FOX Sports makes $50K NASCAR error at Bristol

The FOX Sports broadcast crew had a moment to forget at Bristol Motor Speedway, making a $50,000 mistake following Friday night's NASCAR Truck Series race.

The Truck Series event, titled the Tennessee Army National Guard 250, was not just any other race, with points up for grabs as well as cash.

The race was the final of three events in NASCAR's Triple Truck Challenge, which is a three-race stretch in which the race-winning driver is awarded a bonus of $50k or more, depending on how many they have won in the challenge.

Reigning Cup Series champion Corey Heim scooped himself $50K by winning at Darlington last month, for example, and then boosted this to $150K when he was victorious at Rockingham last weekend due to it being his second Triple Truck Challenge win.

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FOX's $50K error

Heim was unfortunately unable to add another win to take his earnings to $500K to at Bristol on Friday night, with Cup Series star Christopher Bell taking the victory under the lights.

However, given that Bell is a Cup driver, he was not eligible to receive the $50K prize, and FOX assumed that this meant second-placed driver Chandler Smith had taken the cash.

When speaking to Smith post-race, a big FOX graphic on screen read 'Finished 2nd, wins $50K Triple Truck bonus', while FOX Sports reporter Josh Sims informed Smith that he had gotten the $50K, too.

"What? I didn't know that, no way," Smith replied on air. "We get the $50K? Oh yeah, that's good right there."

Unfortunately, though, Smith did not in fact win the $50K. NASCAR confirmed post-race that the prize was only given to race winners, and that even though he was the highest finishing Truck Series driver, Smith would not receive the bonus on this occasion.

In fairness to FOX, it would have been totally logical for Smith to get the money, but unfortunately, it was not the case.

It is the second week in a row that Smith got bad news post-race, having been disqualified from last weekend's event at Rockingham after finishing fourth.