This race will be a little different for drivers than it has been in the past: It will be 400 laps in 2022 instead of the 500 that the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief has traditionally been.
And unlike the previous seven races this season, this one will be held Saturday night as opposed to Sunday afternoon.
Who will be leading the drivers under the green flag to start the race? Here’s a look at the pole winner and starting lineup for the eighth race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season.
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Who won the pole for the NASCAR race at Martinsville?
Chase Elliott secured the pole position for Saturday’s race after he posted a time of 19.694 seconds and a speed of 96.151 mph. Next to Elliott on the front row will be Aric Almirola, who posted a 19.799 time and a speed of 95.641 mph.
“It honestly surprised me that it was that fast,” Elliott told NASCAR.com. “I didn’t expect it to be in the 60s (tenths of a second). I thought I had a good lap, but not a great lap. Nice to grab a pole — it’s been a while.”
The last time Elliott posted the top qualifying time was in March 2020, when he landed the pole in the 2020 FanShield 500 at Phoenix. He led 94 laps in that race but Joey Logano wound up winning.
Starting lineup for Martinsville race
None of the drivers in the top three positions at Martinsville have won a race this season. Cole Custer qualified third behind Elliott and Almirola.
The only drivers in the top 10 who have won a race this season are William Byron (fifth) and Kyle Larson (eighth). Martin Truex Jr., who has won the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 the past two years, will start in the 20th position.
Here’s the full lineup for the race.
