Hal Martin

Hal Martin (born December 29, 1985) is an American stock car racing driver. He currently competes for TriStar Motorsports in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. 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 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 will be driving full-time for TriStar Motorsports in 2013 and will be competing for Nationwide Rookie of the Year honors, where he will once again be paired with veteran crew chief John Quinn.^[4] Martin's competition for Rookie of the Year includes 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.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

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

Nationwide Series

Camping World Truck Series

^* Season in progress
¹ Ineligible for series points

References

External links

• Official website
• Hal Martin driver statistics at Racing-Reference