Overview
The Craftsman Truck Series had a bit of a layoff not having raced since COTA on March 23rd but this week they head to the shortest track on the schedule, Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Martinsville is a .526-mile asphalt concrete oval that has 12 degrees of banking in the turns. Commonly called the “Paperclip”, Martinsville requires a lot of precision, especially when breaking into the corners. This track can really beat up the truck/car as drivers push and bump for position throughout. The drivers will turn 200 laps, the most of any Truck Series race thus far putting an emphasis on dominator points. Track position is imperative here as typically one of, if not both drivers starting on the front row will lead the majority of laps.
Strategy
As mentioned above, there are 200 laps in this race making dominator points relevant, unlike the last Truck Series race which had just 41 laps. Looking at two dominators will be the baseline for me as I build my lineups while also looking heavily at drivers in good, strong trucks that can withstand the grind that this race is. Last year’s race was won by Corey Heim, who also won last week. At the Paperclip last year he led 82 laps from the fourth starting position in a race that only went 124 laps due to rain.
Most comparable tracks: Bristol Motor Speedway (but don’t look to deeply into this comparison)
*Note: all pricing is DraftKings focused
Top Drivers
Corey Heim ($11,000), Starting 4th
Heim has been on fire to start the season with an average finishing of third with the aforementioned win a couple weeks ago at COTA. Heim won here last year like I mentioned and in his first race here in 2021 posted an 11th-place finish after starting 28th. The truck is great and the talent level for Heim is superb. He’ll be one of the favorites to win.
Ty Majeski ($10,700), Starting on the Pole
Majeski is one of the best short track racers in the Craftsman Truck Series and that’s proven true at Martinsville with an 11-place and fourth-place finish in two trips to this particular short track. All in all in 10 races in a truck on short tracks Majeski has two wins, six top-fives, and seven top-10’s.
Grant Enfinger ($10,200), Starting 20th
A veteran in NASCAR, Enfinger has run 11 truck races at Martinsville and has run them well. In those races Enfinger has a win, three top-five’s, and five top-10’s. Enfinger has always been a consistent runner here having finished on the lead lap in all 11 races here. Overall on short tracks in 29 truck races on them Enfinger has an average finishing position over 7.5. Enfinger is a great place differential play.
Also Consider:
Christian Eckes ($10,500), Starting 2nd
Taylor Gray ($7,800), Starting 12th
Layne Riggs ($8,000), Starting 3rd
Matt Crafton ($8,500), Starting 24th
Sammy Smith ($9,300), Starting 13th
William Sawalich ($6,900), Starting 21st
Timmy Hill ($5,900), Starting 27th
GOOD LUCK!!