Turning laps at Bristol Motor Speedway is natural for Erik Jones.
The 22-year-old driver has seen great success at the .533-mile track in the beginning stages of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career — and a victory at Thunder Valley is very much within reach.
MORE: Full updated Bristol schedule
Especially at night.
In 2017, Jones gave race winner and now Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch all he could handle around the short track and led 260 laps, to Busch’s 156. However, the checkered flag went to his former boss and put a fire under Jones to make sure he’s the last one standing next time around.
“I’ve been excited to get back to this one since that day,” Jones shared with NASCAR.com. “It’s fun to finally be back here for this one. Get to go after it again. You know Bristol is a place I like a lot, we had a car that was capable of winning last year. We led a lot of laps and had a good shot at it. Excited to hopefully have another chance here to do it again. I’d love to get up there and contend … see if we can finally grab one. “
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A runner-up finish left a bittersweet taste in Jones’ mouth, but standing in his way on Saturday night is seven-time Bristol winner — and the driver who stole the win last season — Busch, who has already notched six wins already in 2018.
A member of this year’s Big 3, Busch is arguably the one to beat under the lights, especially with a third-place starting position. So how can Jones wheel his way to his second victory of the season from a 14th starting position? Simple: He just has to drive, and drive well.
“You have to be on your game,” he said. “Last year we were on it as much as we could be and it still wasn’t quite enough. … You really have to be on it and making the right calls all night. No mistakes. … We’re going to have to stay up front again and just be contending with them all night. Do a better job of moving around and keeping up with the track. That’s probably the thing we just missed out on last year.”