On Sunday, NASCAR will be racing at Martinsville for the Cook Out 400! Martinsville is NASCAR’s oldest, shortest and slowest track, but the action can be second to none. I think it’s best to view Martinsville as a unique track but if you’re looking for a comp track, Bowman Gray is the most similar venue visited this year.

On Saturday, practice was held for Martinsville. Teams had 25 minutes, and keep in mind teams have different agenda’s (some want to focus on long runs, some just want to feel out their car, some might focus on qualifying). Make sure you check out our Martinsville Practice Notes, Martinsville Group Practice Speed Rankings, Martinsville 10,15,20,25 and 30 Lap Average Speed Cheat Sheet and Martinsville Practice Speeds and 10 Lap Averages. 

Here’s Martinsville NASCAR Qualifying Results.

Martinsville Full Field Fantasy Rankings

1) Denny Hamlin
Start 1st/ Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – High
Martinsville Fantasy Outlook – 6-time and defending spring Martinsville winner, Denny Hamlin will be tough to beat and the road to victory lane might very well go thru the #11. Hamlin dominated last spring and his engine blew up last fall while running in 2nd, so I’m confident he won’t lack in terms of “Performance.” At Martinsville since fall 2022 minus last fall, Hamlin’s 5 for 6 at finishing in the top 6, has a 4.8 average finish, and his Average Speed Ranking is 2.6, with him ranking #1 in 3 of the 6 races. Last fall, the #11 was one of the best, and you can completely disregard his 35th. In the race, Hamlin got better as the race progressed but then on lap 335 while running in 2nd, his engine blew up, leading to his 35th. His car was just coming to him at that point. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Hamlin ranked 5th with his speed over the segments being 6th, 8th, and then 3rd. Last spring, the #11 team brought a new setup, and Hamlin smoked the field. In the race, Hamlin finished 1st, had a 2.4 average running position, earned a near-perfect Driver Rating, and led 274 laps. In terms of speed analytics, Hamlin had the best Total Speed Ranking and ranked as the Fastest Driver Late In A Run. In fall 2024, Hamlin started the race in the rear of the field after a practice crash but sliced and diced his way up to a 5th-place finish. Additionally, Hamlin had the 5th best Total Speed Ranking and ranked 5th for Speed Late In A Run. In spring 2024, Hamlin was poised to finish in 4th but finished an asterisk mark 11th. In the race, Hamlin finished 7th in Stage #1, won Stage #2, led 66 laps, had a 4.4 average running position, had the 4th best Total Speed Ranking and was running in 4th when the late caution came out, but then they pitted which was a mistake, leading to his asterisk mark 11th. Over the three races prior to that, Hamlin had results of 3rd, 4th, and 5th. In practice, Hamlin was happy with his car and Kevin Harvick felt like he had the best car at the conclusion of practice.
DraftKings $11,000 / FanDuel $13,500

Further Recommended Reading = Martinsville Finish Projections, DraftKings Martinsville Scoring Projections, FanDuel Martinsville Scoring Projections, Martinsville Quick Rankings, Martinsville Next Gen Average Finishes, Martinsville Next Gen Speed Rankings

2) Ryan Blaney
Start 12th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Martinsville Fantasy Outlook – Ryan Blaney’s a super-elite performer at Martinsville and in the Cook Out 400, there’s no doubt the #12 will be a rocket and be a contender to win. Blaney’s a 2-time Martinsville winner and in the Next Gen, Blaney ranks #1 for average finish (4.3), #1 for Driver Rating and has the 2nd best Next Gen Speed Ranking. In terms of the results column in the Next Gen, he’s 7 for 8 at finishing in the top 7 and he’s had a result in the top 11 every race. Last fall, Blaney was strong but was outraced at the end by Byron. In the race, Blaney started 31st, finished 7th in Stage #1, would’ve finished 2nd in Stage #2 if there hadn’t been a late caution, led 177 laps, earned the 2nd best Driver Rating, and then finished 2nd overall. In terms of speed stats, Blaney ranked 2nd for both Total Speed Rankings and Speed Late In A Run. Last spring, Blaney started 32nd, finished about 18th in Stage #1, finished 6th in Stage #2, but then finished 11th overall. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Blaney ranked 11th. In fall 2024, Blaney came up clutch and raced his way to victory lane. In the race, Blaney started 14th, finished 5th in Stage #1, finished 2nd in Stage #2, earned the best Driver Rating, had a 4.7 average running position, and led 32 laps. I’ll note that win didn’t come easy and via mixed pit strategy which dropped him back, he drove from 10th to 1st over the course of 76 laps. Over the five races prior to that, Blaney had results of 5th, 1st, 7th, 3rd, and 4th. In a stacked group 2 in practice, Blaney ranked #1 for 15,20,25 and 30-lap averages.
DraftKings $10,700 / FanDuel $14,000

3) William Byron
Start 2nd / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – High
Martinsville Fantasy Outlook – 3-time Martinsville winner, William Byron will be tough to beat. Byron put on a display of domination last fall en route to victory lane and overall in the Next Gen era, Byron’s won all three of his races, has the 6th best average finish (9.3), the 7th best Next Gen Speed Ranking, and the 7th best Next Gen Driver Rating. In 3 of the last 4, Byron’s finished in the top 6. Last fall, Byron dominated and had a clutch performance. In the race, Byron started 1st, won both Stages, led 304 laps, had a 1.8 average running position, earned the best Driver Rating, and of course, raced his way to victory lane. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Byron ranked 1st and fielded the fastest car over all four segments of the race. Last spring, Byron finished 22nd but you can get out an asterisk mark. In the race, Byron started 10th, was in 9th on lap 30, but then during a caution around lap 31, the #24 team had a slow pit stop that dropped Byron deep in the field. When Stage #1 ended, Byron finished 25th. When Stage #2 ended, Byron rebounded back up to 13th. Then in the last Stage, Byron was in 12th on lap 260, but then a green flag pit cycle started, and Byron pitted early, only to get burned by a caution, which doomed him to his 22nd. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Byron ranked 16th. In fall 2024, Byron finished 6th, had a race-best 3.4 average running position, earned the 6th best Driver Rating, led 51 laps, and then finished 6th. In spring 2024, Byron had a 6.4 average running position, led 88 laps, and of course, finished first. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Byron ranked 3rd. In practice, Byron felt good about his car and felt like he’ll be in a good place for race day. In terms of 30-lap averages in Group 2, he ranked 6th.
DraftKings $10,000 / FanDuel $12,500