Martinsville Speedway

**Martinsville Speedway**
*The Pretty Paperclip*
	Ridgeway , Virginia , USA
Route type:	permanent race track
Owner:	International Speedway Corporation
Operator:	International Speedway Corporation
Start of building:	1947
Opening:	September 7, 1947
Short track oval
	oval
	Route data
Important ; events:	Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series; STP 500 ; First Data 500 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series; Alpha Energy Solutions 250 ; Texas Roadhouse 200 presented by Alpha Energy Solutions NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour
Route length:	0.847 km (0.53 mi )
Curve superelevation:	Curves: 12 °, ; straight lines: 0 °
Audience capacity:	65,000
	http://www.martinsvillespeedway.com

36.634166666667 -79.851388888889Coordinates: 36 ° 38 ′ 3 ″ N , 79 ° 51 ′ 5 ″ W.

Martinsville Speedway is a NASCAR racetrack in Martinsville , Virginia and owned by the International Speedway Corporation . At 0.526 miles, it is the shortest route in the NASCAR Sprint Cup . Martinsville Speedway was one of the first paved " super speedways " by NASCAR and was built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. Its shape is often described as a paper clip ('the paper-clip'). The curves are only elevated by 12 °. The combination of relatively long straights and flat, tight corners requires hard braking when turning and gentle acceleration when exiting the corner.

The racetrack was originally owned jointly by the brothers Jim and Bill France Jr. and H. Clay Earles, who owned the majority of the track. With the death of Mary Weatherford, the daughter of Earles, the Martinsville Speedway was sold in 2004 for 192 million US dollars to the International Speedway Corporation and thus to the France family, which has since been sole owners.

View from the infield to the main grandstand.

There are plans to increase the audience capacity from the current 65,000 seats by an additional 20,000 seats to 85,000 seats. Since the sale there has been no further information on the expansion.

Martinsville Speedway will host two NASCAR Sprint Cup races, the Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500 in April and the TUMS QuikPak 500 as round six in the Chase for the Sprint Cup in October. In addition, the Craftsman Truck Series and the Whelen Modified Tour make a stop in Martinsville.

From 1982 to 1994 and in 2006, Martinsville Speedway was also the venue for the NASCAR Nationwide Series . The event was taken off the calendar in 2007 in order to be able to host a race on the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal on the vacant date .

current events

NASCAR Sprint Cup - STP 500
NASCAR Sprint Cup - Goody's Fast Relief 500
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series - Alpha Energy Solutions 250
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series - Texas Roadhouse 200 presented by Alpha Energy Solutions
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Whelen Southern Modified Tour Combined Race - Whelen Made in America 300 (a "last chance" race of 50 laps and a main race of 250 laps)

Course records

NASCAR Sprint Cup Qualifying: Denny Hamlin , 19.013 s (99.595 mph), October 25, 2013
NASCAR Sprint Cup Race: Jeff Gordon , 3:11:54 (82.223 mph), September 22, 1996
NASCAR Nationwide Series Qualifying: Clint Bowyer , 19.735 s (95.951 mph), 2006
NASCAR Nationwide Series Race: Jack Ingram , 1:42:16 (77.751 mph), March 25, 1984 (250 laps)
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Qualifying: Mike Skinner , 19.728 s (95.985 mph), 2007
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Race: Rich Bickle , 1:47:18 (75.296 mph), September 27, 1997
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Qualifying: Greg Sacks , 18.746 s (101.014 mph), 1986.
NASCAR Combined Modified Race: Ted Christopher, 55.773 mph, 2005 (combined 250 lap race)

Web links

Commons : Martinsville Speedway - collection of pictures, videos and audio files