Hal Martin

Hal Martin
Born (1985-12-29) December 29, 1985
Galliano, Louisiana, United States
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
17 races run over 3 years
2014 position 60th
Best finish 35th (2013)
First race 2012 Kansas Lottery 300 (Kansas)
Last race 2014 U.S. Cellular 250 (Iowa)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
1 race run over 1 year
Best finish 94th (2009)
First race 2009 MemphisTravel.com 200 (Memphis)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
Statistics current as of August 2, 2014.

Hal Martin (born December 29, 1985) is an American stock car racing driver. Due to his Louisiana heritage, he is nicknamed "The Ragin' Cajun".[1]

Early career

Martin began his racing career when he was 15 years old, racing 80cc and 125cc shifter karts, racing around the Gulf Coast of the United States and winning the 2004 Louisiana State 80cc Shifter Kart Championship. He then went to several driving schools to improve his driving skills as he prepared to move up to full-bodied stock cars, including the Buck Baker Racing School and Andy Hillenburg's Fast Track High Performance Driving School in Rockingham, North Carolina.[1]

In 2007, Martin won the Mobile International Speedway Track Championship in the Pro Late Model Division and was crowned the 2007 Louisiana State Champion by Late Model Digest. He would follow that up with two more wins the following season while competing on various short tracks around the Gulf of Mexico, followed by running some ASA Late Model Series races in 2009 and 2010.[1]

In 2009, Martin graduated from the University of New Orleans with a degree in mechanical engineering.[2]

ARCA Racing Series

Following his completion of Hillenburg's driving school, Martin was approved to compete in the ARCA Racing Series. He made his series debut at Mansfield Motorsports Park, finishing in 11th place. He would follow that up in his next race two months later with a 3rd-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway, his best finish to date. While he was competing on various short tracks around the Gulf Coast, Martin was gaining valuable experience on some of the biggest tracks in the country while competing in ARCA, including Daytona, Talladega, and Pocono. In 11 career ARCA starts between 2009 and 2011, Martin has a best starting and finishing position of 3rd place, while also tallying 3 top ten finishes.[3]

NASCAR career

Nationwide Series

Martin (top car) racing Blake Koch at Richmond International Raceway in 2013

Martin made his Nationwide Series debut at Kansas Speedway in 2012, driving the No. 44 car for TriStar Motorsports. His debut ended 24 laps from the finish when he got together with Scott Lagasse, Jr. and caused both drivers to hit the wall and crash out of the race, crediting him with a 25th-place finish. He would compete in two more races that season in preparation for a full-time effort in 2013, this time driving the No. 19 car for TriStar Motorsports at Texas and Homestead, finishing in 30th place on both occasions.

After running three races towards the end of 2012, Martin drove full-time for TriStar Motorsports in 2013 and will be competing for Nationwide Rookie of the Year honors, where he was once again paired with veteran crew chief John Quinn.[4] Martin's competition for Rookie of the Year included Jeffrey Earnhardt, grandson of Dale Earnhardt, 2012 K&N Pro Series East champion Kyle Larson and former Formula One driver Nelson Piquet Jr..

Camping World Truck Series

Martin made his lone Camping World Truck Series in 2009 at Memphis International Raceway. Driving for driving coach Andy Hillenburg, Martin finished 26th in the 36-truck field, competing in just over half the laps of the 200-lap race before retiring from the event due to overheating.

Team ownership

On July 28, 2015, Martin and Xfinity Series driver Eric McClure formed Martin-McClure Racing, a K&N Pro Series East team; the team fields the No. 39 for Chad Finchum[5] and Austin Cindric.[6]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Nationwide Series

Camping World Truck Series

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Hal Martin". HalMartin.com. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  2. ↑ Hal Martin Takes Louisiana to NASCAR Country
  3. ↑ "Hal Martin's ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  4. ↑ "Louisiana Native "Ragin' Cajun" Hal Martin Announces NASCAR Nationwide Series Commitment for 2012-2013". Catchfence. 2012-09-21. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  5. ↑ "MCCLURE, MARTIN FORM K&N PRO SERIES TEAM". NASCAR. July 28, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Austin Cindric Joins Martin-McClure Racing". Catchfence. April 26, 2016. Retrieved April 26, 2016.

External links

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