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| Junior not so hot in final practices |
After 30 Martinsville starts, Earnhardt Jr. finally captured victory of the flat half-mile layout last fall. Even though victory had eluded him for so long, he had always been very respectable and come close to winning a few times. Expectations were high coming in this week not just because of last years win, but also because he was using the same chassis again this week.
However, during Saturday’s practices Junior couldn’t muster a lap better than 18th-quickest in either session. That isn’t encouraging for Sunday, and he could even be a driver to pick on in match-ups against quality drivers.
A driver that we used to be able to consistently pick against at Martinsville had been Edwards, who hasn’t had a top-five there since 2008. He’s not terrible there, but you’d never consider him a contender to win. But in the final practice session he came up with the fastest 10-consecutive lap average which is a good sign he might be good on long runs and at Martinsville, there are lots of long runs.
A driver that we used to be able to consistently pick against at Martinsville had been Edwards, who hasn’t had a top-five there since 2008. He’s not terrible there, but you’d never consider him a contender to win. But in the final practice session he came up with the fastest 10-consecutive lap average which is a good sign he might be good on long runs and at Martinsville, there are lots of long runs.
New teammate Denny Hamlin might have helped Edwards find a better line, or a quicker way around the track. Each and every Joe Gibbs Racing driver wants to do well in this race after the terrible news they got about the health of team president J.D. Gibbs earlier in the week. Edwards, Hamlin and Matt Kenseth are all capable of fighting for top-five finishes on Sunday.
Hamlin has the look of a winner and it’s been a seven race drought since he won his fourth Martinsville race. He had the fastest lap during Saturday’s early practice and then came back with the third-fastest 10-consecutive lap average in the final session. All roads still go through Johnson and Gordon, but it’s hard not to root for Hamlin and the Gibbs organization this week to give them some kind of good news.
Micah Roberts’ Top-10 Driver Ratings
STP 500
Martinsville Speedway
Sunday, March 29, 2015 - 10:16 am (PT)
RATING DRIVER ODDS PRAC 1 QUALIFIED PRAC 2 PRAC 3
1. Jimmie Johnson 7/2 4th 5th 2nd 2nd
Eight time winner with 6.2 average in 26 starts; wins every 3.2 starts; winless past three starts.
2. Jeff Gordon 5/1 3rd 4th 3rd 3rd
Eight-time winner with 6.8 average in 44 starts; using 2014 Martinsville runner-up chassis.
3. Denny Hamlin 7/1 9th 15th 1st 4th
Four-time winner with 8.76 average finish for the Virginian who grew up racing on this track.
4. Ryan Newman 25/1 1st 2nd 7th 5th
2012 winner with 15th-place average in 26 starts, third last fall; using new chassis this week.
5. Kurt Busch 18/1 14th 26th 12th 1st
Two-time winner, including this race in 2014; second best 10-consecutive lap average in practice 2.
6. Joey Logano 10/1 6th 1st 15th 7th
Career-best second in 2010; top five finishes in both 2014 races. The kid has the hang of it.
7. Kevin Harvick 5/1 16th 17th 10th 8th
2011 winner, one of only three top-five finishes in 27 starts; it’s not his best track (16.4 average).
8. Carl Edwards 25/1 12th 11th 5th 9th
Career-best third in 2008; not his best track, but looked very good in final practices Saturday.
9. Matt Kenseth 20/1 26th 8th 16th 11th
No wins in 30 starts, but has been outstanding in past three starts with second and two sixths.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 10/1 25th 14th 18th 18th
After 30 career starts, he finally won here last fall; using the same winning chassis this week.
Note: Qualifying well is key at Martinsville with 95 of the 132 winners (71.9%) coming from a top-10 start position.
Odds courtesy of the Westgate Las Vegas Super Book
Hamlin has the look of a winner and it’s been a seven race drought since he won his fourth Martinsville race. He had the fastest lap during Saturday’s early practice and then came back with the third-fastest 10-consecutive lap average in the final session. All roads still go through Johnson and Gordon, but it’s hard not to root for Hamlin and the Gibbs organization this week to give them some kind of good news.
Micah Roberts’ Top-10 Driver Ratings
STP 500
Martinsville Speedway
Sunday, March 29, 2015 - 10:16 am (PT)
RATING DRIVER ODDS PRAC 1 QUALIFIED PRAC 2 PRAC 3
1. Jimmie Johnson 7/2 4th 5th 2nd 2nd
Eight time winner with 6.2 average in 26 starts; wins every 3.2 starts; winless past three starts.
2. Jeff Gordon 5/1 3rd 4th 3rd 3rd
Eight-time winner with 6.8 average in 44 starts; using 2014 Martinsville runner-up chassis.
3. Denny Hamlin 7/1 9th 15th 1st 4th
Four-time winner with 8.76 average finish for the Virginian who grew up racing on this track.
4. Ryan Newman 25/1 1st 2nd 7th 5th
2012 winner with 15th-place average in 26 starts, third last fall; using new chassis this week.
5. Kurt Busch 18/1 14th 26th 12th 1st
Two-time winner, including this race in 2014; second best 10-consecutive lap average in practice 2.
6. Joey Logano 10/1 6th 1st 15th 7th
Career-best second in 2010; top five finishes in both 2014 races. The kid has the hang of it.
7. Kevin Harvick 5/1 16th 17th 10th 8th
2011 winner, one of only three top-five finishes in 27 starts; it’s not his best track (16.4 average).
8. Carl Edwards 25/1 12th 11th 5th 9th
Career-best third in 2008; not his best track, but looked very good in final practices Saturday.
9. Matt Kenseth 20/1 26th 8th 16th 11th
No wins in 30 starts, but has been outstanding in past three starts with second and two sixths.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 10/1 25th 14th 18th 18th
After 30 career starts, he finally won here last fall; using the same winning chassis this week.
Note: Qualifying well is key at Martinsville with 95 of the 132 winners (71.9%) coming from a top-10 start position.
Odds courtesy of the Westgate Las Vegas Super Book
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