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03.30.16

Martinsville 500 Pre-Report

Danica Patrick and the No. 10 TaxAct Chevrolet SS team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) enter this weekend’s Martinsville 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway looking to replicate the results they earned in last spring’s event at the .526-mile oval.

Last March, Patrick rallied from a lap down in the Martinsville 500 to earn a seventh-place finish. It was her first top-10 finish of the season and the fifth of her career, tying her with Janet Guthrie for the most Sprint Cup top-10s by a female driver. Patrick then went on to set the top-10 record outright with her 10th-place finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway a few weeks later.

While Patrick’s seventh-place effort last spring is her best Martinsville finish, she is no stranger to success at the Southern Virginia short track. In 2013, she became first woman to start a Sprint Cup race at Martinsville, which opened in 1949. The 12th-place finish earned in her debut at the .526-mile track was an impressive rookie performance that bested those of some other name drivers in their Martinsville debuts, most notably her team owner Tony Stewart, who finished 20th in his first Martinsville start in 1999. Six-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson finished 35th in his Martinsville debut in 2002. NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace finished 15th and Dale Jarrett finished 14th in their 1984 debuts. In their 2000 Martinsville debuts, Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 26th, Matt Kenseth finished 21st, and Kurt Busch finished 37th. Kyle Busch finished 39th in 2005. And, back in the day, Fred Lorenzen finished 24th in 1956.

TaxAct will serve as the primary sponsor on Patrick’s No. 10 Chevrolet again this weekend at Martinsville, and the official tax preparation software partner of SHR and Patrick are looking for solid results from the team.

TaxAct’s “Premium Finish” promotion continues this week, as well. Long known for being the best deal during tax season, TaxAct is offering race fans the chance to purchase its top-tier online tax preparation and filing solution at a highly discounted price. If Patrick or any member of the SHR team grabs a top-10 finish in select upcoming races, fans can register to file their 2015 federal and state tax returns using the TaxAct Online Premium Bundle for only $10 (originally priced at $49.98). This gives filers access to the federal and state forms needed to complete their return no matter how complex their situation, all in, for $10 (offer and pricing subject to change). In the event none of the SHR drivers finish in the top-10 in those select races, a $10 discount off federal returns will be extended to honor the savings opportunity.

Tax filers can get a “Premium Finish” with the running of the Martinsville 500, with applicable discounted pricing available through the following Saturday (offer and pricing subject to change). TaxAct will offer additional opportunities for NASCAR fans to file returns with “Premium Finish” pricing for the Sprint Cup races up to the tax filing deadline on April 18 (April 19 for residents of Massachusetts and Maine). Fans can lock in their “Premium Finish” price online by visiting TaxAct.com/Ten. With TaxAct’s Price Lock Guarantee, filers are guaranteed to pay the price offered at the time they register, no matter when they choose to file.

 

Patrick and her No. 10 TaxAct Chevrolet team will be looking to repeat her past success at Martinsville to score a “Premium Finish” this weekend and, in turn, help fans get a great deal on their taxes.

DANICA PATRICK, Driver of the No. 10 TaxAct Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

What is the key to success at Martinsville?

“I came from a road-course-racing background and, at Martinsville, I feel like you have to set up passes a little bit like that. I think it’s also a track where you have to exercise a lot of discipline. It’s easy to make mistakes. It’s easy to overdrive and try and get a little bit more when you’re passing somebody and make mistakes. Those are the two things I keep in mind when I’m there. I also think you really need a good car there, and Stewart-Haas Racing has always had good cars there.”

What’s the toughest thing to figure out about Martinsville?

“At Martinsville, like any short track, you want to make sure you turn the center, but you have to have drive on exit. They go hand-in-hand, too. If you can’t turn the center, it doesn’t matter what kind of power-down you have. If you have all that wheel in it when you’re trying to get off the corner and put the power down, it puts a lot of load on those back tires to try and get you off the corner because you’re using the power to try and turn. It’s about achieving a good balance with the car and I feel like our team has really always done a pretty good job with that. I’ve only had one Martinsville that was bad and the rest of them were all pretty decent.”

What do you like about racing at Martinsville?

“At Martinsville, I enjoy that if you have a good car, you can pass. I always say that Martinsville is one of those tracks that you’re either looking out your windshield or you’re looking in your rearview mirror. It doesn’t seem like there’s a lot of in-between there, at least for me. Luckily, I’ve had more weekends where I was looking out the windshield.”