NASCAR: Winners And Losers From Martinsville

Winner: Staying Calm

We know Danica Patrick can get a little heated at times when she feels like another driver has treated her wrong on the track. We’ve already seen it this season as she walked near the track with arms in the air and had some words for Kasey Kahne after he spun her out at Auto Club, whether it was intentional or not.

At Martinsville, Patrick did not let her emotions get the best of her and earned a 16th-place finish, her best of the season. Though she ran in the top-10 at times throughout the race, it was a victory in itself to avoid falling back further as this was just the second time all season that she had finished inside the top-20.

Martinsville is a track that she has run well at in the past, with two top-20’s to start her Cup Series career and a 7th-place finish last season in the spring race at the paperclip. She got a little out of hand in last year’s Chase race as her and David Gilliland got into it on the track, but staying calm this season helped her finish off a decent day.

Even at one point in the race when she was in 6th place and took a little contact before giving up four positions, she stayed focused and didn’t retaliate in a way that could’ve damaged the outcome of her race. Overall, it wasn’t the best day she’s ever had before, but Patrick did have some solid runs inside the top-15 and top-10 at a track where drivers with extra road course experience seemed to be just a little bit better than the rest of the field.

Next: Early Speed Didn't Pay Off