FanHouse Warmup: Food City 500

Where: Bristol Motor Speedway
Time: Sunday 2pm/EDT
TV/Radio: FOX Sports, PRN Radio
Forecast: Sunny, 68
Distance: 500 laps (266.5 miles)
Pole Winner: Mark Martin
2008 Winner: Jeff Burton


If you need a better idea of how racing is being impacted by the economy look no further than Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol. For 13 straight years, the 165,000-seat facility in quiet, rolling hills of east Tennessee has been mecca for race fans -- and sold out each of its two Sprint Cup events without batting an eye.

2009, though, brought a swift change of pace to the days of ticket waiting lists after corporate ticket buyers dropped what reports say were 50 percent of the annual purchases at the track. As a result, the track was left in a mode it hadn't had to do in a long time -- get out and sell Sprint Cup tickets for Bristol Motor Speedway.

Saturday, track president Jeff Byrd told the Bristol Herald-Courier that those efforts had paid off, and that the track indeed had earned a sell out, meaning the 27th-straight event at the "World's Fastest Half-Mile" should be a packed house.

What remains to be seen, though, is if all of those fans will actually show up.

Bristol's respect isn't something Jimmie Johnson has had a lot of despite winning the the last three Sprint Cup season titles. The .533-mile track with banked corners reaching as a high as 30 degrees hasn't exactly been kind to Johnson over the years, and its one of six tracks on the current schedule he's never won at.

Last year, Johnson had finishes of 18th and 33rd, though his best results came in 2003 and 2004 when he picked up finishes of 5th and 3rd. Sunday, he starts 3rd.

Sterling Marlin took a legendary Saturday win after winning the first ever "Scotts Saturday Night Special". The race featured a number of former NASCAR racers in a special 35-lap race with late-model modifieds around Bristol's half-mile. Rusty Wallace finished 2nd, with other competitors including Jimmy Spencer, Terry Labonte, Larry Pearson, Harry Gant and more.

Interestingly, Marlin qualified for Sunday's Sprint Cup race in 43rd position.