UNOH 250
Location: Bristol, Tenn.
Course: Bristol Motor Speedway
Format: 0.53-mile oval
Laps: 250
UNOH 250 Preview
The Chase for the 2026 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series championship kicks off this week at Bristol Motor Speedway, giving the 10 championship contenders seven races to build enough points to claim this season's title. The series returns to action for the first time since August, when Layne Riggs won at New Hampshire, and heads back to Bristol for the first time since April, when Christopher Bell drove to Victory Lane. Riggs enters the playoff opener on top with a 25-point advantage, while Kaden Honeycutt sits next in line, setting up an intense points battle before the green flag even waves. For fantasy players, Christian Eckes has to be part of the Bristol conversation. He starts fourth in the standings and was one of the strongest trucks here earlier this season, leading 132 of 250 laps before finishing fifth. That makes him a driver to watch again this week at one of NASCAR's most exciting short tracks. Every contender wants to start the championship hunt with a win, but Bristol rarely makes anything easy. Track position, patience, and survival could matter just as much as speed as the Chase gets underway.
Key Stats at Bristol Motor Speedway
- Number of races: 31
- Winners from pole: 7
- Winners from top-5 starters: 18
- Winners from top-10 starters: 25
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 0
- Fastest race: 91.919 mph
Previous 10 Bristol Winners
2026 spring - Christopher Bell
2025 fall - Layne Riggs
2025 spring - Chandler Smith
2024 fall - Layne Riggs
2024 spring - Christian Eckes
2023 - Corey Heim
2022 - Ty Majeski
2021 - Chandler Smith
2020 - Sam Mayer
2019 - Brett Moffitt
The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series heads to Bristol Motor Speedway to kick off the seven-race run to determine this season's champion. Bristol's famous half-mile concrete oval is known for its steep banking, high speeds, and heavy traffic, which makes track position one of the biggest keys to success on Friday night. No driver has ever started deeper than 18th and won this race, but Christopher Bell flirted with that by winning from 15th earlier this season. However, that is the exception and not the rule, which makes qualifying and clean air especially important, but Bristol still demands more than just a good starting spot. Drivers have to manage tires, brakes, and suspension over a long night where the concrete surface and steep corners can wear equipment down quickly. Pit strategy could also play a major role, especially with Bristol's long pit road and the way cautions can flip the running order in a hurry. Add in late restarts and slower traffic, and this becomes the kind of race where speed matters, but execution may decide who comes out on top.
RotoWire NASCAR DFS Truck Series Tools
DraftKings Value Picks for the UNOH 250
Based on Standard $50k Salary Cap
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
Layne Riggs - $13,500
Chandler Smith - $11,500
Kaden Honeycutt - $10,500
Christian Eckes - $10,000
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Ty Majeski - $9,500
Gio Ruggiero - $9,000
William Sawalich - $8,800
Ben Rhodes - $8,500
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Grant Enfinger - $8,300
Tyler Ankrum - $8,100
Daniel Hemric - $7,500
Landen Lewis - $7,400
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Jake Garcia - $7,300
Stewart Friesen - $7,200
Corey Lajoie - $6,700
Justin Haley - $6,600
Optimal DraftKings Lineup for the UNOH 250
Christian Eckes - $10,000
Ty Majeski - $9,500
Ben Rhodes - $8,500
Daniel Hemric - $7,500
Jake Garcia - $7,300
Stewart Friesen - $7,200
After leading 132 laps in the spring race, fantasy players would be wise not to ignore Christian Eckes. That lap total from April is the third time he has led more than 100 laps in a race at Bristol, too. His average start at the track is 4.8 and his average finish is 5.3. With four straight top-five finishes and no result lower than 12th, Eckes is one of the best drivers in the series at this track. Regardless of whether he gets the win this week or not, his past statistics strongly suggest that he will be a factor at the front of the field again.
Ty Majeski begins his quest to claim the 2026 series title from sixth position in the standings. He won at Bristol in 2022 and boasts an impressive starting average at the track of 7.7 from seven starts. He started sixth at the track earlier this season before finishing 23rd after getting caught up in a crash in traffic. He has three top-10 finishes at the track and is in store for even more at this track if he can make it to the finish without problems. He was an early contender at this track in the spring and will be looking to make good on that promise here in the fall.
Ben Rhodes narrowly missed out on a top-10 finish at Bristol earlier this season, finishing 11th after leading 13 laps. He was one of the few drivers to lead that race and also won the second stage. Rhodes has eight top-10 finishes in 14 Bristol starts, with a best finish of second that came in this race last season. He opens his championship effort from ninth in the standings and should view this weekend's Bristol stop as a chance to score stage points and possibly grab a race win in the process.
Another championship contender worth considering this week is Daniel Hemric. The McAnally-Hilgemann Racing driver has an enviable record at the track with three top-five finishes from five series tries. In all, he hasn't finished lower than 13th at the track. He also enters this weekend's race with top-10 finishes in the last two races. Hemric is still looking for his first win of the season, but he has been a regular figure amongst the top-10 finishers, and fantasy players are right to expect a similar performance from him this week.
Though not in The Chase, Jake Garcia still has plenty to race for. He has not won this season, but he enters the weekend with three top-15s and one top-10 over the last five races. At Bristol, he has two top-10 finishes, both of which came in his last three visits. Garcia is another driver whose qualifying success at Bristol should translate into solid race finishes. He has started fifth or better in each of his last three visits, which lines up with both of his top-10s at the track. Executing a full race through to the finish should pay off with another good Bristol result for the ThorSport Racing driver.
Stewart Friesen heads into the Bristol race weekend with a head full of steam. He has finished in the top 10 in four of the last five races and is the top driver in points outside of the championship positions. He also has five top-10 finishes in 12 Bristol starts. Though Friesen may not be part of the championship conversation, he is still likely to keep adding strong finishes to his resume, and Bristol is a track where he can continue that march forward.
Best Bets for the UNOH 250
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook as of 5:00 PM ET Wednesday
Race Winner - Christian Eckes +600
Top-Three Finish - Kaden Honeycutt +150
Top-Five Finish - Gio Ruggiero +250
Among the contenders to win Friday night's race at Bristol, Christian Eckes is offering the best payout. He has plenty of competition in the form of Layne Riggs and Chandler Smith, but Eckes also boasts an accomplished record at the track. He led 132 lapsin the spring and has the best career average finish at Bristol among the previously mentioned contenders. His last four Bristol races have all ended with top-five finishes, including the win from pole in the spring of 2024. WIth more lucrative odds on offer, Eckes makes a compelling choice.
Kaden Honeycutt is also expected to be a contender in Friday night's race. He has been making a name for himself this season and enters this week's race with four of his last five races being top-10 finishes. Three of those were finishes of third or better. To get positive odds for a driver with that type of finishing record is rare and worth consideration. At Bristol, Honeycutt finished 31st due to a crash, but he started the race on pole. He clearly has the speed to race among the top five all night this week, which makes him a good wager to take for a top-three finish.
In the spring, Gio Ruggiero started 10th and climbed to third at Bristol. That was his best finish from three series starts at the track, and his average finish is not bad either at 8.7. Ruggiero is also fifth in the standings to start The Chase with two top-10 finishes from the last five races coming into the weekend. Bristol was a track that helped him get his season rolling earlier this season, and it is a place he could use to get a championship charge started, too. More lucrative odds compared with other top drivers in the series this week make him an option to take for a top-five finish this week.
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