Tommy Joe Martins NASCAR driver wrapping up 2020 season strong
Tommy Joe Martins NASCAR driver wrapping up 2020 season strong
With a top-10 finish and eight top-15 finishes in 31 races, Tommy Joe Martins NASCAR driver is wrapping up 2020 season strong.
With the way the 2020 NASCAR season has played out — shut down for 10 weeks due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no practice or qualifying — it would surely be a difficult season to revamp a race team. But last December, when Tommy Joe Martins announced he was bringing Martins Motorsports back to the Xfinity Series, he was ready for the grind.
Maybe not this type of grind, though.
The season started off bleak for the No. 44 team, a story I covered as the team has had countless trials and tribulations. But over the past three months, Martins’ team has grown accustomed to the series, scoring eight top-15 finishes over the last 16 races. That includes his 10th-place result over the weekend at Texas.
My first ever top10. 10 years worth of trying. Over 100+ @NASCAR starts. Makes me think of all the people that have…
Posted by Tommy Joe Martins on Sunday, October 25, 2020
From start to finish, Texas was probably Martins’ best race of the season, hardly ever racing outside the top 15. In fact, for the better part of the event, he was scored somewhere between 10th and 12th, which is leaps and bounds ahead of where the team was early in the year. It was hands down the best he’s ever run on an intermediate track, regardless of finish.
By running 10th, Martins earned his first career top-10 finish in 87 Xfinity starts. It’s the team’s first, too, although competing in far fewer races.
The NASCAR XFINITY Fall Series season may be coming to an end. However, the energy is at an all-time high in the Draft Top 250. So, tune in this Saturday, Oct. 31 at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and PRN.
ABOUT MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY
Martinsville Speedway is located in Henry County, Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (847 m) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series.
The track is often referred to as paper clip-shaped and is banked only 12° in the turns. The combination of long straightaways and flat, narrow turns makes hard braking going into turns and smooth acceleration exiting turns a must.
It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the entire NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.
TOMMY JOE MARTINS
NASCAR driver Tommy Joe Martins had his best career-finish at Texas Motor Speedway. After the checkered flag was given to the field, his Number 44 AAN Chevy Camaro finished solidly in 10th place. Witness Tommy Joe Martins making history this Saturday, October 31 at Martinsville Speedway. Don’t miss all the action at “The Half Mile of Mayhem”!
KEN GILREATH – OFFICIAL SPONSOR OF NASCAR
Through companies owned by Ken and Tina, a sponsorship arrangement for 2020 was signed with NASCAR’s Xfinity series driver Tommy Joe Martins who drives the 44 car for Martins Motorsports. The 44 car displays Tina and Ken’s company brands at each race. In addition to the Xfinity cars, Ken’s TA2 series car displays the same design.