Week 6 Preview: Martinsville

Martinsville Speedway

STP 500

By Richard Tix

Last week NASCAR made its annual stop at Auto Club Speedway and for the second time in two years Kyle Busch came away the winner after stealing the lead in the last couple laps. For the most part the race was exciting and had a great finish, but some fans were upset because of the Good Year Tire performance. Teams were having trouble keeping tires on the cars and it led some added drama but also a lot of extra frustration.

So now NASCAR's big question going into Martinsville, will the tire hold up? Auto Club is a beast of its own when it comes to tire wear. Was it the tires? Was it aggressive set ups? Was it the huge moguls messing around with the tire pressure? All of it is fair game. I think it is a mix between Good Year and teams pushing there equipment to the edge.

In my opinion, racing is pushing your equipment to its breaking point and finding that balance that gives your team the upper hand. In this case it is tires and tires are tricky. The drivers who were frustrated seemed to just be that way because it was unpredictable. In the broad sense it was, but it did look like tires would start going around the 20-25 lap mark. It is a tough call because I think some of it could have to do with set ups and some of it could have to do with lines drivers were taking (also, some of it on Good Year).

It will be interesting to see how or if anything happens at Martinsville with the tires (obviously its a short track and a different tire). One thing is for sure, NASCAR will have to address the issue at some point if it keeps happening.

So lets get onto the NASCAR's Good, Middle, and Bad drivers in the last few races at Martinsville. Here is a look at NASCAR Behind the Wall's Preview and Review for Martinsville last year (Note: only the first appearance at Martinsville)


The Good, Middle, and Bad
(This is just a review of each drivers recent past performance, generally about 5-10 past races)

The Good:

• Jimmie Johnson- 8 grandfather clock's in his career. Enough said. Last years winner in this race (first race).
• Jeff Gordon- Gordon has 8 as well, but he has done it in 42 races compared to JJ's 24. He is the last winner at Martinsville (second race). Will they split again this season? Or will one take the lead?
• Denny Hamlin- He is next in line with 4 career wins at Martinsville. Only 3 times in 16 tries has he finished outside the top 10 (12th, 33rd, and 37th). The big question with DH is, will he race this week?

The Middle:

• Clint Bowyer- I like using this spot on a driver who has run well here late but maybe doesn't have the full career stats here. Well in Clint's case, he just hasn't won yet. He has been good, but not great here yet. But he could make a splash this year (Same with Brad Keselowski).
• Extra Credit: Brad Keselowski

The Bad:

• Kurt Busch- Seems weird to see a "wheel-man" as Kurt on this list, but he hasn't faired too well here. In 27 races he only has 4 top 10's. One of those was a win, but his last top 10 was 17 races ago in 2005. 
• Greg Biffle- 22 races and only 5 top 10's, 0 wins, and 0 top 5's. However, 3 of those 5 have come in the last 3 races, so things maybe looking up for him here.
• Paul Menard- Menard has 13 starts at Martinsville and not once has he finished top 10. He just finds a way onto these lists.

Track Stats:

• 6 straight Chevy wins here at Martinsville
• Other then Denny Hamlin (Toyota) Chevy has won 15 straight races. Thats 15 of the past 19 races. If you add in Rusty Wallace's win in 2004 (Dodge) its 17 of the past 22.
• The race has been won from the Pole 4 times in the last 11 races.
• Most cautions was 21 in 2004 for 127 laps. 
• The farthest back a winner has started from was 36th (Kurt Busch) in 2002 (10/20/2002). This is Kurt's only win at Martinsville.

So who do you have winning the Grandfather Clock this year? Let me know who you got running well on Twiitter! Also, come back after the race for the newest addition of Pit Row (Power Rankings)