NASCAR viewer’s guide: Martinsville Speedway

NASCAR stays in the commonwealth of Virginia this week as all three national series head to Martinsville Speedway.

The half-mile paperclip is set to host action Thursday night leading into the Cup Series’ first scheduled night race of the year on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET on Fox). The Cup race is scheduled for 400 laps around the 0.526-mile track, the shortest scheduled distance at Martinsville since October 1956.

Check out the storylines, entry lists and more ahead of the tripleheader event:

Denny Hamlin‘s victory last weekend at Richmond Raceway marked the first win for a driver over the age of 30 since the last time Hamlin won in September 2021. Does that mean the older guys are back to their winning ways?

The Next Gen era has proven nothing is definitive and trends are difficult to establish. But it certainly seems that the veteran drivers of the sport are figuring out their new rides. Hamlin (41 years old) was first to the stripe at Richmond, Kevin Harvick (46) was second and Martin Truex Jr. (41) was fourth after leading 80 laps. But at ages 24 and 28 respectively, William Byron (122 laps led) and Ryan Blaney (128 laps) were competitive at Richmond too.

The plus for the veterans is that 19 of the last 22 races at Martinsville have been won by drivers 30 or older, according to Racing Insights. Whether that experience translates to the new car will be answered Saturday.

Hendrick Motorsports has won three of the last six short-track races dating back to the start of last year. Joe Gibbs Racing won the other three.

Which team will prevail at Martinsville? In JGR’s favor, Hamlin broke through at Richmond last week and finished runner-up there twice in 2021. Truex has been a short-track ace as of late, winning the spring