There will be no shortage of race cars at Martinsville Speedway this weekend for the Made In America Whelen 300.
More than 110 cars are entered for the NASCAR doubleheader featuring a 200-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race and 100 laps of NASCAR Limited Sportsman racing.Over 40 entries have been received the Modified Tour race, which includes drivers from both the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour.
Sixty entries have been received for the NASCAR Limited Sportsman Division and that number is expected to grow quite a bit by the time the cars take to the track for practice on Saturday.It will be a weekend of contrast between the two divisions. The Modifieds were the very first cars to run at Martinsville Speedway back in 1947. This will be the first race for the Limited Sportsman cars.Much is known about how the Modified Division performs at Martinsville; Martinsville Speedway is a blank slate for the Limited Sportsman Division.The Modifieds are the fastest cars to run at Martinsville Speedway. Greg Sacks set the track’s absolute qualifying record with a lap of 101.014 mph in 1986. That’s almost three miles per hour faster than the Sprint Cup qualifying record.The Limited Sportsman cars went through their first test a week ago with more than 50 showing up for an open practice. And though most of the drivers had never raced on a track like Martinsville Speedway, they were impressive. In hundreds of practice laps, there were only four spins and very little damage.Before anyone takes to the track this weekend, fans will get to see a half-dozen of the NASCAR Modified cars and drivers in Uptown Martinsville Friday evening at the monthly TGIF celebration.The cars of Andy Seuss, Donny Lia, Ted Christopher, James Civali, Todd Szegedy and Ryan Preece will be on display at the TGIF festivities. Seuss brings a local flavor to the event, driving for Martinsville-based Riggs Racing.Preece is the Made In America Whelen 300 defending champion while Christopher is a former Martinsville winner and defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion.TGIF is set for 7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. in the Bridge Street parking lot in Uptown Martinsville. Area band FATZ will be performing. Admission is $4 at the gate, children 12 and under free.Modified drivers will hit the track for the first time Saturday morning at 10 a.m., followed by a practice session for the Limited Sportsman Division.Modified time trials are set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday followed by Limited Sportsman qualifying.Action kicks off Sunday, Sept 27 at 12:15 p.m. with two, 25-lap heat races to fill out the Limited Sportsman field. The top five finishers in each race will advance to the 50-lap feature, filling starting positions 27-36.The 200-lap NASCAR Modified Tour race will begin at 1:30 p.m. followed by the 50-lap Limited Sportsman feature.Tickets for the Made In America Whelen 300 are $25 and may be purchased by calling 877.RACE.TIX or by visiting www.martinsvillespeedway.com. Children 12 and under will be admitted free.