The lineup for the Saturday night race will be determined by fan voting. Beckman currently leads the way with 28 percent of all votes cast going his way. Allen Johnson, who hails from nearby Greeneville, Tenn., is on the outside pole with 13 percent of the votes.
The rest of the starting lineup looks like this at the moment: Doug Herbert is third (12 percent), followed by Gary Scelzi (7 percent), Ron Capps (5.2 percent), Tony Schumacher (5.1 percent), Doug Kalitta (5 percent), Jeg Coughlin (4.5 percent), Antron Brown (4.3 percent) and Greg Anderson (4.2 percent).
Starting 11th would be J.R. Todd (3.7 percent), followed by Cory McClenathan (3.5 percent), Justin Humphreys (2.5 percent), Jason Line (2.2 percent), Kurt Johnson (1.8 percent) and Morgan Lucas (1.6 percent).
Fans still have plenty of time to have their say and vote for their favorite driver at www.bristoldragway.com. Voting will end Thursday, May 15.
The NHRA Circle Track Challenge takes place Saturday evening, after a big day of action at Bristol Dragway, home of the May 16-18 O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. The NHRA Circle Track Challenge is part of a full program of racing at BMS, which also includes the Thompson Metal 150 UARA late model race, as well as several other feature events.
The NHRA drivers will compete in street stock cars - basic late model passenger cars with roll cages. They will drive the first segment of the race, then turn their rides over to their street stock partner, the owner of the car, who then will finish the race. An NHRA winner will be crowned after the first segment and the starting positions for street stock drivers for the final segment will be determined by the finishing order of their NHRA "teammate." A second segment winner and an overall winner also will be crowned.
A 30-lap Pro Challenge event kicks off the evening at 7:05, followed by the NHRA Circle Track Challenge at 7:30, and the 25-lap Charger race. The UARA stars will take to the track for the Thompson Metal 150, followed by an appliance race, which features stock cars racing with major appliances strapped to their cars.
The War Wizard, a monster truck, will be on hand to crush school buses at the conclusion of racing and a fireworks show will take place directly afterward. Gates will open at 6 p.m.
General admission tickets are $15 with children 12 and under admitted free with a ticketed adult. Anyone attending the O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals on Saturday can show their ticket stub at the BMS gate and receive $5 off the ticket price.
Pit passes may be purchased for $35. No one under the age of 15 will be admitted to the pits. Anyone 18 and under must have a parent sign a waiver for admittance to the pit area.