NASCAR Hall of Fame reveals Class of 2027, Landmark Award nominees

Posted on March 29, 2026March 29, 2026 by Zack Albert

The NASCAR Hall of Fame revealed its ballot of 15 nominees for the Class of 2027 on Sunday, adding Kevin Harvick, Ray Elder and Ernie Elliott to the list of Modern Era candidates for induction.

Ray Fox and Herb Nab, two prominent figures from the world of mechanics and crew chiefs, have been added to the Pioneer Era Ballot, and longtime sports marketing guru T. Wayne Robertson joins the list of five nominees for the Landmark Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to stock-car racing.

The Hall of Fame voting panel will meet in person to cast ballots on Tuesday, May 19 in Charlotte. Fan voting, which will count as one ballot toward the selection of next year’s class, will be open from April 14 to May 17 on NASCAR.com.

The announcement came during FOX Sports’ pre-race broadcast for Sunday’s Cook Out 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Martinsville Speedway with NASCAR Vice Chairman Mike Helton helping to do the honors.

RELATED: NASCAR Hall of Fame members

Harvick, in his third season as an analyst in the FOX Sports booth, appears on the ballot for the first time with credentials that include the 2014 NASCAR Cup Series championship and 60 Cup wins, including the 2007 Daytona 500 crown. He also won 47 times and scored a pair of titles in what’s now known as the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

Elder, another California campaigner, won a record six championships in the former NASCAR Winston West Series, which evolved into the current-day ARCA Menards Series West. He won twice in the Cup Series — both victories coming at the old Riverside International Raceway road course in his home state — and his 47 West Series wins rank second on the tour’s all-time list.

Elliott, brother of Class of 2015 inductee Bill Elliott, earned nomination as a master engine builder who powered his family racing team to 40 Cup Series victories and the 1988 championship. Elliott was recognized as Engine Builder of the Decade after leading the No. 9 Ford to dominance in the mid- to late 1980s.

Those three replace Class of 2026 inductees Kurt Busch and Harry Gant plus legendary crew chief Harry Hyde, who moves from the Modern Era Ballot to the Pioneer Era Ballot, which recognizes industry figures whose careers began at least 60 years ago. The rest of the Modern Era nominees are Greg Biffle, Neil Bonnett, Tim Brewer, Jeff Burton, Randy Dorton, Randy LaJoie and Jack Sprague. Two inductees will be enshrined from the Modern Era list of 10.

The Pioneer Ballot will present one candidate for induction from a list of five nominees, which features two new names this year. Fox, a successful mechanic and car owner from NASCAR’s early years, reappears on the ballot for the first time since 2020. Nab, who won 92 Cup Series races and a pair of championships with Cale Yarborough for car owner Junior Johnson, makes his first appearance on the ballot.

Fox, Nab and Hyde join returning Pioneer Ballot nominees Banjo Matthews and Larry Phillips on the voting list. Jake Elder and Bob Welborn have dropped off the ballot.

Robertson guided the powerful R.J. Reynolds marketing arm during a time of significant growth for the sport. He was a senior vice president at the tobacco company, and his Sports Marketing Enterprises division produced widespread exposure for NASCAR, including a role in the creation of the NASCAR All-Star Race, then called “The Winston” at its 1985 debut.

Robertson makes his first ballot appearance alongside four returning candidates for the Landmark Award: Alvin Hawkins, Lesa France Kennedy, Dr. Joseph Mattioli and Les Richter.

The election results and the new Class of 2027 members and Landmark Award recipient will be revealed after the annual Voting Day meeting on May 19. The announcement will be broadcast live from the NASCAR Hall of Fame; fans may watch in person from the Great Hall or live on the NASCAR Channel.

The full list of nominees (in alphabetical order) with biographies provided by the NASCAR Hall of Fame:

Modern Era Ballot

Greg Biffle, 2000 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion and 2002 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion.

Neil Bonnett, 18-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner, including consecutive Coca-Cola 600 victories.

Tim Brewer, two-time NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning crew chief.

Jeff Burton, 21-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner, including the Southern 500 and two Coca-Cola 600 victories.

Randy Dorton, built engines that won over nine championships across NASCAR’s national series.

Ray Elder, six-time ARCA Menards Series West champion.

Ernie Elliott, 1988 NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning crew chief, including victories in two Daytona 500s and two Southern 500s.

Kevin Harvick, 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion, winner of the 2007 Daytona 500, and two-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion.

Randy LaJoie, two-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion and 1985 NASCAR North Tour champion.

Jack Sprague, three-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion.

Pioneer Ballot

Ray Fox, 1956 NASCAR Mechanic of the Year and 14-time NASCAR Cup Series winner as an owner, including the Southern 500.

Harry Hyde, 1970 NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning crew chief.

Banjo Matthews, built cars that won more than 250 NASCAR Cup Series races and three championships.

Herb Nab, two-time NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning crew chief; ranks third on the all-time crew chief wins list with 92.

Larry Phillips, five-time NASCAR Weekly Series national champion.

Landmark Award

Alvin Hawkins, NASCAR’s first flagman; established NASCAR racing at Bowman Gray Stadium with Bill France Sr.

Lesa France Kennedy, NASCAR Executive Vice Chair and one of the most influential women in sports.

Dr. Joseph Mattioli, founder of Pocono Raceway.

Les Richter, longtime NASCAR executive who oversaw competition, helped grow the sport on the West Coast.

T. Wayne Robertson, held dual roles of senior vice president at R.J. Reynolds and president of the company’s Sports Marketing Enterprises division, oversaw the creation of The Winston.

Posted on March 29, 2026March 29, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — The last time Hendrick Motorsports went to Victory Lane was here last fall at Martinsville Speedway.

The team is ready to book another stay.

Perception of how the four-car organization has started the 2026 campaign probably depends on which team you’re asking. But the stats bear out a generally favorable start for the defending champions entering Sunday’s Cook Out 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

MORE: Martinsville starting lineup | At-track photos

While the No. 48 team perseveres through Alex Bowman’s bout with vertigo, Hendrick’s other programs have found reasonable success. Chase Elliott has wheeled the No. 9 Chevrolet to fifth in the standings with William Byron’s No. 24 team sixth and Kyle Larson’s No. 5 program in 10th.

Coming just short of a Daytona 500 victory, Elliott has four finishes of 11th or better this year with four top-five qualifying efforts, but that hasn’t been enough to wow him yet as the team navigates a new body style on its Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s.

“It’s been super up and down,” Elliott said Saturday. “You know, I thought if you take the speedways out of it, Phoenix I thought was just a down weekend overall, just in general. I thought Vegas was really strong. We didn’t qualify super good but raced really well. Darlington, I thought was less than what I would like to see. So been kind of up and down. COTA, we did qualify well — ran really bad in the race. So there’s been a little bit of everything in all of it.

“Just trying to piece all that together because some of the trends I feel like of last year haven’t really been the trends of this year so far. So I’m not sure if that’s body related or other things related, I really don’t know. So, yeah, we’re just working through it to grind. Obviously, as we all know, it’s very much a marathon of a year, and narratives, as always, can can change really fast.”

Last week’s showing at Darlington Raceway was disheartening for Hendrick Motorsports — Byron finished eighth, with his teammates 15th or worse (Elliott 15th, Justin Allgaier 24th, Larson 32nd). But it was a marked improvement from last Labor Day’s Southern 500, when none of the team’s drivers placed higher than 17th.

“We still have to improve at that track,” Larson said of Darlington. “I would say that’s not all tracks, you know? Like Vegas, we were really strong. Us at the 5 car and 24 and 9, we were just a small step behind the (Joe Gibbs Racing) cars there. Better than the 23XI (Racing) cars at that track. So I mean, I think it’s track to track a little bit right now with where we’re at, but obviously always want to get better. You’re trying to learn as quickly as possible.”

Sean Gardner | Getty Images

If nothing else, the team’s internal discourse after its Darlington woes seemed to push Hendrick Motorsports in the right direction.

“I thought (Byron) and really all four of us last week had really similar comments in our meeting on Monday,” Elliott said. “With that being said, I thought that that’s both good and bad, right? Like, it’s a good thing that we’re all kind of on the same page. It’s a bad thing that we were screaming as much as we were, but I think that’s part of it. That’s part of the deal, especially when you have a change, you shift aero balance and have an aerodynamic adjustment like we had over the winter.

“It’s just takes time, so we’re working through it. Hopefully this weekend is a good step, but we’ll see. This is another very different track type that we haven’t really seen yet. Phoenix was a certain way, Vegas was a certain way. Darlington was another certain way. And this is kind of different, too. So we’re trying to work through it until we see all these places. We’ve just got to keep our heads down and keep building our notebook.”

Byron has generally been pleased with his starts, highlighting how well his team has executed its race days. But practice and qualifying stands out to the 28-year-old as an area where the No. 24 team could improve.

“I think we need to do a better job on balance on Saturdays so that we’re not guessing so much for Sundays,” Byron said. “Some of that could be obviously the new body, but also just tire changes and things of that nature. We need to do a better job of utilizing our tools and getting closer to unload so that we’re not guessing so much.

“If we have smoother Saturdays, we qualify better and we don’t have so many question marks going in Sunday, we’ll probably have a better weekend.”

The group seemed to find something helpful at Martinsville because Byron qualified second, behind only Denny Hamlin in Saturday’s time trials.

Byron also pointed to pit road as a possible area of improvement, eyeing everything from what he can do better behind the wheel to choosing having better pit-stall selection.

“I think trying to be as quick as we can be, especially when we have track position, we have an opportunity to capitalize and gain a spot inside the top five because I feel like those spots are a lot harder to come by on-track, as well,” Byron said.

Posted on March 28, 2026March 28, 2026 by Adam Fenwick

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Throughout Martinsville Speedway’s long history, some of Modified racing’s best have found their way to Victory Lane.

Richie Evans. Mike Ewanitsko. Reggie Ruggiero. Tony Hirschman. Justin Bonsignore. They’ve all won in a Modified at Martinsville.

On Saturday, a new name was added to the exclusive list.

Stephen Kopcik held off Ron Silk during a late restart to win Saturday’s Virginia is for Racing Lovers 200, which was postponed one day due to inclement weather.

The victory, which came in his 23rd career start, was the first of Kopcik’s NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour career. He is the 82nd driver to win a series event since the formation of the modern Tour in 1985.

“I knew I had a car capable of winning. It was up to me to not screw anything up on every restart,” Kopcik said. “It’s crazy. I knew I had a good car, but Ron also had a good car. He got by me earlier in the race, and I wasn’t sure what he had left.

“You never know; he had a great car tonight too. Just glad we could come out on top.”

Before the green flag even waved for the 200-lap event, Kopcik and his Wanick Motorsports team had a plan. The goal was to stay off cycle with the other leaders, which the team hoped would allow Kopcik to maintain track position and, hopefully, control of the race.

The plan worked perfectly.

Stephen Kopcik on his way to victory Saturday night at Martinsville Speedway. (Photo: Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)

Kopcik, who started 12th, took the lead with 50 laps left during a cycle of pit stops. From that point forward, the path to victory ran through him.

The driver from Newtown, Connecticut survived three more restarts, including the final green flag with four laps left, to etch his name in history as a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner at Martinsville Speedway.

Now he just needs figure out where to put his new grandfather clock.

“Probably the biggest win of my career at this point,” Kopcik said. “Coolest trophy, biggest win, coolest place to win at. I would say this tops most all of them.

“We’ll remember this one forever.”

Silk finished second, a career best at Martinsville for the two-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion. Tyler Rypkema drove the Ole Blue No. 3 to a third-place finish, followed by Eric Goodale and defending series champion Austin Beers.

Polesitter Patrick Emerling, Kyle Bonsignore, Tommy Catalano, Timmy Solomito and Ryan Newman were sixth through 10th, respectively.

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season continues with its annual spring trip to Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Sunday, April 12. Fans unable to attend in person can watch the race live on FloRacing at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Posted on March 28, 2026March 29, 2026 by Staff Report

Virginia is for Racing Lovers 200

Martinsville Speedway

Race results:

Pos	No.	Name	Sponsor	Laps	Diff
1	21	Stephen Kopcik	Wanick Construction/Newton Pools	200	—
2	16	Ron Silk	Blue Moutian Machine/ Future Homes	200	0.147
3	3	Tyler Rypkema	Northeast Drilling/SYP	200	0.835
4	58	Eric Goodale	GAF Roofing	200	1.251
5	64	Austin Beers	G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical/Fastrack Electic/AP Marquadt & Sons/Andrew Ja	200	1.665
6	1	Patrick Emerling	USNE Motorsports	200	1.891
7	22	Kyle Bonsignore	ChawLew Performance/MTT/LRD	200	2.04
8	54	Tommy Catalano	FX Caprara/USNE Power	200	2.246
9	66	Timmy Solomito	USNE Power/Kennedy Realty/FX Caprara	200	2.277
10	0	Ryan Newman	Oshwekon Speedway/Glenn Styers Racing/Keydisplay/USNE	200	2.487
11	56	Trevor Catalano	USNE Power	200	2.697
12	60	Matt Hirschman	Bar Harbor Bank & Trust/Pee Dee Motorsports	200	2.835
13	82	Andrew Molleur	Horton Avenue Materials	200	3.108
14	46	Craig Lutz	Riverhead Building Supply	200	3.399
15	31	Michael Christopher Jr	Elite Towing/Elite Racing/Baker Racing	200	3.563
16	25	Danny Bohn	Foxfire Farms/Ready Mix	200	3.743
17	38	Jack Baldwin*	Stokes Shoes	200	3.943
18	71	Jimmy Zacharias	Kevo Motorsports/Stafursky Paving/American Property Solutions/Velocita	200	4.126
19	55	Jeremy Gerstner	Garage Doors of the Triad/Cherokee Underground/JTS Services	200	4.328
20	8	John-Michael Shenette	USNE Power/Eighty-Two Services Gerneral Contractor	199	1 Lap
21	40	Luke Fleming	William E. Smith Trucking/Taylor Auto Parts/Perkins & Associates/Hodges Realty/Autos by Nelson	195	5 Laps
22	95	Cory Plummer*	Tuckers Metal Fab & Welding/Apex Race Cars/Apex Racing/Croteau Machine & More	194	6 Laps
23	7	Luke Baldwin	Baldwin Automotive	188	12 Laps
24	51	Justin Bonsignore	Phoenix Communication	188	12 Laps
25	18	Ken Heagy	Merkel Racing Engines	184	16 Laps
26	70	Andy Seuss	Rockingham Boat	171	29 Laps
27	79	Jonathan McKennedy	Stuart’s Automotive	160	40 Laps
28	05	Teddy Hodgdon IV*	Business Time Motorsports/The Landau Team of Re/Max/Montanari Fuel	160	40 Laps
29	73	Paulie Hartwig III*	Professional Therapy Associates/Velocita USA	81	119 Laps
30	24	Andrew Krause	Supreme Mfg Co.	58	142 Laps

Posted on March 28, 2026March 28, 2026 by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – A full range of emotions had swept over Lee Pulliam all weekend at Martinsville Speedway. He choked up at moments when he considered the magnitude of this opportunity, a shot at his NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series debut with one of the circuit’s best teams. But he also absorbed some moments of self-criticism, frustrated with trouble on a series of late restarts that may have cost him a victory bid.

Over the in-car radio, Pulliam’s perfectionist streak came through as he expressed his frustration, but team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. reminded him of another emotion to hold close.

“I love what you’re doing,” Earnhardt said. “Enjoy this.”

Pulliam, a Late Model legend with an overflowing wealth of short-track experience, drove the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet to fifth place in Saturday’s NFPA 250. He overcame an early pit-road penalty and led twice for 40 laps, holding the top spot in the late going until JRM teammate Justin Allgaier took command for his third victory in the last four races.

For Pulliam, the result represented the journey back from a lengthy hiatus from racing, and a homecoming at a Martinsville track where he twice captured one of Late Model racing’s biggest prizes. One of the emotions that came through most was gratitude, as he offered his appreciation to the team and those who believed in him on the cool-down lap.

“I had a hell of a lot of fun,” Pulliam said on the No. 9 radio. “It’s something I’ll never forget.”

Zack Albert | NASCAR Digital Media

The hunch that Pulliam’s debut might be a promising one came early. The resident of nearby Alton, Virginia, put the No. 9 Chevy atop the leaderboard in practice, and lined up 12th after qualifying was rained out. A pit-road penalty for an uncontrolled tire in the 107th of 250 laps knocked him back in the order, but a mix of a steady hand and an aggressive pit strategy elevated him to the lead by Lap 184, during the eighth of 14 caution flags.

Pulliam held tight with Allgaier in pursuit, but a pair of late-race restarts spelled trouble when his car failed to get up to speed at launch. On the most dramatic instance, his No. 9 Chevy balked right in front of JRM teammate Carson Kvapil, jamming up 18 other cars on the frontstretch and causing a prolonged red flag for clean-up.

“I mean, it’s probably my inexperience, mostly,” Pulliam said post-race. “I think having older tires, and then a combination of me not ever doing this, man, I just hate it. I could have … I needed to do a better job. I was trying to clean (my tires) up hard, and I just could not get going from second to third (gear).”

Though Pulliam was remorseful both during and after the 250-lapper for initiating the contact, Earnhardt said he reminded him not to wallow in that space.

“I said you’re going to have about 10, 15 minutes to talk to the media and tell the rest of your story today, and you might not ever get to tell it again,” Earnhardt said. “Don’t spend 15 minutes apologizing for that mistake. I was like, tell everybody you made a mistake, you’re sorry and move on, and make sure you can thank all the people you want to thank because when it’s over, it’s over, and that might be the end, his last opportunity, right? Of course, I hope it isn’t. But if I wouldn’t have said anything to him, he would probably sit there and apologize for 15 minutes, and that would have been all he would have been able to say the rest of the day. You know, you need to put a period on the great result that he had and be proud of his work and thankful for the people to help him have this opportunity.”

MORE: Paint Scheme Preview | Martinsville schedule, TV times

Allgaier completed the final pass shortly after one of those consequential restarts, working around Pulliam on the outside lane and going on to lead the final 26 laps. Pulliam faded slightly to the back end of the top five, but the performance made an impression on No. 9 crew chief Phillip Bell, who took special note of Pulliam’s work ethic, which included preparation with more than 1,000 laps of racing-simulator time.

“It just shows the talent, the natural talent he has, right?” Bell told NASCAR.com. “I’m gonna disregard (the mistake). We’re not going to be mad about running fifth in his first O’Reilly race. I mean, he’s just so good. He picked up the heavier car like it was nothing. I mean, very, very proud of him. Hopefully we get some more races with him. I mean, he showed the talent he has.”

Earnhardt had plenty of his drivers to commend afterward, with Allgaier and third-place finisher Sammy Smith making it three JR Motorsports entries in the top five on the official rundown. But he took time to share a long embrace on pit road with Pulliam, who took his post-race words to heart.

“Just enjoy it,” Pulliam said. “He was so proud of me, and he said everybody makes mistakes. He said ‘I’ve done it, and don’t dwell on it. Just, you had a killer day, dude,’ and it meant a lot.”

Posted on March 28, 2026March 28, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

MARTINVSILLE, Va. — Jesse Love and Rajah Caruth exchanged a fair share of bumps during Saturday’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Martinsville Speedway, all leading to a post-race conversation in the garage.

The duo expressed their frustrations with one another — as did Love’s crew chief Danny Stockman, who confronted Caruth himself.

But level heads ultimately prevailed, with the two young drivers reaching an understanding and ending their discussion with a fist bump.

MORE: Allgaier wins at Martinsville | At-track photos

Aggressive contact from Caruth shoved Love’s No. 2 Chevrolet up the track in Turns 1 and 2 with three laps remaining in a battle for sixth, but that move cost both drivers two positions. Heading into Turns 3 and 4 on the next lap, Caruth charged back through Love’s rear bumper, driving both cars up the track. The lost momentum cost Caruth entering Turn 1 as Brent Crews then contacted Caruth, sending the No. 88 Chevrolet spinning and into the wall. Love finished 12th while Caruth finished 25th.

Upon arrival to the garage post-race, Love exited his car and immediately sought Caruth for discussion.

Stockman met him there, intensely expressing his own displeasure before Caruth could even get his helmet off: “You better buckle them [expletive] belts tight. We’re racing for sixth and you [expletive] shipped us twice.”

After an added retort from a member of Caruth’s team, Love interjected: “Listen, you guys go [expletive] argue. Let’s talk,” insisting the drivers handle it themselves.

And so they did, chatting with intent but peacefully for roughly eight minutes before amicably parting ways.

“I’m not necessarily a conversation starter on pit road because I know that, well, you guys (media) love it, right?” Love said. “So, yeah, Raj just shipped me and ended up taking my fifth-place day to finishing outside the top 10. Obviously, completely over the top. And then we’re side by side, and then he, like, doubles down on it, and then, like, runs me in, up into the marbles and just misses the corner again. And it didn’t work out for him either. Like, he ends up getting crashed because people see that, and they’re like, ‘What the heck,’ right? And they get people back in this field.

“So yeah, I was definitely frustrated because we worked our teeth and guts out to have a good day here, and we were gonna have a good day for how off we were. And obviously, now we have to go home with another (12th)-place finish.”

Caruth, who is splitting his schedule between JR Motorsports’ No. 88 car and Jordan Anderson Racing’s No. 32 car, took ownership of his aggressive driving and acknowledged it was “out of character” for him.

“I was in the wrong there,” Caruth said. “We had contact earlier and I didn’t need to hit him either time. I was gonna finish seventh or eighth and be fine, and I took myself out of a good points spot. So I didn’t handle that well. Like I wanted to move him, but I really didn’t even need to. And I didn’t even think about it in the moment because the 21 was right behind me, and like any contact I made with Jesse, he was going to be right there.

“I didn’t handle that well at all and took us out of a really good points spot there that I needed personally. Kind of disappointed in myself for how I handled the end of it, but overall, it was a learning day and we’ll go and we’ll do it again for the next one.”

After winning the 2025 series championship, Love emphasized how close he is with Stockman, who he views as a brother. But the 21-year-old Love wanted to make sure any issues between himself and Caruth stayed there, rather than escalating further.

“It’s tough, right? Because, like, me and Danny are brothers,” Love said. “And Danny wants me to know that he has my back, and I really do appreciate that. But it’s also my job to let Danny know I appreciate that and let me handle it, right? Because I don’t know if Danny knows this, but I see Rajah a lot. Me and Raj have a good working relationship, and I felt comfortable that I could have a conversation with him without just having a yelling match and having to get crew chiefs and engineers involved and people screaming at each other.”

Caruth understood the anger from both Stockman and Love, recognizing he cost the No. 2 team points. But the mutual respect between the drivers prevented tempers from truly boiling over.

“We train together and I think ultimately, we both have a lot of respect for each other,” Caruth said. “And I heard where he was coming from and he heard where I was coming from. I owe them grace moving forward for a little bit, just because I impacted their day — not only mine, but theirs, not well at the end. Just didn’t do the best job.

“It’s important for the drivers just to talk about it because we can discuss it and not, like, come to blows or anything like that. And that’s all that was. Like I said, I was in the wrong there. Kind of out of character for me. I don’t know what my thought process there was honestly, so I just won’t do that again.”

Posted on March 28, 2026March 28, 2026 by Staff Report

NASCAR Cup Series drivers will be tasked with navigating the 0.526-mile Virginia short track known as “The Paperclip” in Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Given that each competitor will have additional horsepower, tire falloff and brakes, the 400-lapper may produce a challenge on multiple fronts in the fight for the iconic grandfather clock. Racing Insights projects that typical Martinsville masters will rise to the front when it matters most, with prediction models feeling confident that Chase Elliott will earn his first Cup Series victory of the 2026 season.

Will the No. 9 Chevrolet driver earn Hendrick Motorsports’ first win of the year after seven races, or will another elite short-track racer rise to the occasion? Here’s a look at other drivers to keep an eye on and the full projected results for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race.

DRIVERS TO WATCH

DENNY HAMLIN: The defending winner of the Martinsville spring race comes to “The Paperclip” riding a hot streak of five consecutive finishes of 13th or better since the season-opening Daytona 500. Picking up his first win of the 2026 season and 61st of his Cup Series career at Las Vegas two weeks ago, Hamlin may be in line for win No. 62. The polesitter for Sunday’s race has five top fives in the last seven Martinsville races, and is projected to finish second by Racing Insights.

WILLIAM BYRON: In last year’s Martinsville fall race, Byron was super dominant after scoring the pole, sweeping both stages and winning his way into the Championship race. Few drivers have been better than Byron at Martinsville in recent memory, with his 664 laps led — it’s the most he’s led at any track on the Cup Series schedule. The No. 24 Chevrolet driver, who has won three of the last eight Martinsville races, is projected to finish in the top five by Racing Insights.

JOEY LOGANO: While the Team Penske driver may not have as many Martinsville wins as Hamlin or Byron, he has earned the title of “Mr. Consistency.” In the last 13 Martinsville races, Logano has 10 top-10 finishes at the Virginia short track. After an uncharacteristically poor showing last weekend at Darlington, look for the No. 22 team to bounce back after Racing Insights projected a sixth-place finish.

FULL PROJECTED RESULTS FOR 2026 COOK OUT 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1)

FINISH	CAR NUMBER	DRIVER
1	9	Chase Elliott
2	11	Denny Hamlin
3	12	Ryan Blaney
4	5	Kyle Larson
5	24	William Byron
6	22	Joey Logano
7	20	Christopher Bell
8	60	Ryan Preece
9	23	Bubba Wallace
10	54	Ty Gibbs
11	1	Ross Chastain
12	45	Tyler Reddick
13	6	Brad Keselowski
14	19	Chase Briscoe
15	17	Chris Buescher
16	2	Austin Cindric
17	8	Kyle Busch
18	97	Shane van Gisbergen
19	21	Josh Berry
20	34	Todd Gilliland
21	3	Austin Dillon
22	77	Carson Hocevar
23	7	Daniel Suárez
24	71	Michael McDowell
25	38	Zane Smith
26	41	Cole Custer
27	43	Erik Jones
28	47	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
29	4	Noah Gragson
30	16	AJ Allmendinger
31	42	John Hunter Nemechek
32	10	Ty Dillon
33	35	Riley Herbst
34	48	Justin Allgaier
35	88	Connor Zilisch
36	51	Cody Ware
37	33	Austin Hill

Posted on March 28, 2026March 29, 2026 by Holly Cain

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Justin Allgaier ended the day where he started — out front — but it was a dramatic and challenging route to the trophy hoist in Saturday’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts NFPA 250 at the historic half-mile Martinsville Speedway.

En route to his win, the 2024 series champion started from pole position and led the most laps (114 of 250). The driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet claimed his second win in as many weeks — third of the season and 31st of his career.

Allgaier led the opening 65 laps of the race, won Stage 1, and then led the final 26 laps, bookending a typically thrilling edition of competition at the famed paperclip track.

“I keep saying it and I keep talking about how great this team is, but we have fired off 2026 better than I could have imagined,’’ said Allgaier, whose win marks the JR Motorsports organization’s fifth consecutive this season — one shy of the record set by Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008.

“It is pretty incredible, just the emotion,’’ added the 39-year-old, who has increased his advantage atop the standings to 92 points over reigning series champion Richard Childress Racing’s Jesse Love. “I said it last week, but you get later on in your career, and you never know if you’ll win another one and this year has been pretty special.’’

The victory is hard-earned, considering the race was slowed 13 times because of incidents on the notorious, challenging short track.

Most impactful, a 19-car pileup on a late race restart brought out a 26-minute red flag, massively reducing the field of true contenders. Late model superstar Lee Pulliam, making his first-ever start in a NASCAR national series driving the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, brought out the caution period after missing a shift on the restart from his front row starting position.

His team co-owner, Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr., reassured and encouraged Pulliam on the radio during the race stoppage, telling him “I know you didn’t want that to happen, and you’ll handle it like a pro, we all make mistakes.’’ Adding post-race, “all in all, incredible to come in, run a race, lead laps and run the car up front and get a great result in a tough place, he survived. He’s a helluva driver.’’

After the race, Pulliam, whose 40 laps led were second only to Allgaier, immediately addressed the late-race restart situation. “Just first off real quick, I’d like to apologize to everyone we tore up there. I just couldn’t get going with the older tires and it was just a little bit of inexperience.”

“Just so thankful to be here and do this. What a dream come true to drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr.,’’ added the well-respected and highly revered 37-year-old North Carolina native, who sold out of T-shirts commemorating his O’Reilly Auto Parts Series debut this weekend.

“The whole experience has been pretty special for me, something I’ve wanted to do my entire life. Just thankful for everybody that led to this moment, and I hope I made all you fans proud leading all those laps.”

“Man, that was super cool driving away. Just wish I could have gotten going on the restarts a little better, and if I ever get another chance to do this, I’ll learn from my mistakes and come back stronger.’’

MORE: Dale Jr. reacts to Pulliam’s debut

Corey Day’s second-place finish in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 17 Chevrolet was a career-best for the 20-year-old and marked an impressive sixth consecutive top-10 finish for the young driver. Sammy Smith finished third and posted his seventh top-10 finish in eight races at Martinsville. Haas Factory Team’s Sheldon Creed finished fourth in the No. 00 Chevrolet with Pulliam rounding out the top five.

Austin Hill was sixth, followed by Dean Thompson, Cup Series regular Ross Chastain, Ryan Sieg and 18-year-old rookie Brent Crews, rounding out the top 10.

The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series moves to Rockingham Speedway for next Saturday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 250 Presented by Black’s Tire (2:30 p.m. ET, The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Sammy Smith is the defending race winner.

Note: Inspection was completed in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series garage with no issues, confirming Allgaier as the winner.

Posted on March 28, 2026 by Zack Albert

Track: Martinsville Speedway
Location: Martinsville, Virginia
Track length: 0.526 miles
When: 3:30 p.m. ET
Where to tune in: FS1, HBO Max, FOX One, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Race purse: $11,233,037
Race distance: 400 laps | 210.4 miles
Stages: 80 | 180 | 400
Sunday’s starting lineup | Cup Series pit stall assignments

Gimme five? Martinsville obstacle next up for red-hot Reddick

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — After last week’s performance at Darlington Raceway gave him a stunning four wins in the first six NASCAR Cup Series events of the year, Tyler Reddick received the customary best wishes for the next race at the end of his press conference. That next race — Sunday’s showdown at Martinsville Speedway — gave the 30-year-old phenom a bit of pause.

“If I can win there, oh my gosh,” Reddick said as he stepped off the Darlington stage, “the world is going to end.”

That race is now, and there’s an opportunity for Reddick to write more history if he can overcome one of his toughest hurdles in Sunday’s Cook Out 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). A fifth win in seven appearances would equal the fast-start mark set by Dale Earnhardt on the way to his third Cup Series championship in 1987.

The track known for its grandfather clock trophy has been a ticking Doomsday Clock for Reddick, however, and his 12 Cup starts here have failed to produce a top-five finish. Though he qualified his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota a capable eighth during Saturday’s time trials, his average finish of 19.4 here puts Martinsville in the bottom half of the track-comparison bracket during his career.

“I think he does struggle on short tracks for whatever reason,” said 23XI teammate Bubba Wallace, a two-time Martinsville winner in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competition. “I struggle on road courses for whatever reason, so we just kind of ham-and-egg it; that’s what we call it in the golf world. I think our cars are fast, it’s about putting it together. I think he ended up (qualifying) eighth or ninth, so yeah, he’s got some work to do. But I agree: If he did win on Sunday, the world would end, for sure.”

The world’s hopes for so-called survival, then, rest with some familiar faces who have been perpetual favorites at the tight 0.526-mile track. That list starts with Hendrick Motorsports, which has won a record 30 times here, including six of the last 11. William Byron is the most recent of those to collect another clock with a dominant, sweeping victory last fall; he’ll start second in the No. 24 Chevrolet, attempting to snare the first win of the year for the Hendrick organization in Sunday’s 400-lapper.

MORE: Weekend schedule, TV info | At-track photos

The sharer of the front row can also claim some Martinsville mastery. Denny Hamlin powered to his 49th career pole in Saturday’s time trials, and he’ll be aiming for a seventh Martinsville win — which would pad his series-best mark among active drivers. And though his fortunes are slightly mixed in the spring versus fall Martinsville races, Ryan Blaney has won two of the last five here. Hamlin and Blaney are the only drivers not named Reddick with Cup Series triumphs this year.

Blaney said before he won at Phoenix Raceway earlier this month that he felt his No. 12 Team Penske group was inching closer to the superb performance mark established by Reddick early on. Before Saturday’s preliminary sessions, Blaney said his team is “in the ballpark,” but tipped his cap to the standard that Reddick has set so far.

“I think you compare to that car and what they’re doing right now, I mean, they’re just rolling,” said Blaney, second in the Cup standings but a distant 95 points behind after running third at Darlington. “Someone asked me after the race … ‘do you see a difference in his car, and what it does?’ I’m like, I don’t know. It just goes faster. I don’t know what to tell you. It’s a good team, good driver, and they’ve just got things clicking, and you see that stuff all the time of things clicking for people. When things are going right, it’s going right, and everyone’s doing their job really well. So yeah, I mean, I think we’re close to them. Still doesn’t mean we’re within arm’s reach. I think we’re still a little bit away, but at least we’re in the game, and there’s things I think we can fine-tune to hopefully get there.”

Jacob Kupferman | Getty Images

In the details …

Minus a Daytona 500 top five to start the season, 2026 has not been friendly to three-time Cup Series champion Joey Logano so far. With a best finish of just 15th dating back to EchoPark Speedway, the No. 22 Team Penske driver needs a pick-me-up, and Martinsville may be the exact answer he needs to grasp some momentum. Logano sits as the only active driver to score consecutive Martinsville top 10s in ten or more races and is in rarified air of drivers to accomplish the feat. While Logano seeks to continue that streak Sunday, take a closer look at the legends who join him on the top-10 streak list:

DRIVER	MARTINSVILLE TOP-10 STREAK	MARTINSVILLE WINS
Jimmie Johnson	17 (2002-2010)	9
Jeff Gordon	15 (2003-2010), 12 (1995-2000)	9
Lee Petty	14 (1949-1956)	3
Joey Logano	13 (2019-ACTIVE)	1
James Hylton	12 (1969-1975)	0
Dale Earnhardt	11 (1987-1992)	6
David Pearson	11 (1967-1973)	1

Speed reads

Race-day essentials:

• Martinsville hub: Key information, pit-stall assignments, results | Read more
• Paint Scheme Preview: Timeless looks hitting Martinsville as drivers chase grandfather clock | View gallery
• Hauler Talk: Reddick powered to Darlington win within NASCAR’s battery rules | Listen now
• Sunday Setup: How more horsepower may lead to more tire wear| Read more
• ‘Like a light switch’: How Blaney, Byron and Hamlin found keys to Martinsville success | Read more
• Where emotions run high: Driver’s mental fortitude comes into play at Martinsville | What Steve Letarte, Carla Metts said
• How many wins?: Reddick continues dominant start; will it continue throughout 2026? | Neil Paine’s analysis
• Power Rankings: Cup Series’ top 20 drivers after Darlington | This week’s ranks
• NASCAR Classics: Inside the video vault from Martinsville | Watch now

Contributing: Cameron Richardson | NASCAR.com

David Jensen | Getty Images

Posted on March 28, 2026March 29, 2026 by Zach Sturniolo

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — There’s more power under the hood this weekend at Martinsville Speedway, and that might mean more excessive tire wear in Sunday’s Cook Out 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

But hot dog, it’s the same old Martinsville.

MORE: Starting lineup | At-track photos

The track’s most recent NASCAR Cup Series winner is William Byron, who dominated last fall’s 500-lap feature. But the spring race is a shorter affair, leaving 100 fewer laps to charge toward glory.

Crew chief Rudy Fugle gave Byron everything he needed in October, leading the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team to a dominant win in which Byron led 304 laps and swept the stages after winning the Busch Light Pole Award. Their spring affair started well Saturday with Byron qualifying second in Saturday’s time trials.

But Sunday’s race may be a different challenge than last year. Drivers have 750 horsepower to manage this week, an 80-horsepower increase from the last four seasons of notes teams have with the Next Gen car. That added significance to Saturday’s lone practice session as teams gathered data over 40 or more laps.

“We just tried to get a really good feel, and then we’ll know which direction we’re gonna go,” Fugle told NASCAR.com after qualifying. “We know what the track’s gonna do. We’re just trying to feel everything so we can make some adjustments or not make some adjustments. So I think we got that feel, and we’ll see what happens.”

Byron said he found his light-switch moment at Martinsville en route to a 2022 victory at the 0.526-mile track, noting “there was just the last little bit of getting through the corner that I needed to understand.” That puts the responsibility in Fugle’s hands to provide that feel on corner exit.

“It’s really just being in tune with him and everything he’s talking about,” Fugle said. “And I think the tire, the car and generation of car, all that stuff changes on what you need by a little bit. But Martinsville is so unique that once you get that rhythm, it’s like, I know that’s that. So I think he’s had that a few different times. We lose it sometimes. So just try to really literally listen to him, try to give him that cut, but also make sure you’re not sacrificing entry or late exit or anything like that to get it.”

Ryan Preece certainly knows the feel he’s looking for behind the wheel at Martinsville. The driver of RFK Racing’s No. 60 Ford is a two-time winner at “The Paperclip” in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competition and grew up racing on tracks like this — half-mile asphalt ovals with long straights, tight turns and occasional contact.

That resume hasn’t resulted in a Cup win here for him in 13 starts, but the Connecticut native has finished ninth, 14th, sixth and seventh in each of his last four starts at Martinsville. He also earned a victory in February’s exhibition Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, a 0.25-mile oval just 43 miles southwest of Martinsville.

“I just think with Ryan’s background and his short-track experience that we set the car up more like a short-track car — like a modified,” No. 60 crew chief Derrick Finley told NASCAR.com. “So he kind of likes that. Seems to work pretty well. Did at Bowman (Gray Stadium) and did here last fall. We’ll find out. Hopefully it will again.”

RELATED: Pit stalls for Sunday’s race

Preece will start 17th in Sunday’s 400-lapper but showed promise throughout longer runs in practice, placing 10th in 30-lap averages. He will need to work through traffic again Sunday, but that’s not unusual for Preece, who earned his 2025 Martinsville top 10s after qualifying 21st in the spring and 18th in the fall.

“He needs to be able to be fast on the start and have good long-run drive in particular — forward drive,” Finley said. “So if we can do that, we’ll be good. It’s so hard to pass sometimes early in the run that if your car is really good early and you can get a few spots, that really helps you later in the run.”

But how that added power impacts tire life still remains a question mark. In theory, if a driver uses too much throttle on the front side of a green-flag run, there will be less grip in their tires to rely on later in the stint.

“It’s tough to say because this is a track where you already pedaled it as soon as you went back to throttle,” Finley said. “So I mean, I think they’re going to pedal it just like they did before, till we get to the edge of the tire. So it’ll probably be harder once they get wide open on the tire, but I don’t think it’s going to be a ton different.”