Race Recap | Martinsville
10 Mark Martin
9 Clint Bowyer led a ton of laps
8 David Ragan
7 Jamie McMurray the pole sitter
6 Matt Kenseth
5 Jeff Gordon
4 Juan Montoya
3 Kyle Busch
2 Dale Earnhardt Jr came oh so close to ending his winless streak

Victory Lane

1 Kevin Harvick makes it two weeks in a row, for his 16th career win, first at Martinsville.

Other Stories on the day

-Michael McDowell dumped Marcos Ambrose sending the 9 car into the wall

-Martin Truex Jr’s 56 car couldn’t stop and went hard into the wall taking Kasey Kahne with him. This brought out the red flag. Turned out the 56 cars throttle hung. This was a very hard hit folks.

-The 7th caution came out when Brian Vickers got into Kurt Busch, who clipped the curb sending the 22 across the track into Bobby Labonte. The 47 ended up looking like a Mini Cooper.

-Changing lanes before the start/finish line on a restart drew penalties for Matt Kenseth, Mark Martin, and Tony Stewart

-Jimmie Johnson sped on pit road in the last pit cycle while running 2nd, the 48 ends up 11th

-Points leader heading into the race Carl Edwards still hasn’t figured out Martinsville with a 18th place finish

FORMER F1 CHAMPION RAIKKONEN
TO DRIVE LIMITED SCHEDULE FOR KBM

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (April 2, 2011) – Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) announced today that they have signed former Formula 1 champion Kimi Raikkonen to drive a limited schedule in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series during the 2011 season. Raikkonen is scheduled to make his NASCAR debut as a teammate to owner Kyle Busch in the N.C. Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 20.

Raikkonen comes to NASCAR with a resume that includes the 2007 Formula 1 World Drivers’ Championship. Over his nine year career in Formula 1, the Finnish driver registered 18 wins and 62 podium finishes. The 31-year old is currently competing for a World Rally Car Championship for his own team, ICE 1 Racing.

“We are honored that Kimi Raikkonen, a former Formula 1 World Drivers’ Champion and proven winner, has chosen to start his career in NASCAR with Kyle Busch Motorsports,” said Busch. “Adding one of the most talented drivers in the world is a continuation of building a team of proven winners and champions at KBM. I look forward to assisting in Kimi’s transition to NASCAR as both an owner and teammate.”

“I am really excited to have the opportunity to start my venture into NASCAR with Kyle Busch Motorsports,” said Raikkonen. “Kyle is one of the best in NASCAR, and being able to draw on his knowledge will be a valuable asset as I make my transition to a new form of racing. He has put together an experienced team that builds fast race trucks. I look forward to being a part of a team that has proven to be a winner on and off the race track.”

“We are extremely excited to have Kimi Raikkonen begin his transition to NASCAR behind the wheel of Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Toyota Tundra’s,” said KBM General Manager Rick Ren. “As NASCAR looks to expand their fan base and generate further interest in certain demographics, having a former Formula 1 Champion with worldwide appeal is a huge deal not just for KBM but for the sport as a whole.”

Details of sponsorship and a schedule of races that Raikkonen will compete in will be released at a later date.

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(April 2, 2011)

MARTINSVILLE, Va.—Johnny Sauter passed Kyle Busch on the next-to-last lap of Saturday’s Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway and held on to post his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory of the season and the third of his career.

Busch ran second, .453 seconds back. Ron Hornaday Jr. finished third, followed by his team owner, Kevin Harvick, who recovered from early trouble to finish fourth.

Austin Dillon held the lead by four truck-lengths over Max Papis when Dusty Davis’ crash in Turn 3, after contract from Todd Bodine’s Toyota, brought out the 10th caution on Lap 202 of 250. The accident bunched the field for the subsequent restart; by then Harvick, who restarted ninth, had regained two laps he lost on pit road early in the race.

During the five green-flag laps that followed, Busch worked his from sixth to second and Harvick from ninth to fifth. Bodine’s spin caused the 11th caution on Lap 214 and tightened the field for a restart on Lap 220, with Dillon in the lead.

Busch regained the lead in the first corner and paced the field through one more yellow-flag period until Matt Lofton’s spin in Turn 1 brought out the 13th caution and set up a four-lap sprint to the finish.

Note: The race was red-flagged for 9 minutes, 40 seconds after a violent crash on Lap 135 involving James Buescher and Jeffrey Earnhardt. That wreck in Turn 3 occurred seconds after a multitruck collision in Turn 2 that caused the seventh caution of the race.

1 1 Jamie McMurray Widia Chevrolet 19.621 96.509
2 39 Ryan Newman Haas Automation Chevrolet 19.655 96.342
3 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota 19.665 96.293
4 20 Joey Logano The Home Depot Toyota 19.680 96.220
5 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota 19.726 95.995
6 43 A J Allmendinger Best Buy Ford 19.735 95.951
7 47 Bobby Labonte Lance Toyota 19.745 95.903
8 00 David Reutimann Aaron’s Outdoors Toyota 19.755 95.854
9 29 Kevin Harvick Budweiser Chevrolet 19.761 95.825
10 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 19.768 95.791
11 18 Kyle Busch Pedigree Toyota 19.769 95.786
12 5 Mark Martin Quaker State / GoDaddy.com Chevrolet 19.784 95.714
13 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota 19.788 95.694
14 6 David Ragan UPS Ford 19.792 95.675
15 33 Clint Bowyer BB&T Chevrolet 19.797 95.651
16 27 Paul Menard Nibco / Menards Chevrolet 19.817 95.554
17 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s Chevrolet 19.820 95.540
18 56 Martin Truex Jr. NAPA Auto Parts Toyota 19.833 95.477
19 9 Marcos Ambrose DeWalt Ford 19.835 95.468
20 22 Kurt Busch Shell / Pennzoil Dodge 19.836 95.463
21 24 Jeff Gordon Drive to End Hunger / AARP Chevrolet 19.843 95.429
22 2 Brad Keselowski Miller Lite Dodge 19.852 95.386
23 99 Carl Edwards Aflac Ford 19.875 95.275
24 17 Matt Kenseth Crown Royal Ford 19.879 95.256
25 21 Trevor Bayne(i) Motorcraft / Quick Lane Ford 19.879 95.256
26 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. AMP Energy / National Guard Chevrolet 19.894 95.184
27 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Target Chevrolet 19.908 95.118
28 14 Tony Stewart Office Depot / Mobil 1 Chevrolet 19.914 95.089
29 36 Dave Blaney All Sport Body Quencher Chevrolet 19.916 95.079
30 13 Casey Mears GEICO Toyota 19.932 95.003
31 38 Travis Kvapil(i) Long John Silver’s Ford 19.942 94.955
32 31 Jeff Burton Caterpillar Chevrolet 20.002 94.671
33 16 Greg Biffle 3M Ford 20.004 94.661
34 7 Robby Gordon Fast Five / SPEED Energy Dodge 20.028 94.548
35 66 Michael McDowell HP Racing LLC Toyota 20.044 94.472
36 34 David Gilliland Taco Bell Ford 20.066 94.369
37 09 Landon Cassill(i) Thank A Teacher Today Chevrolet 20.135 94.045
38 60 Mike Skinner(i) Big Red Toyota 20.171 93.877
39 32 Ken Schrader VAMortgageCenter.com Ford 20.228 93.613
40 37 Tony Raines Front Row Motorsports Ford 20.306 93.253
41 46 JJ Yeley Red Line Chevrolet 20.306 93.253
42 71 Hermie Sadler(i) Eco-Fuel Saver Chevrolet 20.640 91.744
43 87 Joe Nemechek(i) AM FM Energy.com Toyota 0.000 0.000