Martinsville Speedway is an NASCAR-owned stock car racing track located in Henry County, in Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (0.847 km) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. It is also the only remaining race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948.
The first practice session was held on Friday, April 16, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for two hours and 30 minutes.[3]Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 19.917 and an average speed of 95.074 mph (153.007 km/h).[4]
The second practice session was held on Saturday, April 17, at 10:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour and 45 minutes. Dick Trickle, driving for LJ Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 20.180 and an average speed of 93.835 mph (151.013 km/h).[3]
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, April 17, after the preliminary 1999 NAPA 250. The session would last for one hour.[3]Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 20.260 and an average speed of 93.464 mph (150.416 km/h).[5]
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, April 16, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, April 17, at 12:30 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[6]
Tony Stewart, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 19.875 and an average speed of 95.275 miles per hour (153.330 km/h).[7]