Martinsville hosted a modified race in NASCAR’s inaugural season on July 4, 1948. The race was the third NASCAR sanctioned race in the history of the Commonwealth of Virginia. NASCAR’s National Modified Championship, the predecessor to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, competed at Martinsville from 1960-1984. The modern-day Modified Tour continued to race at the historic half-mile short track from 1985-2002 and 2005-2010. The series was originally scheduled to return to Martinsville last year, but was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Racing Virginia legend Ray Hendrick, who is the career leader in overall wins at Martinsville with 20, is the all-time leader in modified wins at the track with 13. NASCAR Hall of Famer Richie Evans is second with 10. Mike Stefanik, elected to the 2021 NASCAR Hall of Fame class and one of the Modified Tour’s 10 greatest drivers of all-time, holds the modern-day record with five wins at Martinsville.
In qualifying for a 1986 modified event, Greg Sacks set the current Martinsville track record with a one-lap average of 101.014 mile-per-hour.
Racing Virginia will be active in April as the Commonwealth will host two NASCAR Cup Series race weekends in the same month for the first time since April 2017 with Martinsville on April 10 and Richmond Raceway on April 18. Richmond Raceway and VTC announced a partnership for the Virginia is for Racing Lovers 150 on Sept. 10. It will be the first time since 2002 that the Modified Tour has competed at Richmond. This season Richmond is celebrating its 75th anniversary season with the Virginia is for Racing Lovers 150 Modified Tour race part of the track’s fall NASCAR Playoff Weekend on Sept. 10-11. For more information, visit richmondraceway.com.