JR Motorsports — NOAPS Martinsville Speedway Preview

JR Motorsports O’Reilly Auto Parts Team Preview
TRACK – Martinsville Speedway (0.526-mile oval)
NOAPS RACE – National Debt Relief 250 (250 laps / 131.5 miles)
TUNE IN – CW, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90, ESPN Mobile App at 4:00 p.m. (ET)

Carson Kvapil

No. 1 – Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet

Kvapil 2026 NOAPS Stats

Starts: 31

Wins: 2

Top 5s: 12

Top 10s: 19

Laps Led: 535

Avg. Finish: 11.2

Points: 5th

Carson Kvapil will make his fifth start at Martinsville Speedway this weekend in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

Kvapil has had strong results at Martinsville in late model competition, earning a grandfather clock in 2024, placing second in 2022, and third in 2023, all while driving for JR Motorsports.

On short tracks, the JRM driver has made 10 starts, recording one win, five top-fives and six top-10’s.

Following a runner-up finish at Talladega Superspeedway, Kvapil remains in championship contention with two races left in The Chase.

Carson Kvapil

“Martinsville is one of my favorite tracks and I’ve enjoyed a lot of success there over the years on the late model side. Rodney (Childers, crew chief) and this entire No. 1 Bass Pro Shops team have been bringing fast cars to the track this entire season and I know that will be the case again on Friday when we unload. We just need to go out and execute like I know this No. 1 team is capable of, earn as many stage points as possible, and put ourselves in position to compete for the win at the end of the race.”

Justin Allgaier

No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet

Allgaier 2026 NOAPS Stats

Starts: 31

Wins: 6

Top 5s: 18

Top 10s: 22

Laps Led: 751

Avg. Finish: 9.8

Points: 2nd

Justin Allgaier heads to Martinsville just 19 points out of the series lead with two races remaining in The Chase.

Allgaier is the most recent NOAPS winner at the hallowed Virginia track, taking the checkered flag in the spring after leading for a race-high 114 laps.

Overall, the veteran driver is a two-time winner at Martinsville, having gone to Victory Lane in this event in 2023 to accompany his win this past March.

Additionally, Allgaier’s average finish of 8.1 at Martinsville is his best among all the short tracks on the NOAPS schedule.

Justin Allgaier

“I can’t wait to get to Martinsville this weekend. We are still in this fight and Martinsville is a great place to continue to gain ground on the points lead. We had an unbelievable car here in the spring and I know that Andrew (Overstreet, crew chief) and all the guys on this No. 7 team will give me a car just as strong when we hit the track on Friday. We just need to execute like we did earlier this year here and keep the fenders clean on this special Candy Corn BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet. If we do that, I feel like we will have a great chance to come away with a grandfather clock.”

Sammy Smith

No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet

Smith 2026 NOAPS Stats

Starts: 31

Wins: 1

Top 5s: 9

Top 10s: 15

Laps Led: 52

Avg. Finish: 11.7

Points: 7th

Sammy Smith will make his ninth NOAPS start at Martinsville this Saturday.

In eight previous starts, the short track has proved to be one of Smith’s best performing tracks with five top-five and seven top-10 finishes, tallying an average finish of 5.9.

Smith swept the past weekend at Talladega Superspeedway by winning both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and NOAPS races. The Iowa native will be running double-duty again this weekend.

HYWAY Transportation, a shipping solutions company based out of Ohio and Michigan will be on the TV panel of the No. 8 Pilot Chevrolet this Saturday.

Sammy Smith

“This No. 8 team has always been strong at Martinsville and the short track fits my driving style so we feel confident going into the weekend but especially after finally getting this Pilot Chevrolet into Victory Lane last week at Talladega. It felt so good to get another win with JRM and to sweep the weekend after winning the truck race Friday night was surreal. We’ve finished in the runner-up position at Martinsville several times so to finally check this one off the list would be amazing. I know Cory (Shea, crew chief) and this team are going to unload a car capable of winning the clock, we’ll just need to keep out of the short-track chaos and be there at the end.”

Rajah Caruth

No. 88 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet

Caruth 2026 NOAPS Stats

Starts: 31

Wins: 0

Top 5s: 2

Top 10s: 9

Laps Led: 89

Avg. Finish: 19.9

Points: 12th

Rajah Caruth and the No. 88 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team head to Martinsville this weekend for the eighth race of the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Series Chase.

Caruth returns to Martinsville after qualifying second and leading 18 laps in the spring race before a late-race incident relegated him to a 25th-place finish.

In three career O’Reilly Series starts at Martinsville, Caruth has recorded two 12th-place finishes.

On short tracks this season, Caruth has earned a fourth-place finish at Rockingham Speedway, a runner-up finish at Iowa Speedway and a 14th-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway in April.

Rajah Caruth

“Martinsville is a place where you really have to be disciplined and take care of your equipment all day. We’ve had some good speed there in the past, and I’m looking forward to getting back with Mardy (Lindley, crew chief) and everyone on this No. 88 team. We’re getting down to the end of the season, and we want to finish these last two races strong. I’m thankful for everyone at HendrickCars.com, Mr. H, Ms. Linda, Kelley, Dale and LW for continuing to believe in me and giving us the opportunity to compete. Hopefully we can put together a solid weekend and come away with a good finish.”

JRM Team Updates

JR Motorsports at Martinsville Speedway: JR Motorsports has competed at Martinsville Speedway a combined 52 times in the NOAPS since 2006. In those starts at the 0.526-mile oval, the organization has recorded four wins, 25 top-fives, and 33 top-10s. The average finish is 11.6.

Souvenir Rig: JRM drivers Carson Kvapil, Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith and Rajah Caruth will be signing autographs at the JR Motorsports / HMS WB + AB souvenir rig on Saturday, October 31st, from 12:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.

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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

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