This week the Nascar Nextel Cup Series heads to Martinsville for the Subway 500.  Last week, Jeff Gordon won his second consecutive race when he outlasted the field to win at Charlotte, further distancing himself from the rest of the chase participants.  With the chase moving to the .526 mile Martinsville Speedway this week, its back to a little or a lot of tight, side by side, banging and bumping this weekend.  Martinsville is unlike any track on the circuit with its very flat and oddly shaped characteristics.  Patience and tempers will surely be tested as 43 cars attempt to get through this paper clip oval.  This race also marks the return of the COT, so expect the normal short track culprits that have done well in the COT races to be near the front when the checkered flag waves.

When it comes to racing at Martinsville, a driver's skill to brake and accelerate hard out of the corners will be a huge factor.  The ability of a team to take care of those brakes and tires by getting the setup correct and maintaining it through the race will be crucial as to how a driver finishes.  A driver must display a lot of patience, stay off the walls and pick and choose when to move forward.  One small mistake that would require a pit stop during green flag racing will be very costly to a driver and they will more than likely find themselves two laps down when re-entering the track. 

Jeff Gordon has to be considered the odds on favorite at Martinsville.  He owns the most career wins (7), and has clinched seven top fives and two top 10s in the last nine races at the track.  He's also simply dominated the last six Cup races overall, winning the last two events and procuring five top fives.  Gordon is also the top ranked driver in the COT races and if it wasn't for a terrific block by teammate Jimmie Johnson in the spring race, Gordon would've been going for the sweep this weekend.  If you don't have any starts with Gordon or Johnson, you might want to take a chance with the likes of Dale Earnhardt Jr.  He hasn't had the results overall but he runs extremely well at Martinsville, 6 top 10's in the last ten races here.

Others to Watch

Tony Stewart - He certainly has produced some dominant performances here in the past. Stewart has raced to four consecutive top seven finishes at Martinsville, including a win in the 2006 DIRECTV 500 during which he led 288 laps.  Overall, Stewart has raced to 10 top-10 finishes in 17 career starts with three poles and two wins, and averages a 12.2-position finish.

Kyle Busch - He finished third in last week's race at LMS, and has clinched three top fives in the last five Cup races. He's also dominated short tracks in 2006 with a Cup-high five top 10s and four top fives. He owns three top 10s and two top fives in five races at Martinsville, including a fourth in April.

Ryan Newman - He's had straight runs in the top 20 at Martinsville, with four of them being top-10 rides. He could easily have won the Charlotte race last week, but a flat tire doomed him with less than two laps remaining. When not getting caught up in wrecks, he's been driving well the last two months.

Juan Pablo Montoya - He's struggled in his rookie year, but has potential to fare well at the short track of Martinsville. He finished 16th in April's race after starting 23rd; Montoya's F1 skills should help him succeed at this tight, short track.

Jamie McMurray - He's struggled this season, but he's fared well at Martinsville. He owns the second-most top 10s (6) in the past five seasons, including ninth in April.

David Ragan - Group C's best bet, has raced here twice and finished 25th and 15th.

What the experts think

My pick - Jeff Gordon - I'm either really smart or really dumb because I still have starts left with Gordon.  It's hard for any driver to win 3 straight races in this series and while I'm not expecting him to win, I'm taking him in hopes he'll drive to another top 5, helping my fantasy team pick up points on the 3 teams in front of me.  He is the top ranked driver in the COT cars and is the most consistent driver in the series this year.

Sleeper pick - Jeff Burton - Burton has been a strong performer at Martinsville, racing to 13 top-10 finishes in his 26 career starts (he averages a 15th-place finish). He struggled terribly in the 2006 events here, racing to 42nd (engine) and 33rd-place finishes. Burton did, however, produce a strong sixth-place finish in the Goody's Cool Orange 500 in April.