Denny Hamlin, who won the most recent Daytona 500 on a 2.5-mile track, is happy to be visiting NASCAR’s oldest and shortest Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series speedway this weekend.
In Hamlin’s view, .526-mile Martinsville Speedway features something else that’s short—the list of potential winners.
“There’s really five guys that are kind of up front in those races,” Hamlin says. “It doesn’t really change much from that.”
In fact, there are only eight active drivers who have won at Martinsville since 2011: Jimmie Johnson three times, Kyle Busch twice and Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Clint Bowyer and Joey Logano once each.
Cup drivers will be using the new competition package at Martinsville with roughly 750 horsepower and increased downforce through the implementation of a larger spoiler, leading Hamlin to predict a possible track record due to higher cornering speeds.
But Hamlin doesn’t expect the new rules to change the list of contenders for the coveted grandfather clock trophy.
“It doesn’t really matter what the package is,” Hamlin said. “You always continue to kind of race against the same guys. I think there’s a technique there. Sometimes somebody different will hit it and be in contention, but ultimately, it seems like the race winners are all the same group.”
All told, Hamlin has five victories at the track. Johnson has nine wins, most among active drivers, but he hasn’t finished better than 12th since picking up his ninth victory in the fall race of 2016.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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