Corey Day Set for Highly Anticipated NASCAR Debut at Bristol

Venue: Bristol Motor Speedway

Event: UNOH 200

Date: Thursday, September 19

Location: Bristol Motor Speedway

Track Description: 0.533-mile oval

Distance: 200 laps, 106.6 miles (8:00 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network)

“Pay Day” Makes His Debut … Corey Day is making his highly anticipated NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) debut on Thursday night at Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS). The driver of the No. 81 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado is set to make his first of four NCTS appearances this season with MHR. Day will also compete at Kansas Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, and Martinsville Speedway later this fall. His first experience at “The Last Great Colosseum” will include double duty as he is entered in the ARCA Menards Series event on Thursday evening.

Rising Short Track Stock … The 18-year-old from Clovis, Calif. has proven to be one of the brightest young stars in winged sprint car competition and has garnered national attention for his accomplishments on dirt. Day is a multi-time Gold Cup winner at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif. and is currently fifth in the High Limit Racing sprint car point standings with seven wins this season. Day has already been prolific in his teen years by capturing wins in the World of Outlaws, USAC National Midgets, and a Chili Bowl preliminary feature. Day has made two pavement starts this season, the first resulted in a late model win at Hickory Motor Speedway on April 27th and qualified fifth for his ARCA debut at Salem Speedway in July.

MHR Season to Date … Thursday’s 200-lap showdown in “Thunder Valley” marks the first time in MHR’s history that the organization will field five NCTS entries. Day joins Connor Hall and Vicente Salas as the third driver to make their NCTS debut with MHR this season. In March, MHR placed three trucks in the top-five at BMS with Christian Eckes taking the win, Zane Smith finishing third, and Tyler Ankrum in fifth. Day looks to make an impact in his debut with MHR in the No. 81 team’s maiden outing.

Tune In … Coverage from BMS begins Thursday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 2 with practice and qualifying. Day’s debut goes green on Thursday evening at 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. Stay connected with the No. 81 HendrickCars.com team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmrnascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook. 

Corey Day Quote:

On making his NCTS debut:

“I’m excited to make my start in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. I haven’t made many non-dirt racing starts but I’m ready to begin learning more about this type of racing. I know I will face some challenges, but I feel confident in my ability to learn and I know that I have great support behind me with HendrickCars.com and McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. I just hope to represent them well.”