Martinsville track history

Martinsville Speedway was built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles and is the only charter-member track that remains on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series schedule.

Red Byron won the first "Strictly Stock" event on the half-mile dirt track on September 7, 1947 and went on to win the first NASCAR championship in 1949. Six years later, the track was paved and Martinsville Speedway has since hosted at least two 500-mile races each year ever since.

Nestled in the Virginia Piedmont on Route 220, approximately 50 miles south of Roanoake, Va. and 50 miles north of Greensboro, N.C., Martinsville Speedway still maintains a small-track ambiance due in part to Clay Campbell, the third generation of the Earles family to manage the facility. Campbell continues his grandfather's fan friendly philosophy that includes an allotment of affordable bleacher seats that go on sale the day of the race.