The Xfinity 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. The race is traditionally held in the fall and has been run in every NASCAR Cup Series season, starting with the sixth event in the inaugural 1949 season, making it the oldest NASCAR race on the schedule. It is currently the ninth race of ten in the Cup Series playoffs, and the final race of the Round of 8.[2] Since 2015, NBC has held the broadcast rights for the final 20 races of the season, including this race. Ryan Blaney is the defending winner of the event.
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| NASCAR Cup Series | |
|---|---|
| Venue | Martinsville Speedway |
| Location | Ridgeway, Virginia, United States |
| Corporate sponsor | Xfinity[1] |
| First race | 1949 |
| Distance | 263 miles (423 km) |
| Laps | 500 Stages 1/2: 130 each Final stage: 240 |
| Previous names | Unnamed/Unknown (1949–1955) Old Dominion 400 (1956) Sweepstakes 500 (1957) Old Dominion 500 (1958–1982, 2001–2002) Goody's 500 (1983–1995) Hanes 500 (1996–1997) NAPA Autocare 500 (1998–2000) Subway 500 (2003–2007) Tums QuikPak 500 (2008) Tums Fast Relief 500 (2009–2012) Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 (2013–2015) Goody's Fast Relief 500 (2016) First Data 500 (2017–2019) |
| Most wins (driver) | Jeff Gordon Richard Petty Darrell Waltrip Jimmie Johnson (6) |
| Most wins (team) | Hendrick Motorsports (18) |
| Most wins (manufacturer) | Chevrolet (32) |
| Circuit information | |
| Surface | Asphalt Concrete (turns) |
| Length | 0.526 mi (0.847 km) |
| Turns | 4 |
Prior to lights being installed, the race started at 1:30 p.m. Eastern, generally the earliest start time among the playoff races on the schedule, in an attempt to finish the race before darkness. Following a series of incidents involving both the October Late Model race and the NASCAR Cup races in the 2010s, most notably both fall 2015 races that ended in near-darkness, the track added lights for the 2017 season. The NASCAR Cup Series fall race now finishes at night, and the Late Model race is held at night. The Tums sponsorship returned in 2008, as their Goody's Powder brand sponsored the race from 1983 to 1995 and returned as a sponsor for the spring race in 2007. Tums and Goody's sponsored the fall race through 2016. As per Martinsville tradition, the winner of this race receives a custom-built grandfather clock.[3]
Past winners edit
- 1954 & 1958: Race shortened due to darkness.
- 1967–1970: Richard Petty went on to win 4 consecutive Martinsville Fall Races in this time frame. He would become the f1st of only 2 drivers in the track's history, and the only driver in the history of the Fall Race, to win the same Martinsville event 4 years in a row. Rusty Wallace would accomplish this feat in the spring race from 1993–1996.
- 1973 & 1976: Race shortened due to rain.
- 2001: Race postponed from Sunday to Monday due to rain.[79]
- 2007–2009, 2015, 2017, and 2021: Race extended due to NASCAR overtime.
Track length notes edit
- 1949–1968: 0.5-mile course
- 1969, 1984–present: 0.526-mile course
- 1970–1983: 0.525-mile course
Multiple winners (drivers) edit
| # Wins | Driver | Years Won |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Richard Petty | 1967–1970, 1972–1973 |
| Darrell Waltrip | 1981–1982, 1984, 1987–1989 | |
| Jeff Gordon | 1996, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2013, 2015 | |
| Jimmie Johnson | 2004, 2006–2008, 2012, 2016 | |
| 3 | Fred Lorenzen | 1963–1964, 1966 |
| Cale Yarborough | 1976–1978 | |
| Dale Earnhardt | 1980, 1985, 1995 | |
| 2 | Herb Thomas | 1950, 1952 |
| Rex White | 1959–1960 | |
| Geoffrey Bodine | 1990, 1992 | |
| Rusty Wallace | 1986, 1994 | |
| Ricky Rudd | 1983, 1998 | |
| Denny Hamlin | 2009–2010 | |
| Tony Stewart | 2000, 2011 |
Multiple winners (teams) edit
| # Wins | Team | Years Won |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Hendrick Motorsports | 1987–1989, 1996, 1999, 2003–2008, 2012–2016, 2020–2021 |
| 9 | Junior Johnson & Associates | 1965, 1974, 1976–1978, 1981–1982, 1984, 1990 |
| 7 | Petty Enterprises | 1954, 1967–1970, 1972–1973 |
| 6 | Joe Gibbs Racing | 2000, 2009–2010, 2017, 2019, 2022 |
| 4 | Holman-Moody | 1962–1964, 1966 |
| 3 | Richard Childress Racing | 1983, 1985, 1995 |
| Team Penske | 1994, 2018, 2023 | |
| 2 | Herb Thomas | 1950, 1952 |
| Carl Kiekhaefer | 1955–1956 | |
| Rex White | 1959–1960 | |
| Bud Moore Engineering | 1961, 1992 | |
| Nord Krauskopf | 1971, 1975 | |
| Roush Racing | 1997, 2002 |
Manufacturer wins edit
| # Wins | Manufacturer | Years Won |
|---|---|---|
| 32 | Chevrolet | 1957–1960, 1974, 1976–1977, 1979–1980, 1983–1985, 1987–1989, 1995–1996, 1999, 2003–2008, 2011–2016, 2020–2021 |
| 16 | Ford | 1962–1966, 1969, 1990, 1992–1994, 1997–1998, 2001–2002, 2018, 2023 |
| 6 | Plymouth | 1950, 1967–1968, 1970, 1972–1973 |
| 5 | Toyota | 2009–2010, 2017, 2019, 2022 |
| 4 | Oldsmobile | 1949, 1951, 1978, 1991 |
| Dodge | 1953, 1956, 1971, 1975 | |
| 3 | Pontiac | 1961, 1986, 2000 |
| 2 | Chrysler | 1954–1955 |
| Buick | 1981–1982 | |
| 1 | Hudson | 1952 |
References edit
External links edit
- Martinsville Speedway race results at Racing-Reference