Martinsville Speedway Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor After completing the Western swing, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads back east this weekend and straight to the first short track race of the season, with Sunday’s running of the STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway. A mainstay on the schedule since 1949, the historic half-mile, which is also the smallest on the circuit, will test both man and machine over 500 grueling laps. The track has basically one groove, meaning the only way to pass will be the move we all know andRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor Days after NASCAR decided against penalizing Austin Dillon for his run-in with Cole Custer at Phoenix, penalties were still a hot topic when the drivers arrived at Auto Club Speedway and Danica Patrick, who has felt the wrath of NASCAR in the past, weighed in on the penalties, or lack thereof, from the sanctioning body. In 2015, Patrick was fined $25,000 and penalized 25 points for wrecking David Gilliland under caution at Martinsville and just last year earned a behavioral penalty from NASCAR for leavingRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 35 Years in Cup: 11 Career Wins: One Biggest Accomplishment: First career Cup Series win (Watkins Glen – 2014) For A.J. Allmendinger, 2016 may not have provided a race win or a Chase berth, but the California native was still able to rebound from a down year in 2015 to make some noise in hisRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer After the events that took place at Martinsville Speedway last year, Joey Logano was looking for redemption. Logano had been leading in his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Fusion when Matt Kenseth exacted revenge and wiped Logano out of the race, and ultimately, out of the Chase for the Championship. This time, Logano entered Martinsville without having to look over his shoulder after avoiding drama. With Martinsville being the first race in the Round of Eight, Logano was tied with the other seven Chasers. In theRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor One year ago, Jeff Gordon scored a storybook win at Martinsville Speedway to advance to the championship round at Homestead-Miami Speedway in what was his final full-time season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and what everyone thought was his final Martinsville start. With Dale Earnhardt, Jr. being sidelined for the second half of the 2016 season while recovering from a concussion, Gordon made a return to the cockpit in Earnhardt’s No. 88 car and came into Sunday at Martinsville for one last ride atRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor Since winning his sixth NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in 2013, the world has wondered when or if Jimmie Johnson would capture a record-tying seventh championship. On Sunday, Johnson moved one step closer to making that seventh title a reality. Prior to the start of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports as a whole were struggling, with his chances of being able to advance through the Chase to the championship round at Homestead being very slim. However, since the startRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor It has been a dominant season for Toyota Racing, and Joe Gibbs Racing in particular. But after the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville, one of the team’s four drivers — Carl Edwards — finds himself in an uphill battle if he wants to advance to the Sprint Cup Series championship race in Homestead four weeks from now. Edwards started the day from the seventh position, but his day got off to a rocky start as he was busted for speeding on pit road during hisRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer Martinsville Speedway in recent years has welcomed many drivers looking to make their debut in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Saturday’s Texas Roadhouse 200 presented by Alpha Energy Solutions will be no different as at least six drivers plan to attempt their debut. One of those drivers is 16-year-old Harrison Burton. Harrison Burton is the son of former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver and NBC Sports analyst Jeff Burton. Harrison Burton will be behind the wheel of the No. 18 DEX Imaging Toyota TundraRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor When it comes to racing at Martinsville, the flat half-mile bullring in southern Virginia as about as demanding as it comes on both drivers and equipment. Add in scorching hot temperatures and things get even more difficult for all parties involved. In this week’s “Throwback Thursday Theater,” we’ll look back at the 1998 NAPA Autocare 500 at Martinsville and a gutsy performance by one of the toughest drivers on the circuit, Ricky Rudd. The late October race, which normally saw seasonal fall temperatures greet theRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer The last time the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series visited Martinsville Speedway, Kyle Busch took home the victory in, beating John Hunter Nemechek by just under half a second. The last time a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular won at Martinsville was Matt Crafton in the 2015 fall race. Johnny Sauter, Matt Crafton, and Timothy Peters are the only former winners in the field this weekend. Chase Elliott and Cole Whitt are the only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers in Saturday’s race. Truck SeriesRead More