Martinsville I Event Info:
Date: Sunday, March 30
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Series: NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Location: Martinsville, Virginia
Format: 400 Laps, 210.4 miles, Stages: 80-180-400
TV: FS1
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
Weekend Schedule:
Saturday: 2 p.m. ET, Cup Practice (Prime, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday: 3:10 p.m. ET, Cup Qualifying (Prime, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday: 3 p.m. ET, Cup Race (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Pace Laps:
- The NASCAR Cup Series goes short-track racing for the first time this season as Martinsville Speedway hosts its first of two race dates this weekend.
- Martinsville is the only track on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule to have hosted a race in every season dating back to 1949.
- RFK’s Ford Mustangs have five top-10 qualifying efforts at Martinsville in the last three seasons alone.
- Chris Buescher (6th) and Ryan Preece (9th) were the only two Ford Mustangs to finish inside the top-10 this past weekend at Homestead-Miami
- Buescher makes his 100th consecutive NASCAR Cup Series start this weekend and is one of just four drivers so far this season with four top-10s, alongside Alex Bowman (5), William Byron (4) and Kyle Larson (4).
- Buescher’s 11.8 average finish across the first six races is the fifth-highest of any driver in the NASCAR Cup Series this season.
- Preece has finished inside the top-10 in his previous two starts, Las Vegas (3rd) and Miami (9th), as he eyes his third consecutive top-10 finish for the first time in his career.
- 135 of Preece’s 219 career laps led in the NASCAR Cup Series have come at Martinsville Speedway (62%).
6 Team Info:
Driver: Brad Keselowski
Crew Chief: Jeremy Bullins Partner: BuildSubmarines.com
17 Team Info:
Driver: Chris Buescher
Crew Chief: Scott Graves
Partner: Kroger / Old El Paso
60 Team Info:
Driver: Ryan Preece
Crew Chief: Derrick Finley
Partner: Fastenal
Keselowski at Martinsville
Starts: 30
Wins: 2 (2017 & 2019)
Top-10s: 18
Poles: 1 (2020)
- Keselowski, a two-time winner at Martinsville, is set for his 31st Cup start at ‘The Paperclip.’
- Martinsville stands as one of Keselowski’s best tracks statistically with an average finish of 13.4. He’s coming off a 9th-place finish last fall after leading a race-high 170 laps.
- He has finished top-10 in 60 percent of his starts there. Of the 18 top-10s, 12 have been inside the top five. He earned his first Grandfather clock back in 2017 and won the same race two years later in the spring.
- He carries an average starting position of 11.7 into the weekend with 16 starts inside the top-10 and one pole (2010). He’s qualified 10th or better in seven of the last 10 races at Martinsville, including P13 last spring and P18 last fall.
- Keselowski also made four Truck Series starts from 2004-07.
Buescher at Martinsville
Starts: 19
Wins: —
Top-10s: 2
Poles: —
- Buescher is coming off his fourth top-10 of the season at Homestead-Miami, and is set for his 20th Cup start at ‘The Paperclip’ this weekend.
- He has five-straight top-15s in the spring event dating back to 2020, and holds an average finish of 19.2 at Martinsville.
- Buescher has an average starting position of 22.2 at Martinsville and has started inside the top-15 five times.
Preece at Martinsville
Starts: 11
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: 1 (2023)
- Preece will make his 12th career Cup start at Martinsville this weekend, where he earned his first career pole and led a career-high 135 laps in the 2023 spring race.
- He posted the two highest finishes of his career at the track last season, finishing 9th in the spring and 14th in the fall.
- Preece has started inside the top-10 in three of his last four races at Martinsville, including a P8 start in last season’s fall race.
- He is a two-time winner in the NASCAR Modified Tour at Martinsville, earning his first career win in 2008 and finding victory lane once again in 2023.
RFK Historically at Martinsville
Cup Wins: 4 (Mark Martin, 1992, 2000; Jeff Burton, 1997; Kurt Busch, 2002)
- For Whom the Bell Tolls: RFK has earned four Grandfather Clocks at Martinsville with former drivers Mark Martin (two), Jeff Burton and Kurt Busch. RFK most recently went to victory lane with Busch in Oct. 2002.
- Rock Around the Clock: RFK had its overall most-successful outing at Martinsville in the spring of 2002 when it placed all four of its cars inside the top 10 with drivers Martin, Burton, Busch and Matt Kenseth.
- Closing Time: RFK earned a one-two finish in the April 9, 2000 event at Martinsville with former drivers Martin and Burton. Martin paced the field for 64 laps en route to the victory.
- Short-Track Prowess: RFK has started a total of 718 NCS races on short tracks, recording a total of 24 wins, 127 top-five finishes, 258 top-10 finishes and 8,270 laps led.
- Tale of the Tape: RFK has started 232 NCS races at Martinsville, recording four victories, 26 top-five finishes, 71 top-10 finishes, an average finish of 17.9 and has led 1,555 laps. RFK also boasts two NASCAR Truck Series wins in 46 starts at Martinsville (fall of ’03 and ’05).
RFK Martinsville Wins
1992-1 Martin Cup
1997-2 Burton Cup
2000-1 Martin Cup
2002-2 Busch Cup
2003-2 Wood Truck
2005-2 Craven Truck
Last Time Out & Where They Stand
Homestead-Miami: Buescher led the RFK Ford Mustangs with a 6th-place finish at Homestead-Miami, his best career finish at the track, while Preece earned his second straight top-10 finish. Keselowski finished 26th despite starting 32nd.
Points Standings (17: T8th, 60: T16th, 6: 30th): Buescher stayed tied for 8th after a strong run, while Preece gained two positions and is tied for the final playoff spot. Keselowski remained unchanged in 30th.
