RIDGEWAY, Va. – There’s just something about Martinsville Speedway.
“This has been a good place for Hendrick Motorsports in general,” No. 24 team crew chief Alan Gustafson said. “The company got its first win here and has had a lot of success since that point. It’s always been a special place for us.”
The organization has 22 wins at the paperclip oval, led by Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, who are both tied for tops among active drivers with eight wins apiece.
Gordon and Johnson are one-two in the active-driver rankings in top-five finishes, top-10s and laps led, as well.
“I’m fortunate to have been a part of a lot of victories here with the No. 24 car and with the No. 48 car,” No. 48 team crew chief Chad Knaus said. “It’s been a lot of fun for me throughout the course of my career. I really enjoy coming up here.”
Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is just behind his two Hendrick Motorsports teammates in third among active drivers with 12 top-five finishes and 17 top-10s. And just last year he earned an elusive Martinsville grandfather clock when he found Victory Lane at the track for the first time in his career.
“The first time I came here, I hit everything, even the pace car,” Earnhardt laughed. “It looked like, at that time, after my first race here, that it was going to be quite a challenge to sort it out and understand what I needed to do. And then, me and Tony (Eury) Jr. and Tony (Eury) Sr. came up here and tested in 2001 or 2003 or sometime around there. And we hit on some stuff and were really good for a long time. We just ran a lot of good races and finished in the top five quite a few times. It’s been one of my favorite tracks ever since. I love the action and I love the short-track mentality.”
Earnhardt was asked whether when a driver seems to “own” a track it is more tied to the driver or the equipment he’s using.
He said it’s likely “a little bit of both,” and Gustafson agreed.
“They obviously have to be in good equipment,” he said. “Jeff can’t come here in a bad car and win. Or he can’t overcome a pit stop late that puts him in the 10th spot. The team has a significant influence on the execution and the outcome of the race. But when a driver gets a feel like those guys have at a certain racetracks, it takes a lot of weight off the team or makes the team’s job easier to do. Then they can focus on those intangibles like the pit strategy and the pit stops.”
Either way, all of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers will look to add to the organization’s success Sunday at what seems to be a universally liked racetrack.
“I just love this track,” Gordon said. “The least amount of things change at Martinsville that changes at any other track we go to. Aerodynamics don’t make as big of a difference. Tires don’t change much here. The speeds may gradually change here. When you look at every other track on the circuit and especially the bigger tracks when aerodynamics start to make a huge difference, that changes how you drive the car, how you set up the car, and the knowledge you have to have of all the data and technology that’s going on with the cars. This one, you don’t have to worry that near as much. This week, of course, with the lack of power it’s going to change things a good bit and how we’re going to drive this track. But those are the reasons why I love this track so much and I always loved coming back here."
"This place brings back a lot of amazing memories of success, and obviously some sadness as well," Knaus said. "So we always look forward to coming up here to try to run well, have a good, consistent, solid weekend and hopefully come out of here with smiles on our faces."