NASCAR at Martinsville: Start time, lineup, TV channel
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — It's NASCAR race day at Martinsville Speedway, and we've got some essential information you need to get ready for Sunday's STP 500 Sprint Cup Series race.
START TIME: STP executive Jamie Kistner will instruct drivers to start their engines at 1:07 p.m. Eastern time today, followed by the green flag at 1:13 p.m. So if you want to skip the pre-race show and just tune in for the race, turn on your TV at 1:13 p.m.
RACE DISTANCE: The STP 500 is not 500 miles (can you imagine?) but actually 500 laps around the 0.526-mile Martinsville Speedway. That's a total of just 263 miles, which makes this one of the shortest races of the year distance-wise.
NATIONAL ANTHEM: Martinsville always has a traditional national anthem, and today will be no different. The Training and Doctrine Command Band's Herald Trumpets (Ft. Eustis, Va.) will do the honors today.
TV CHANNEL/RADIO SCHEDULE: For the first time in history, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points race will be broadcast on FOX Sports 1. That's right, the race is on FS1 — not FOX. The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will call the race on the radio.
WEATHER: Brr. The National Weather Service is calling for a chilly spring day, with a high of just 52 degrees. But at least the sun will be out with no rain expected.
LAST TIME: Dale Earnhardt Jr. finally earned his first career grandfather clock with a victory at Martinsville last October. And one year ago, Kurt Busch scored his only win of 2014 by passing eight-time track winner Jimmie Johnson.
STARTING LINEUP: Joey Logano earned his second pole of the season (he also qualified first at Atlanta) and will start alongside Ryan Newman, who put together his best qualifying performance since starting second for the first Chase race of 2014 at Chicagoland Speedway.
LARSON OUT: Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson is out of today's race. Regan Smith will sub in the No. 42 Chevrolet. The team announced Larson, who fainted during an autograph session Saturday, still is undergoing tests at a Charlotte-area hospital.
Here's the starting lineup for today's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville:
- Joey Logano
- Ryan Newman
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Jeff Gordon
- Jimmie Johnson
- Tony Stewart
- Kyle Larson (Regan Smith)
- Matt Kenseth
- Kasey Kahne
- AJ Allmendinger
- Carl Edwards
- Brad Keselowski
- Paul Menard
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Denny Hamlin
- Danica Patrick
- Kevin Harvick
- Aric Almirola
- Jamie McMurray
- David Ragan
- Justin Allgaier
- Austin Dillon
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Casey Mears
- Greg Biffle
- Kurt Busch
- Chase Elliott
- Michael Annett
- David Gilliland
- Clint Bowyer
- Josh Wise
- Jeb Burton
- Brett Moffitt
- Landon Cassill
- Chris Buescher
- Trevor Bayne
- Cole Whitt
- Sam Hornish Jr.
- Alex Bowman
- Mike Bliss
- Alex Kennedy
- JJ Yeley
- Matt DiBenedetto
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PHOTOS: 2015 Sprint Cup race winners