and she takes the lead back!
#5 Radio: It's a game of chess Ryder. Just follow her.
#20 Radio: Excellent work. 51 laps left in the stage.
LAP 229/500 Leader: Skye
Skye had over a three second lead over Ryder. Meanwhile, Claw was running 20th, with Liberty running 23rd. Liberty, at the moment, is in by 4 points meaning Claw would have to finish seven spots ahead of her to advance.
#23 Radio: So currently, we are racing the #19 for the final spot.
"And we have the tiebreaker correct?" The Doberman inquired.
#23 Radio: That is correct.
LAP 249/500 Leader: Skye
Ryder would end up losing second place to Coral who was able to chase him down.
"What the hell happened to this car?" Ryder asked, annoyed.
#5 Radio: We'll take a look at it on pit road.
LAP 250/500 Leader: Skye
#20 Radio: You already know there's no pressure.
Rick: What a dominating performance by Skye! She won stage one, and now she has won stage two!
LAP 251/500 Leader: Skye
CAUTION
#20 Radio: You have swept the stages Skye.
"Let's make it a clean sweep guys." Skye replied.
Because of how many points they collected over the races, Marshall and Arrby would clinch a spot into the next round.
LAP 255/500 Leader: Skye
Everyone would come to pit road with Skye, Coral, Ryder, and Marshall as the top 4.
Rick: Skye's crew has another slow stop! Coral wins the race off pit road, then it's Marshall, Ryder and Skye who came in as the leader, falls to fourth.
"We're really gonna lose another race like this?" Skye grumbled.
LAP 261/500 Leader: Coral
GREEN FLAG
Rick: The final stage at Bristol is underway!
Dale Jr.: Coral got a great restart on the outside and clears Marshall into turn 1.
#54 Radio: #11 one back, #5 getting pressured by the #17.
LAP 262/500 Leader: Coral
#7 Radio: You're there. Three wide- oh shit!
Rick: The #7 is around on the backstretch! Hits the outside wall! Coming back up the track!
Dale Jr.: OH CHARGER, COPYCAT, LEO, AND- IT'S RUBBLE! THE DEFENDING CHAMPION HAS MAJOR LEFT REAR DAMAGE!
CAUTION
"Is that the #22?!" Claw exclaimed.
#23 Radio: Yes, he has damage. Let's see how bad it is.
"How bad is Rubble's car?" Liberty inquired.
#19 Radio: Looks bad from here.
#22 Radio: Take it to the garage. Nothing we can do.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Rubble screamed at the top of his lungs.
#31 Radio: We're out Leo.
"Dang it." The feline said.
#51 Radio: Major nose damage. Turn the car off Charger.
"Sorry guys. Is Rubble okay?" The bulldog asked?
#51 Radio: His car is done. #77 Radio: Take it to the garage.
"Sorry guys. I had nowhere to go." Copycat said.
Rubble drove his broken yellow #22 Ford Mustang to the garage, parked the car, jumped out of it, and walked to his hauler to watch the rest of the race. Only fate would decide if he would advance or not.
#23 Radio: Claw, the #22 is out of the race. You're gonna be ahead of him on points.
"Could we actually advance?!" Claw asked with enthusiasm.
#23 Radio: #4 is running bad right now. If he stays back there, you will advance.
#4 Radio: So, situation is that we need to gain five spots on the #23 when we go green. We're a lap down, but anything can happen.
LAP 272/500 Leader: Coral
GREEN FLAG
Rick: We go back racing, and Coral once again with a great restart on Marshall secures the lead.
#54 Radio: Drive away Coral.
LAP 359/500 Leader: Coral
Rick: Coral has been leading for over 80 laps this run, but Marshall is on the outside in turn 1!
Dale Jr.: Side by side off of turn 2, but Marshall will have a lot of momentum in turn 3! Marshall takes the lead away from Coral!
#11 Radio: #5 is closing in on the #54. Drive away if you can.
LAP 361/500 Leader: Marshall
Jeff: Marshall, now trying to put his teammate a lap down as he goes to the inside in turn 3.
#19 Radio: #11 inside, watch the exit here.
"I'm trying- OH NO!" Liberty exclaimed as she swerved to the right.
Rick: Liberty got loose and saves the car, and the caution comes out!
CAUTION "I have a flat tire! I gotta pit." Liberty told her team.
#19 Radio: Stay out, stay out! Caution is out!
"What?! How is that a caution?" Marshall asked.
#11 Radio: Probably 'cause NASCAR got bored.
LAP 365/500 Leader: Marshall
Zuma was still 5 points out from Claw as he ran 14th while Zuma ran 29th, 2 laps down.
#4 Radio: Zuma we're gonna need some help if we're gonna advance.
"I need to finish 10 spots within the #23, is that correct?" Zuma asked.
#4 Radio: That is correct. Pit this lap.
Dale Jr.: Everyone is changing tires, but nothing changes up in the front as Marshall beats Ryder off of pit road and keeps the lead of the race.
#11 Radio: We did our job, now it's time for you to do yours.
LAP 370/500 Leader: Marshall
GREEN FLAG
Rick: Back under the green flag we go and Marshall with a great restart but Ryder hangs on to the inside in turn 1!
Jeff: Marshall gets clear, but Ryder is still putting the pressure on him!
#5 Radio: Try and force him up the track.
LAP 372/500 Leader: Marshall
Rick: Off of turn 2, Ryder is on his inside again! He might get clear next lap!
#11 Radio: Pinch him down in the corner Marshall!
LAP 373/500 Leader: Marshall
Dale Jr.: Ryder is still there- Oh a wiggle from his car as he got loose! And Marshall pulls away by three car lengths!
#11 Radio: #5 messed up, build a gap on him.
LAP 450/500 Leader: Marshall
Ryder was trying to close the gap to Marshall, but it was 1.2 seconds, and with Everest right ahead of the leader.
"What do you want me to do?" Everest asked her team.
#45 Radio: Let the #11 by. He's going for the win.
Rick: And we see the #45 lets Marshall go by her. She knows he's fighting for the win, and she doesn't want to interfere.
"Thank you Everest." Marshall said as he lapped the husky.
LAP 467/500 Leader: Marshall
Marshall had now lapped Claw who was still running 14th, and the Doberman was doing everything he could to make the next round.
#5 Radio: Get this #23 out of the way!
"I'm trying, but he doesn't want to move!" Ryder exclaimed.
#23 Radio: We should probably let the #5 by.
"NO! I'm fighting for my season here!" Claw protested.
LAP 488/500 Leader: Marshall
Hubcap was running 6th, but entered this race in a must win situation so it didn't matter. Meanwhile Wheeler was trying to make a move on Ben to get into the top 10.
Jeff: The #47 dives to the inside of the #42 and takes 10th away! It's gonna sting a bit because Wheeler had good speed, but it's not gonna be enough.
#47 Radio: 12 laps to go next time by. Good pass.
"Thanks guys." The pointer pup said.
LAP 499/500 Leader: Marshall Cinder was all smiles watching on as Marshall crossed the line with 2 laps to go.
#11 Radio: You got this in the bag. White flag next time by.
Rick: The Dalmatian will see the white flag! One to go presented by Credit One Bank!
LAP 500/500 Leader: Marshall
WHITE FLAG
Rick: He could've won Darlington and should've won at Kansas, but he had both races taken away from him due to bad luck! No bad luck to take this win from him! Out of turn 4, Marshall will win the Bristol Night Race!
#11 Radio: THAT'S THE CHECKERED FLAG!
"YEAAAHHHHH! BRISTOL BABY!" Marshall exclaimed.
"Well done Marshall! You fought hard for that win!" Cinder said on the radio.
#19 Radio: We're in by five points Liberty.
"Just reset for next week. We get our points back, and we'll be a threat." Liberty said.
#23 Radio: P13. You've done it! By four points!
"Guys… I can't thank you enough. Thanks for getting me in this position." Claw said with a sigh of relief.
Rubble was watching the rest of the race in his hauler, and saw that he missed the next round by four points, meaning he was no longer champion. "Rubble, I'm sorry…" Charger said
"I don't want to talk about it." Rubble said as he walked away with tears coming down his face.
#4 Radio: Out by four. We let you down.
"I don't understand. All we had to do was run decent, and you guys couldn't give me a good car." Zuma scolded his team.
#47 Radio: P10 Wheeler. We are out by seven points.
"Ugh. Thanks guys for everything. We had a good season. Hopefully we'll be better next season." Wheeler said with a little enthusiasm.
#34 Radio: 6th place, we're out by 16 points.
"Thanks for the good car today. Just wish we didn't wreck at Darlington, thanks to that stupid Dalmatian!" Hubcap growled.
Marshall did his burnouts and was absolutely excited about getting out of his car, Everest went over to congratulate him, Cinder hugged him, and in that moment, everything was perfect for Marshall.
Reporter: Marshall finally gets his win in the Round of 16, his third win of the season. You dominated that final stage, and how does it feel to finally get back to victory lane after what happened at Kansas?
"Yeah, it feels great, but if everything went our way, we could have swept all three races in this round, but it definitely feels nice to get one back. My team did an amazing job all night, Everest and Cinder helped me get my confidence back, and we proved tonight that we are still championship contenders! THANK YOU BRISTOL FANS!" Marshall exclaimed as he let out a howl.
RESULTS
1st #11 Marshall
2nd #5 Ryder
3rd #20 Skye
4th #17 Rory
5th #54 Coral
6th #34 Hubcap
7th #9 Chase
8th #6 Shade
9th #24 Arrby
10th #47 Wheeler
11th #42 Ben Allen (-1)
12th #41 Gasket (-1)
13th #48 Mayor Humdinger (-1)
14th #23 Claw (-1)
15th #45 Everest (-1)
16th #38 Al (-1)
17th #3 Harold Humdinger (-1)
18th #10 Duke of Flappington (-1)
19th #19 Liberty (-2)
20th #8 Rocky (-2)
21st #99 Tracker (-2)
22nd #12 Ella (-2)
23rd #1 Sweetie (-3)
24th #43 Rex (-3)
25th #7 Alex (-3)
26th #15 Mix (-5)
27th #14 The Cheetah (-5)
28th #21 Dwayne (-5)
29th #4 Zuma (-5)
30th #16 Wildcat (-9)
31st #78 Ladybird (-10)
32nd #2 Tuck (-12)
33rd #77 Copycat (DNF)
34th #22 Rubble (DNF)
35th #31 Leo (DNF)
36th #51 Charger (DNF)
FINAL POINTS STANDINGS (RO16)
1st #5 Ryder (1 WIN)
2nd #11 Marshall (1 WIN)
3rd #45 Everest (1 WIN)
4th #24 Arrby +64
5th #20 Skye +52
6th #6 Shade +51
7th #17 Rory +35
8th #8 Rocky +26
9th #12 Ella +25
10th #1 Sweetie +22
11th #19 Liberty +5
12th #23 Claw +4
—ELIMINATED—
13th #22 Rubble -4
14th #4 Zuma -4
15th #47 Wheeler -7
16th #34 Hubcap -16