Many NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers have a love/hate relationship with at least one track on the schedule. For veteran driver Brendan Gaughan, Martinsville Speedway could fall into that category.
The Las Vegas native never has felt completely comfortable there.
The tight, 0.525-mile layout hasn’t been a complete washout. Gaughan has scored four top-10 finishes in 12 starts, highlighted by a pair of 9th-place finishes in 2011, the last time he competed there in a truck. Gaughan has only finished off the lead lap once.
Gaughan’s frustrations at Martinsville can best be summed by one word: qualifying. His average start is 25.3, more than 10 positions worse than his average finish (14.3).
“We’ve always raced well there, but qualifying just kills us and I have to get better at it,” Gaughan said. “I love Martinsville, and the staff and the people in the community are great, but I have tried every way possible to get a good lap in at that track and haven’t figured it out yet.”
Gaughan has captured eight wins in the series, highlighted by six victories coming in 2003, when he finished fourth in the final standings. But he’s never won on a short track.
“I have decided that I am going to be one with Martinsville and make it part of my DNA next week,” he said. “I am determined to get better at the track and part of it is making up my mind that we are going to do well there.”