After racing on the dirt at Bristol and taking Easter weekend off, the NASCAR Cup Series is going “short trackin'” Saturday night at Martinsville Speedway.

The Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 is the eighth race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. There have been seven different winners in the first seven races. When you look at the stats from the past for the active drivers it odds are more in favor of another new 2021 winner over a repeat winner for the first time this season.

There are five drivers among the Top 12 is driver points that have already won. However, that leaves seven who have yet to win this season.

Among the nine active drivers that have at least a single win at Martinsville in the NASCAR Cup Series, only two have captured a win to date this year.

That means the numbers tilt the odds toward an eighth winner for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. Of course this has also been the season that has gone against the odds more than any season in recent memory.

Here is the data for the track and this weekend’s race.

Martinsville Speedway Data
Track Size: 0.526-mile
Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 12 degrees
Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 12 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 0 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 0 degrees
Frontstretch Length:  800 feet
Backstretch Length:  800 feet

Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 Data
Season Race #: 8 of 36 (04-10-21)
Race Length: 500 laps / 263 miles
Stage 1 & 2 Length: 130 laps (each)
Final Stage Length: 240 laps

Here are the top over-all performers at Martinsville Speedway among active drivers.

Top 12 Driver Ratings at Martinsville
Denny Hamlin……………………… 105.0
Kyle Busch…………………………. 102.7
Brad Keselowski……………………. 99.8
Ryan Blaney…………………………. 98.5
Joey Logano………………………… 97.3
Chase Elliott…………………………. 95.3
Kevin Harvick……………………….. 93.8
Martin Truex Jr……………………… 84.4
Ryan Newman………………………. 83.8
Kurt Busch…………………………… 82.0
William Byron……………………….. 74.9
Kyle Larson………………………….. 73.6
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2020 races (32 total) among active drivers at Martinsville Speedway.

Here are the active drivers that have at least one win at Martinsville Speedway in NASCAR’s top division.

Denny Hamlin – 5 Wins
Martin Truex Jr. – 2 Wins (June 2020 race)
Kurt Busch – 2 Wins
Kyle Busch – 2 Wins
Brad Keselowski – 2 Wins
Chase Elliott – 1 Win (November 2020 race)
Joey Logano – 1 Win
Kevin Harvick – 1 Win
Ryan Newman – 1 Win

We will find out if it is an eighth winner in 2021 or the season’s first repeat winner Saturday night, April 10th starting at 6:30 p.m. central time (7:30 p.m. eastern time) in the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

By: Buck Stevens