This week the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is going Short Trackin’ in the STP 500 at the Martinsville Speedway.
Many consider it “getting back to the roots of NASCAR” when the series goes to the short tracks. After all, these are the size tracks that drivers raced on before the organization of the national racing series.
There are many differences in the drivers battling on the short track instead of mile long or larger tracks. The most noticeable differences are the lower speeds and massively less room to pass.
I’m not saying that these drivers won’t be going fast around the track, they just won’t even come close to 200 mph as they do on most of the tracks on the circuit. The average speed during the race will be around 80 mph with top speeds surpassing 100 mph for brief seconds. That is still “rocketing” when it is done on the 0.526-mile track at Martinsville. The crews will have to have the cars set for maximum acceleration and equip them with a GREAT set of brakes.
The handling will need to be near perfect for the drivers as well. The banking in the turns at Martinsville is just 12 degrees. That means if the car is having trouble turning the driver will have to slow way down or risk crashing. Either option will make it highly unlikely that a trip to Victory Lane will happen at the end of the 500 lap race.
Both crews and drivers will need to be perfect on pit road. Any time lost by a mistake made or stumbling during pit stops will cost valuable time. That lost time will be lost positions on the track. Those positions are very difficult to get back on the track.
The limited room to pass also provides some challenges and pitfalls for the drivers to navigate. For a driver to pass a slower car it has to happen at the right place on the track without any mistakes. If both of these criteria are not met, again the result will not be a trip to Victory Lane. The cars will beat and bang against each other from start to finish of the race. Because of the limited room and short distance around the track, a mistake by one driver can create a wad of wrecked cars pretty quickly.
What drivers have been the best at navigating the challenges and pitfalls of NASCAR short track racing? Let’s take a look…
Top 10 Driver Ratings at Martinsville:
- Jimmie Johnson – 117.7
- Denny Hamlin – 108.2
- Kyle Busch – 99.9
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. – 98.7
- Kevin Harvick – 94.6
- Brad Keselowski – 90.8
- Joey Logano – 90.0
- Matt Kenseth – 88.9
- Clint Bowyer – 88.8
- Ryan Newman – 86.6
NOTE: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2016 races (24 total) among active drivers at Martinsville.
Part of the reason that Jimmie Johnson has the highest driver rating among active drivers is that he also has nearly twice as many wins at Martinsville than any other active driver. Jimmie has claimed a total of nine clocks during his NASCAR Cup Series career with his latest win coming in the 2016 October race at the track.
Denny Hamlin is next on the list of career wins with five trips to Victory Lane at Martinsville Speedway.
Kurt Busch is the only other active driver to have more than one trophy clock at his house with a pair of them keeping time at home.
The winner of this race last year was Kurt’s brother Kyle Busch who claimed his first Martinsville clock in the spring of 2016. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman all own a single Martinsville clock each.
It will take 500 laps (263 miles) of literally battling door-to-door and bumper-to-bumper to find out what driver will claim the next Martinsville Grandfather Clock in Victory Lane. Between green flag to the checkered flag there will be a lot of fenders bent and likely even more tempers bent. NASCAR cup series racing at Martinsville in rarely an uneventful event.
We will see who gets to claim the clock starting at 1:00 PM central time (2:00 PM eastern time) Sunday, April 2nd for the STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
By: Buck Stevens
