Martinsville 2012 Spring Race
Photo – Getty Images

The Sprint Cup Series heads to the “paperclip” this weekend for their sixth race of the season. In past years, the Martinsville Speedway has produced great racing and shocking moments. Last year’s Spring Race is likely the most memorable race from the past few years. The drama occurred on the final restart when Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer spun out while heading into turn 1. Ryan Newman snuck by the accident and took the win. Short track racing always produces action and Martinsville never disappoints.

The STP Gas Booster 500 will take place on Sunday April 7, 2013 and the green flag will wave at 1:13 PM EST. There will be 500 action packed laps on Sunday which will make up 263 miles. Weather for race day looks great with partly cloudy skies, a high temperature of 72 F and only a 10% chance of rain. The race will broadcast on FOX and a radio version of the race can be heard on MRN.

Last year’s dramatic finish in this race was one of the best of the season. When Clint Bowyer dived under Jeff Gordon going into turn 1 on the restart to make it three wide with Johnson on the outside, all three cars spun-out and the race had completely changed. Drivers who were behind the wreck had been strategic and put themselves up there for a shot at the win on that restart and Ryan Newman snuck past the incident to hold off A.J Allmendinger for the win. Fans will definitely be calling this race one of the best of the season if the same amount of drama were to unfold in this year’s race.

Since the cars were last on the track, a lot has changed due to the thrilling last lap action at Fontana. To sum it all up, Denny Hamlin is out for about six weeks with a compression fracture in his back, Mark Martin will be in his car this weekend and then Brian Vickers will be starting in Texas. Joey Logano has been the center of attention for a few weeks now and he has talked to Hamlin about the incidents in the last two races. Logano said it was just hard racing on the last lap at Fontana and he says he did not attempt to intentionally wreck Hamlin. Logano had another fight on his hands after the race with Tony Stewart, but Logano said they haven’t talked since. The last off-week sure hasn’t been much of one, since there were race-related discussions throughout the week.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. gained the points lead after Fontana and his hot start has been a major topic of discussion. He is doing extremely well and he will be a major contender for the win this weekend. Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson sit right behind Earnhardt Jr. in the standings and one small mistake by Earnhardt Jr. will give both Keselowski and Johnson a shot at the points lead.

Classic short-track racing will surely be on display this weekend and the feuds from the past few races could be settled this weekend in Martinsville style. The Hendrick Motorsports drivers will be the guys to beat on Sunday and it will be interesting to see who can compete with them for the victory. Every driver wants a Martinsville clock, the reward of every winner of every race at the track. Drivers will be going all-out for that clock and the action will not disappoint this weekend at Martinsville.

Event Schedule

12:00-1:30 PM EST (Friday) Sprint Cup Series Practice, televised on SPEED

3:40 PM EST (Friday) Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, televised on a tape-delay on SPEED at 8:00 PM EST

10:30-11:15 AM EST (Saturday) Sprint Cup Series Practice, not televised

11:45 AM-12:45 PM EST (Saturday) Sprint Cup Series Final Practice, televised on a tape-delay on SPEED at 11:30 PM EST

Next Race – 4/13 NRA 500 at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas

Entry List via Jayski.com