NASCAR legend Richard Petty has a stark warning for the sport's leaders. As Martinsville Speedway faces pressure to keep its spot on the calendar, 'The King' made it clear that dropping the historic track is not an option.

Martinsville Speedway is under a lot of pressure to retain its position in the NASCAR calendar. But King Richard is having none of it and spoke in favour of the track and its legacy.

“No, we still need to run Martinsville no matter what. Martinsville was on the schedule in 1949, even though it was dirt,” Petty said in an X video. “When I look back at the whole deal, Martinsville started all the racing. It'd be like losing a brother or something. Martinsville is so much of NASCAR's history.”

Even Kyle Petty added on. In an excerpt of their podcast, which Richard posted on X, Kyle spoke about how this track had survived the test of time.

“Martinsville is the oldest race going, no doubt about it, and when Winston came on board around 1972, and they cut out a lot of the short tracks and everything, Martinsville was one of the few short tracks that survived it," Kyle Petty added. "They are still alive today, and I hope they stay alive a long time from now on.”

Even present drivers feel the same. Ross Chastain, who famously pulled off the Hail Melon, one of the most memorable moments of his career at this very track.

“Martinsville has been pretty good to me since driving for Trackhouse,” Chastain said. “Obviously, I’ve had one of the biggest moments of my career there, but we’ve been consistently strong there over the last few years.”

But despite the love that many have for Martinsville, we cannot look past the fact that many tracks are facing lawsuits today.

Various Tracks are Facing Lawsuits and Obstacles

Recently, residents of South Carolina fought to save the Greenville-Pickens Speedway from demolition.

The fight to save the Speedway has been driven by the people. Residents, racing enthusiasts, and the “Real Historic Greenville Pickens Speedway” group have taken the lead.

They have rallied to protect one of short-track racing’s most storied venues, while coverage from outlets like WYFF News 4 has kept the spotlight firmly on their grassroots push.

But the problems for these shorter circuits are multi-layered; most have shrinking sponsorship deals or noise complaints from settlers, while a bigger problem is the reduction of spectator attendance for races.

There are tracks like Nashville Fairgrounds and Lime Rock Park that are embroiled in lawsuits.

Being part of the first-ever NASCAR series in 1949, Martinsville has a unique history of being the only track to feature in NASCAR since the inception of the sport. 

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Aadesh Dhote