Aric Almirola, Playoff Contender, Black Flagged For Oil Smoke at Bristol

Aric Almriola — Aric Almirola has smoke trailing from his car. Screengrab from NBCSN race broadcast.

Aric Almirola had been having a great race in Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol. However, on lap 176, Almirola was black flagged as his No. 10 car sprung an oil leak and smoke billowed out the back.

MAJOR #NASCARPlayoffs IMPLICATIONS!

Aric Almirola gets black flagged and hits pit road with smoke pouring out from his car. pic.twitter.com/gTgjZw5Eqe

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 19, 2021

Before having to make two pit stops to address the issue, Almirola was running well and was above the Playoff cutoff line.

After the penalty, Almirola sits 26th in the running order and is currently on the outside of the Playoff cut line.

He has a fast car and can still bounce back, but it’ll be a tough road back to the front.

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Toby Christie

Toby is the Founder of TobyChristie.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. Toby is also the co-host of The Final Lap Weekly Podcast. Additionally, he is an award-winning writer, and has followed the sport as a fan since 1993.