Kings of the bullring: NASCAR'S five best short-track drivers

Short-track racing is inherently tied to stock car racing. Since the days of bootleggers driving modified Ford Coupes, racing on dirt or paved bullrings has always been a staple of stock car racing and NASCAR. 

While modern-day NASCAR short-track racing is much more refined, the stars of today still aren't afraid to use the chrome horn when it's needed.

As is the case with every type of track, some drivers understand the nuances of short-track racing better than others. With the NASCAR Cup Series heading this weekend to a new short track — the 7/8-mile Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa — it's a good time to highlight drivers who are always in contention at NASCAR's bullrings. 

Here are the five best short-track racers in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Denny Hamlin

Hamlin has three wins this season at tracks a mile in length or less, but he's also made his home tracks of Richmond (Va.) and Martinsville (Va.) — both short tracks — his playground during his Cup Series career. Hamlin has also won the past two races at Bristol (Tenn.), and the No. 11 team seems to always unload with a fast car every time the Cup Series traverses the tight confines of NASCAR's bullrings. 

Joey Logano

Without short tracks, Logano's 2024 season would essentially be thrown in the dumpster. While the driver of the No. 22 car sits outside of NASCAR's playoff picture, the short tracks of Richmond and Martinsville are the sole reason Logano is still within striking distance. 

Logano only has two top-10s and one top-five away from the friendly confines of the Virginia short tracks, and his lone win of the season — albeit in a non-points paying exhibition race —came in the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro. 

With another short track on the docket this weekend at Iowa, Logano can't let the opportunity for a good run slip away. 

Martin Truex, Jr.

Putting Truex on this list before April 2019 would've been laughable, but since earning his first short- track win at Richmond in 2019, he has become unstoppable at short ovals. Truex boasts three wins apiece at both Richmond and Martinsville, and he nearly grabbed a fourth Richmond victory in March before Hamlin stole it on a late restart. Iowa could very well be the site of Truex's first win of 2024. 

Kyle Larson

Larson is probably the best overall driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, but his short-track prowess has always seemed underappreciated. Larson won three short-track races in 2023 — Richmond, Martinsville and the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro — and finished top-five earlier in the season at Bristol, Richmond and Martinsville. Larson can win anywhere in any vehicle, but he's rarely on the list of favorites when NASCAR goes short-track racing. Expect the No. 5 car to be fast this weekend at Iowa, as Larson participated in a test at the track in May. 

Kyle Busch

While it's true that Busch no longer dominates his competition every time the circuit heads to Richmond or Bristol, Rowdy still owns eight wins at Bristol, six wins at Richmond and two wins at Martinsville. That's 16 Cup Series wins at those venues alone, and while new NASCAR fans may not believe it, Busch was considered NASCAR's short-track king for much of the 2010s. Busch's 2024 season hasn't gone to plan — not even at Bristol, Martinsville or Richmond — but a good day at Iowa could be the catalyst for Busch to turn up the wick as the playoffs approach.