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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 SiriusXM Toyota, and Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 SiriusXM Toyota, and Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Chase Briscoe, driver of the #19 Bass Professional Retailers Toyota, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Bob’s Low cost Furnishings Toyota, William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, Josh Berry, driver of the #21 DEX Ford, and Ty Gibbs, driver of the #54 Monster Vitality Toyota, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Bob’s Low cost Furnishings Toyota, and William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, lead the sector on a tempo lap previous to the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Noah Gragson, driver of the #4 FUEL by Franzia Ford, ap in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Brad Keselowski, driver of the #6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Erik Jones, driver of the #43 Greenback Tree Toyota, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #7 Group 1001 Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Michael McDowell, driver of the #71 Delaware Life Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Christopher Bell, driver of the #20 DEWALT Toyota, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Bubba Wallace, driver of the #23 Hardee’s Toyota, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Kyle Busch, driver of the #8 FICO Chevrolet, and
, driver of the #10 Black’s Tire Chevrolet, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
, one other conspiracy alternative, and this one is to the veterans of such issues.
Per week in the past, within the wake of from Tyler Reddick’s 23XI crew at Darlington, residents from the darkish net informed us it’s all a part of the authorized settlement between NASCAR and 23XI (i.e. Michael Jordan, who’d been bouncing round like Richard Simmons this season).
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However Sunday at Martinsville, Reddick ho-hummed his approach to a Fifteenth-place end and … wait, this simply in from the darkish net: “It’s only a deflection to show down the warmth!”
Chase Elliott delivered Hendrick Motorsports’ first Cup Collection win of 2026.
Regardless, we now flip to outdated dependable, the well-known French arbiter of truthful play, a minimum of the way in which he sees it — Jacques Particles, who this time noticed the exploded brake rotor from Ty Dillon’s automobile and mandated the warning flag that was completely timed for NASCAR’s Favourite Son, William Clyde “Chase” Elliott.
And Billy Clyde didn’t waste the great fortune, given the way it’s apparently nonetheless too damned laborious to catch and cross the chief on the shorter tracks, they usually come no shorter than Martinsville.
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 SiriusXM Toyota, and Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 SiriusXM Toyota, and Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Chase Briscoe, driver of the #19 Bass Professional Retailers Toyota, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Bob’s Low cost Furnishings Toyota, William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, Josh Berry, driver of the #21 DEX Ford, and Ty Gibbs, driver of the #54 Monster Vitality Toyota, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Bob’s Low cost Furnishings Toyota, and William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, lead the sector on a tempo lap previous to the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Noah Gragson, driver of the #4 FUEL by Franzia Ford, ap in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Brad Keselowski, driver of the #6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Erik Jones, driver of the #43 Greenback Tree Toyota, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #7 Group 1001 Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Michael McDowell, driver of the #71 Delaware Life Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Christopher Bell, driver of the #20 DEWALT Toyota, pits in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Bubba Wallace, driver of the #23 Hardee’s Toyota, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: Kyle Busch, driver of the #8 FICO Chevrolet, and
, driver of the #10 Black’s Tire Chevrolet, race in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
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NASCAR race at Martinsville: Cup Collection drivers run Cook dinner Out 400
MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA – MARCH 29: William Byron, driver of the #24 Cincinnati Chevrolet, drives in the course of the NASCAR Cup Collection Cook dinner Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2026 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Picture by David Jensen/Getty Photographs)
First Gear: Chase Elliott gamble pays off
It’s referred to as short-pitting, and just like the “short-sellers” of Wall Avenue, there’s a big gamble concerned. Alan Gustafson, Chase Elliott’s longtime crew chief (and graduate of Daytona Seashore’s Seabreeze Excessive, by the way in which), should’ve gotten fed up with seeing the No. 9 automobile camped out round tenth place for lap after lap after lap.
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In different sports activities, an outmanned opponent has a number of choices to get again within the sport and maybe even win it (faux a punt, pull the goalie, kidnap their pitcher, and many others.), however in racing, gambles are relegated to pit technique, and amongst these methods is the “brief pit,” which suggests you’re gonna pit wanting the pit window, a sure variety of laps earlier than what’s been ordained (unofficially) as the purpose within the the race when automobiles might want to fill these tanks one final time.
Sunday, Chase’s short-pitting technique put him on 4 recent tires and allowed him to return to the monitor and begin posting lap instances considerably higher than the all-day chief, Denny Hamlin, who’d finally pit with the others and depart Chase on monitor with the lead.
The gamble: Chase wouldn’t have sufficient gasoline (or grippy Goodyear rubber) to complete with out pitting once more, except …
Second Gear: ‘Brake rotor … paging Ty Dillon’s brake rotor’
Right here’s the place Jacques Particles clears his throat and calls for to be heard, via his spokesman, Fox Sports activities’ Mike Pleasure.
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“Warning,” Mike yells, adopted by, “there’s a disintegrated brake rotor someplace out on monitor.”
Someplace out on monitor?
Apparently off the No. 10 automobile of Ty Dillon. Some swear they’ve seen it. Noticed it blow up within the pit lane when Dillion got here in with massive bother contained in the wheel properly. Flames, even. Others say, if it blew up within the pits, there should be components on the monitor. In unrelated information, we’re as much as a half-dozen latest Bigfoot sightings in Ohio.
Anyway, Chase will get the wanted yellow, we fast-forward to Lap 400 and he will get his first win shortly. The siren wails on the Dawsonville Pool Room, and all is sweet, proper?
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For individuals who say no and those that odor a rat, don’t neglect to contemplate this: If NASCAR wants Chase Elliott victories to reinforce the model, and if officers stand on the able to facilitate such issues, they’ve positive been doing a poor job.
The identical Chase who received 18 races and a championship between 2018-22 has now received 4 races over the previous 4 seasons. 4, the identical as Reddick received between Feb. 15 and March 22.
Third Gear: Joey Logano exhibits up; Bubba Wallace takes a tumble
Name off the search. We’ve discovered Joey Logano!
Joey jumped 4 spots within the standings, again as much as twelfth, along with his third-place end Sunday at Martinsville. After beginning the season with a 3rd at Daytona, he completed 18th, Fifteenth, thirty first, Fifteenth and thirty third earlier than righting the ship at Martinsville.
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Going the opposite method was Bubba Wallace, who misplaced a whopping eight spots (to eleventh) with that Thirty sixth-place end in a 37-race discipline. He apparently tried to bulldoze Carson Hocevar in some kind of payback, however Carson in some way survived it and completed seventeenth. He’s had some observe at keeping off paybacks.
And simply once we have been able to blow up some balloons for Shane van Gisbergen, he misplaced a spot and completed eleventh on the checkers. It might’ve been simply his second profession top-10 at a “regular” oval and his first at a brief monitor.
That’s two 11ths and a 14th in three of the previous 4 weeks on unrestricted ovals. Progress. In the meantime, his teammate, Connor Zilisch … Yikes. If anybody wants every week off to regroup, it’s Connor Z and that No. 88 bunch.
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Did somebody point out every week off?
Fourth Gear: No Easter Sunday race, however NASCAR at Rockingham this weekend
Don’t really feel too dangerous for the drivers. Sure, they work the weekends and nearly all of them, however while you’re punching the Monday morning clock, they’re pouring a second cup o’ joe and questioning whether or not or not it’s a great lake day.
Final 12 months, after operating races on Easter Sunday for 3 straight years, the Cup Collection returned to taking that time without work and can accomplish that once more this 12 months. With exceptions for scheduling changes to accommodate prior postponements, Easter was nearly all the time a no-no for the Cup Collection.
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In 78 seasons of NASCAR stock-car racing, Easter has been in play simply 14 instances, starting in 1953 on the three-quarter-mile (and grime) Charlotte Speedway, the place the 150-lapper was received by Dick Passwater. You heard me.
However it received’t be a totally quiet weekend. Actually, it’ll be a deal with, as a result of we’re getting back-to-back races, Friday (Vehicles) and Saturday (O’Reilly), at Rockingham Speedway, the longtime NASCAR playground dubbed by many as the proper oval for stock-car racin’.
