There was the pressure that comes with 43 cars taking the green flag on a half mile track. There was the pressure of roughly half of the 2011 Chase contenders trying to fortify their championship hopes.
After a tire issue left him floundering mid-pack for much of Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500, Edwards delivered a gutsy charge to the front late in the race. He salvaged a ninth-place finish and maintained his points lead, which is now eight over Tony Stewart.
As the boys moved on from Martinsville en route to Texas, the Chase has come down to essentially a two man race. Carl Edwards went to Virginia hoping to avoid disaster, which would have been to maintain his average of 16th place finishes there.
Burton was the top finishing non-chase driver at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday with his sixth place finish. This is his second consecutive top-10 in a row after finishing second in the Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Even before the race, the infamous short-track tempers were flaring with Kevin Harvick and Greg Biffle getting into it on and off the track during practice. Here is what was surprising and not surprising when the green flag flew for the 63rd annual Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
I’ve always loved the little village of Martinsville, Virginia and the half-mile racetrack there. It all started in 1964 when my father and his friends took me to the speedway to see the “big boys” run.
Jimmie Johnson and Brian Vickers are good friends but on Sunday Vickers took away another chance for Johnson to win a race. Vickers appeared to be in 95 percent of the cautions on Sunday as he hit everything but the pace car.
Tony Stewart won the Tums Fast Relief 500 at the Martinsville Speedway by getting past the leader, Jimmie Johnson on a late restart and leading the final 3 laps. At one point Stewart was about to go a lap down to the leader but fought him off and remained on the lead lap. Johnson finished second and Jeff Gordon followed in third.
All the talk at Martinsville Speedway this weekend was about Talladega. It wasn’t just the drivers, who did their share of talking, but it also included some media members and fans. Of course, a lot of it revolves around the sport’s most popular driver and the son of NASCAR’s most favorite legend, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Johnny Sauter, driver of the No. 13 Safe Auto/Curb/Carrier Chevy Silverado for ThorSport Racing, sits third in Camping World Truck championship points, just 14 points back from leader Austin Dillon and 11 points behind second place contender James Buescher.
In celebration of a defining milestone in American motorsports, the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) has partnered with contemporary watch brand Filippo Loreti to unveil a collection commemorating NHRA’s 75th anniversary.
Advance discount tickets for the May 16 ARCA Menards Series Owens Corning 200 at Toledo Speedway will be available at all Toledo-area Menards locations starting on Friday, March 27.
