RIDGEWAY, V.a— The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returns to action for the first time in a month at Martinsville Speedway for the Alpha Energy Solutions 250. The first two stages will be 70 lap shootouts while the final stage will be a 110 lap dash for the finish.
35 drivers are scheduled to present themselves at Martinsville to qualify for 32 positions. Chase Elliott and Ty Dillon will be the only two drivers from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series competing on Saturday afternoon.
This will be the 37th race from Martinsville. There have been 25 different pole winners. Only eight races have been won from the pole with Joey Logano being the last driver to do so in 2015. The race record was set back in 1999 by Jimmy Hensley at 74.282 mph. Logano also set the qualifying record in 2015 at 97.088 mph.
Drivers are excited about returning to the track this weekend at Martinsville.
“Having a win will make these races a lot less stressful for me. As far as my approach, I don’t feel like it will be any different — I’m out there to get a win if possible and if not, get the best finish that I can. I think it may change Rudy’s (Fugle, crew chief) approach, because it will allow him to be more aggressive with his strategy. I feel like both Rudy and myself are well prepared for this race and we’re going to go out and do everything we can to put the JBL Tundra in victory lane Saturday,” says Christopher Bell, who won the last race at Atlanta.
“The difference in speed from a 12th-place truck and a first-place truck is very small and makes for some crazy racing and I think the new points system will make it even crazier. Last year in the spring, I saw how important it is to qualify up front for that reason, but getting the balance right is very hard to do at Martinsville. The corners are so tight it makes it tough to make adjustments that help all the way around. Martinsville also seems to go through a pretty big ‘mood swing’ throughout the weekend and from the spring race, to the fall race. It’s definitely a track for an experienced driver and team,” said Ben Rhodes.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is scheduled to have two practice sessions on Friday at 1:00 p.m. EST and 3:00 p.m. EST on Fox Sports 1. Teams will qualify on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. EST on Fox Sports 1. The Alpha Energy Solutions 250 will air on FOX and Motor Racing Network at 3:00 p.m. EST.
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