Martinsville sure to bring fireworks this weekend
By CNNSI.com
October 11, 2001
10:37 AM EDT (1437 GMT)
Whenever Winston Cup drivers take to a short track, you can bet that there'll be plenty of contact, more than a few harsh words and a close finish.
Winston Cup tracks don't get any shorter than the .526-mile Martinsville Speedway, site of this week's Old Dominion 500.
Add the fact that just seven races remain on the schedule and hot racing and hot tempers are nearly a certainty.
"I've seen bumper cars at the fair that don't have as much beating and banging as some of the Martinsville races I've run," Kyle Petty said earlier this week. "Some of those bumper-car drivers show more patience than one or two of the Martinsville drivers too."
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Rusty Wallace leads active drivers with six wins at Martinsville.
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Consider that Ricky Rudd and Rusty Wallace -- who have had plenty of contact, both on and off the track during the past month -- have combined for nine victories at Martinsville. Rudd has three wins while Wallace leads active drivers with six.
Also consider that points leader Jeff Gordon has three victories there, and this weekend has all the makings of a monumental struggle.
LUGNUTS
Sterling Marlin
Marlin comes to Martinsville after dominating the field at Lowe's Motor Speedway last week to win the UAW-GM Quality 500. Marlin finished fifth in the Virginia 500 in April.
Dale Jarrett
Jarrett won at Martinsville for the first time in 29 career starts in April. The 1999 Winston Cup champion also had a strong week at Charlotte, where he finished sixth. Jarrett has not won since July in Loudon, N.H.
Tony Stewart
Stewart is the defending champion of this weekend's race, and he finished second to Marlin last week. Stewart also won the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway -- another short track -- in August.
Mark Martin
Martin has 17 top-10 finishes in 30 career starts at Martinsville Speedway. He won the spring race there in 2000. A ninth-place finish last week was Martin's second consecutive top-10 effort.
ON THE TRACK
Flattery
After the death of Blaise Alexander in an ARCA race last week, NASCAR has said they are moving closer to mandating the use of head-and-neck restraints. Though it took a while, that NASCAR is there is commendable.
Flag
Shame on NBC and Lowe's Motor Speedway for their ridiculous argument last weekend over the use of the name "Lowe's Motor Speedway" during the UAW-GM Quality 500. In light of recent events, it seems trivial.
Flattery
The final 150 miles of last week's Winston Cup race at Charlotte were run under green. It was a welcome change from the "run a few laps, caution, run a few laps, caution" pattern we've been forced to endure recently.
Flag
NASCAR's new practice of preventing drivers to get on the hood of their car after winning a race robs the driver of participating in a time-honored tradition, and robs the fans of a chance to celebrate with the winner.
IN THE PITS
Junie Donlavey is looking for a new primary sponsor for the No. 90 Winston Cup car following Sara Lee's decision to leave the team. Hut Stricklin will complete the season in the Hills Brothers Ford.
Kevin Harvick will skip qualifying and all practices for this weekend's Winston Cup race so he can focus on his fight for the Busch series championship. The Busch series is in Memphis this week.
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Travis Kvapil
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Rookie Travis Kvapil won the Silverado 350 on Friday night for his first NASCAR Truck series victory. Jack Sprague maintained his slim lead in the season points race by finishing third with three races remaining.
Bobby Hamilton extended his Winston Cup streak of running at the finish to 31 races Sunday at Charlotte. He finished 31st. One of those finishes was a victory at Talladega in April.
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