Bristol Ballpark: Speedway and players ready for big game Saturday
Bristol Speedway transformed for baseball game
The Bristol Speedway in Tennessee will host a historic game between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds. But, before the game, a lot of work had to be done.
BRISTOL, Tenn. - For the first time ever, Major League Baseball is heading to the racetrack.
What we know:
On Saturday, the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds will face off at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee, marking the first regular-season MLB game played inside a NASCAR venue. With more than 85,000 tickets sold, the game is expected to break attendance records for a regular-season matchup.
RELATED: Speedway Classic set to shatter MLB attendance record at Bristol
Crews spent more than a month transforming the iconic speedway into a functioning ballpark.
To make room for the field, pit walls and buildings in the infield were demolished, 18,000 tons of gravel – 450 cement trucks full – were used to level the surface, and the asphalt was replaced with turf.
Bristol Motor Speedway transforms into Speedway Classic
The Speedway Classic will break Major League Baseball’s single-game, regular-season attendance record.
Additionally, hundreds of new lights were added to ensure visibility from every seat in the massive stadium. The project was led by the same team behind MLB's "Field of Dreams" and other unique ballpark installations.
The historic setting, nicknamed "The Last Great Colosseum," will host fans from all 50 states and nine countries.
PREVIOUS: Bristol Motor Speedway gears up for record-breaking MLB Speedway Classic
Hall of Famers Chipper Jones and Johnny Bench—lifelong Braves and Reds legends—will take part in the ceremonial first pitch. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET on FOX.
Buck Lanford versus the MLB Speedway Classic cooler
Fox Sports sent the Good Day team a special cooler to celebrate the history-making game between the Braves and Reds at Bristol Speedway, but Buck Lanford and the cooler didn't seem to see eye to eye.
In addition to the game, fans will enjoy musical performances by Tim McGraw and Pitbull, a Ferris wheel, food trucks, and other fun activities.
What they're saying:
Players say the one-of-a-kind setting has generated major excitement. "You play in the same 30 ballparks all year, and while that’s still fun, this is something different," one Braves player said. "It’s going to be electric." Fans and organizers alike hope the unique "ballpark in a box" concept hits another home run.
Dig deeper:
This isn't the first time that the speedway has hosted a sporting event other than racing.
In 2016, the facility hosted "The Battle of Bristol" featuring the football teams from Tennessee and Virginia Tech.
Check out the diamond at Bristol
The Atlanta Braves are taking an unconventional road trip this weekend, heading to one of NASCAR’s most storied venues for a game that blends the excitement of baseball with the roar of auto racing.
The MLB had started to look around for unique places to hold baseball games and it noticed.
Although this is expected to be the largest crowd ever for a regular season game, it will not break the record for largest attendance at a baseball game.
That happened in 2008 when 115,300 people attended a game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, according to Guinness World Records.