Jeff Gordon returns to Martinsville; Cup Chase begins Round of 8

Ray Slover

Jeff Gordon returns to Martinsville; Cup Chase begins Round of 8 image

Welcome back, Jeff Gordon, what will be your final race as replacement for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Gordon won this race in 2015.

Sunday's Martinsville race reminds NASCAR fans of two things: Kyle Busch's spring 2016 sweep and the notorious 2015 Matt Kenseth-Joey Logano run-in. Busch could well be the driver to beat again in the first leg of the Chase for the Sprint Cup's Round of 8. Don't look for another Kenseth-Logano mess. That's not to say something crazy won't happen.

MORE: Martinsville schedule | Junior back on TV | Gibbs stragglers

After all, Logano and Kenseth are in the Chase. Not that either man would risk his championship bid to settle a score.

Drivers take the track Friday for an 11 a.m. ET practice and qualifying at 4:40 ET. There were 41 entries, meaning one team will pack up and go home Friday night.

All Chase drivers begin this round with 4,000 points. The standings:

Pos. No. Driver/
Team
Brand Starts | Wins
Top 5 | Top 10
1 22 Joey Logano
Team Penske
Ford 32 | 2
13 | 22
2 48 Jimmie Johnson
Hendrick Motorsports
Chevy 32 | 3
9 | 14
3 4 Kevin Harvick
Stewart-Haas Racing
Chevy 32 | 4
15 | 24
4 20 Matt Kenseth
Joe Gibbs Racing
Toyota 32 | 2
7 | 16
5 19 Carl Edwards
Joe Gibbs Racing
Toyota 32 | 2
8 | 17
6 11 Denny Hamlin
Joe Gibbs Racing
Toyota 32 | 3
11 | 18
7 41 Kurt Busch
Stewart-Haas Racing
Chevy 32 | 1
8 | 20
8 18 Kyle Busch
Joe Gibbs Racing
Toyota 32 | 4
14 | 21

After Martinsville, the old half-mile Paperclip, the Chase moves to the 1.5-mile track at Texas and finished the round on the mile at Phoenix. Four teams will advance to the Chase championship race at Homestead-Miami.

Winning one of these three races is critical. But don't discount the possibility of the four Gibbs teams working toward getting all four cars in the Homestead race.

Here are the entries for Martinsville. Chase drivers are in bold.

No. Driver
Hometown
Brand Sponsor
Owner
1 Jamie McMurray
Joplin, Mo.
Chevy Credit One
Chip Ganassi Racing
 
2 Brad Keselowski
Rochester Hills, Mich.
Ford Alliance Truck Parts
Team Penske
 
3 Austin Dillon
Welcome, N.C.
Chevy Dow-Dow Corning Chevrolet
Richard Childress Racing
4 Kevin Harvick
Bakersfield, Calif.
Chevy Busch Light Chevrolet SS
Stewart-Haas Racing
5 Kasey Kahne
Enumclaw, Wash.
Chevy UniFirst
Hendrick Motorsports
6 Trevor Bayne
Knoxville, Tenn.
Ford Advocare Ford Fusion
Roush Fenway Racing
7 Regan Smith
Cato, N.Y.
Chevy Nikko RC/Toy State Chevrolet
Tommy Baldwin Racing
10 Danica Patrick
Roscoe, Ill.
Chevy Nature's Bakery Chevrolet SS
Stewart-Haas Racing
11 Denny Hamlin
Chesterfield, Va.
Toyota FedEx Freight
Joe Gibbs Racing
13 Casey Mears
Bakersfield, Calif.
Chevy GEICO
Germain Racing
14 Tony Stewart
Columbus, Ind.
Chevy Haas Automation Chevrolet SS
Stewart-Haas Racing
15 Clint Bowyer
Emporia, Kans.
Chevy 5-Hour Energy
HScott Motorsports
16 Greg Biffle
Vancouver, Wash.
Ford FordPass Ford Fusion
Roush Fenway Racing
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Olive Branch, Miss.
Ford Fastenal Ford Fusion
Roush Fenway Racing
18 Kyle Busch
Las Vegas, Nev.
Toyota M&M's Halloween
Joe Gibbs Racing
19 Carl Edwards
Columbia, Mo.
Toyota Sport Clips
Joe Gibbs Racing
20 Matt Kenseth
Cambridge, Wis.
Toyota Dollar General
Joe Gibbs Racing
21 Ryan Blaney
High Point, N.C.
Ford Virginia Tech
Wood Brothers Racing
22 Joey Logano
Middletown, Conn.
Ford Shell Pennzoil
Team Penske
23 David Ragan
Unadilla, Ga.
Toyota Dr Pepper
BK Racing
24 Chase Elliott
Dawsonville, Ga.
Chevy NAPA Auto Parts
Hendrick Motorsports
27 Paul Menard
Eau Claire, Wis.
Chevy Dutch Boy/Menards
Richard Childress Racing
30 Gray Gaulding
Colonial Heights, Va.
Chevy Feed the Children
The Motorsports Group
31 Ryan Newman
South Bend, Ind.
Chevy Caterpillar
Richard Childress Racing
32 Jeffrey Earnhardt
Mooresville, N.C.
Ford Keen Parts/Rain-X
GO FAS Racing
34 Chris Buescher
Prosper, Texas
Ford Love's Travel Stops/Roller Bites
Front Row Motorsports
38 Landon Cassill
Fairfax, Iowa
Ford A&W All American Food
Front Row Motorsports
41 Kurt Busch
Las Vegas, Nev.
Chevy State Water Heaters Chevrolet SS
Stewart-Haas Racing
42 Kyle Larson
Elk Grove, Calif.
Chevy Target
Chip Ganassi Racing
43 Aric Almirola
Tampa, Fla.
Ford Smithfield
Richard Petty Motorsports
44 Brian Scott
Boise, Idaho
Ford American Red Cross
Richard Petty Motorsports
46 Michael Annett
Des Moines, Iowa
Chevy Pilot Flying J
HScott Motorsports
47 AJ Allmendinger
Los Gatos, Calif.
Chevy Kroger/Clorox
JTG Daugherty Racing
48 Jimmie Johnson
El Cajon, Calif.
Chevy Lowe's
Hendrick Motorsports
55 Reed Sorenson
Peachtree City, Ga.
Chevy TBD
Premium Motorsports
78 Martin Truex Jr
Mayetta, N.J.
Toyota Auto-Owners Insurance
Furniture Row Racing
83 Dylan Lupton
Sacramento, Calif.
Toyota E.J. Wade Construction
BK Racing
88 Jeff Gordon
Vallejo, Calif.
Chevy Nationwide
Hendrick Motorsports
93 Matt DiBenedetto
Grass Valley, Calif.
Toyota E.J. Wade Construction
BK Racing
95 Michael McDowell
Glendale, Arizona
Chevy Malwarebytes
Circle Sport-Leavine Family
98 Cole Whitt
Alpine, Calif.
Chevy TBD
Premium Motorsports

This will be Gaulding's first Sprint Cup race.

Ray Slover