NASCAR at Martinsville: Lineup, watch info, TV schedule, drivers to watch

The final elimination race of the 2023 NASCAR playoffs is here.

It’s the final race in the Round of 8, with six drivers fighting for the final two spots in the Championship 4. Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell punched the first two tickets to the title race, and the full quartet will be set after Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway.

Martinsville, a half-mile paperclip-shaped oval, is the oldest track in NASCAR. Races have been held at the track every year since the sport was founded in 1948. Last year, one of the most memorable moments in the track’s history occurred on the final lap when Ross Chastain rode the wall into the Championship 4 with his now-famous “Hail Melon” move.

What’s in store for the Round of 8 finale this year? Here’s everything you need to know for the 2023 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville:

NASCAR at Martinsville starting lineup, qualifying results

Thirty-six drivers will race at Martinsville – the 32 full-timers, plus four others.

Three of those four are veterans who race part-time – Ryan Newman, J.J. Yeley and B.J. McLeod. Additionally, Truck Series regular Carson Hocevar will make his eighth career Cup start.

Martin Truex Jr. claimed the pole position on Saturday after a qualifying lap of 20.112 seconds.

Here’s the full starting lineup for Martinsville (driver name, car number, team):

1. Martin Truex Jr., No. 19, Joe Gibbs Racing
2. Ty Gibbs, No. 54, Joe Gibbs Racing
3. Chase Briscoe, No. 14, Stewart-Haas Racing
4. Denny Hamlin, No. 11, Joe Gibbs Racing
5. Kyle Larson, No. 5, Hendrick Motorsports
6. Bubba Wallace, No. 23, 23XI Racing
7. Christopher Bell, No. 20, Joe Gibbs Racing
8. Kevin Harvick, No. 4, Stewart-Haas Racing
9. Ryan Preece, No. 41, Stewart-Haas Racing
10. Brad Keselowski, No. 6, RFK Racing
11. Ryan Blaney, No. 12, Team Penske
12. Aric Almirola, No. 10, Stewart-Haas Racing
13. Ross Chastain, No. 1, Trackhouse Racing
14. Chase Elliott, No. 9, Hendrick Motorsports
15. Joey Logano, No. 22, Team Penske
16. William Byron, No. 24, Hendrick Motorsports
17. Todd Gilliland, No. 38, Front Row Motorsports
18. Chris Buescher, No. 17, RFK Racing
19. Tyler Reddick, No. 45, 23XI Racing
20. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47, JTG Daugherty Racing
21. Austin Cindric, No. 2, Team Penske
22. Alex Bowman, No. 48, Hendrick Motorsports
23. Michael McDowell, No. 34, Front Row Motorsports
24. Justin Haley, No. 31, Kaulig Racing
25. A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16, Kaulig Racing
26. Austin Dillon, No. 3, Richard Childress Racing
27. Daniel Suarez, No. 99, Trackhouse Racing
28. Harrison Burton, No. 21, Wood Brothers Racing
29. Erik Jones, No. 43, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB
30. Corey LaJoie, No. 7, Spire Motorsports
31. Kyle Busch, No. 8, Richard Childress Racing
32. Carson Hocevar, No. 42, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB
33. Ryan Newman, No. 51, Rick Ware Racing
34. Ty Dillon, No. 77, Spire Motorsports
35. J.J. Yeley, No. 15, Rick Ware Racing
36. B.J. McLeod, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports

When is the NASCAR race this weekend at Martinsville?

The Xfinity 500 at Martinsville is set for Sunday, Oct. 29, at 2 p.m. ET.

Rick Allen (play-by-play), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (analyst), Steve Letarte (analyst) and Jeff Burton (analyst) will be on the call, with Marty Snider, Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman and Kim Coon providing live updates from pit road.

NASCAR TV schedule this weekend at Martinsville

Saturday, Oct. 28 (USA Network and streaming online)

• Practice: 12:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBCSports.com
• Qualifying: 1:20 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBCSports.com

Sunday, Oct. 29 (NBC, Peacock and streaming online)

• Xfinity 500: 2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBCSports.com
• NASCAR Post Show: 5:45 p.m. ET, Peacock

NASCAR playoff standings, clinching scenarios for Martinsville

Larson and Bell are the only two drivers locked into the Championship 4 based on their wins at Las Vegas and Homestead-Miami, respectively.

That leaves six drivers fighting to advance in this race, the final event in the Round of 8. Drivers can move on by either winning at Martinsville or not being one of the bottom four drivers in the points standings. Byron can mathematically clinch his spot in the Championship 4 regardless of what anyone else does, but everyone else is in a precarious position.

Here’s the playoff standings and clinching scenarios for Martinsville (clinching scenarios will change throughout the race depending on stage points):

1. Kyle Larson, clinched with win at Las Vegas

2. Christopher Bell, clinched with win at Homestead-Miami

3. William Byron, +30 points above the cut line

• Clinches with 36 points (2nd-place finish with one stage point, 3rd-place finish with two stage points, etc.)

4. Ryan Blaney, +10 points above the cut line

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5. Tyler Reddick, -10 points below the cut line

6. Martin Truex Jr., -17 points below the cut line

7. Denny Hamlin, -17 points below the cut line

8. Chris Buescher, -43 points below the cut line

You can find a full explanation of NASCAR’s playoff format right here.

NASCAR Martinsville past winners, race history

Two drivers facing elimination are, historically, two of the best at Martinsville. Hamlin has five Martinsville wins (2008, 2009, 2010, 2010, 2015) and 2,226 laps led in 35 career starts at his home track, while Truex is a three-time winner (2019, 2020, 2021).

Busch (2016, 2017) and Keselowski (2017, 2019) have both won at Martinsville twice. Additionally, there are eight one-time Martinsville winners racing on Sunday: Harvick (2011), Newman (2012), Logano (2018), Elliott (2020), Bowman (2021), Byron (2022), Bell (2022) and Larson (2023).

NASCAR at Martinsville favorites, drivers to watch

It usually takes a seasoned veteran to win at Martinsville, but that line of thinking has been proven wrong in recent years.

Five of the last six races at Martinsville have been won by a driver 30 or younger with no prior victories at the track. That could make Sunday’s elimination race even tougher to predict.

If you’re looking strictly at data, Hamlin is usually the man to beat. He has a series-leading five wins, 18 top-fives, 24 top-15s, 2,226 laps led and 104.9 driver rating in 35 starts. His 10.3 average finish trails only Blaney (9.5 in 15 starts).

Some of the other top Martinsville drivers include Logano (11.1 average finish in 29 starts), Busch (12.4 in 36 starts), Keselowski (12.5 in 27 starts) and Elliott (13.0 in 16 starts). If you’re looking for a specific team to dominate at the Paperclip, Hendrick Motorsports (Larson, Elliott, Byron, Bowman) and Joe Gibbs Racing (Hamlin, Truex, Bell, Gibbs) have combined to win eight straight races dating back to October 2019.

What is the weather for Martinsville, Virginia, this weekend?

NBC Washington is predicting ideal weather conditions for racing this weekend. There’s a 1% chance of rain on Sunday, with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the low-80s for the Xfinity 500. Keep up to date with the latest forecast right here.