The sport of NASCAR hits Martinsville Speedway in Virginia this weekend, one of the oldest and most historic venues on the schedule, and there is one particular feature of the event that always gets everybody's attention.
No, not the Martinsville hot dogs (although we hear they are also great), we are, of course, talking about the famous grandfather clocks.
Every year, in both the spring and fall at Martinsville, each winner of a national NASCAR Series event (Cup, O'Reilly or Truck) is awarded a tall, freestanding pendulum clock housed in a wooden case, usually standing around the seven-foot mark.
It is undoubtedly the most stunning trophy in the sport, but what is the story behind it?
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Martinsville grandfather clock history
The tradition of awarding race winners with a grandfather clock at Martinsville Speedway dates all the way back to 1964.
H. Clay Earles, who built Martinsville Speedway and remained its guiding force for decades, wanted a winner’s prize that would be impossible to confuse with any other track’s trophy, and so he hatched a genius plan.
Just down the road from Martinsville Speedway was the Ridgeway Clock Company, a local business specializing in handcrafted longcase clocks.
Earles struck an agreement to present one of Ridgeway’s tall, ornate clocks to each NASCAR winner at Martinsville, rather than something conventional, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Fred 'The Golden Boy' Lorenzen became the first driver to receive the unique prize after winning the 1964 Cup race in Virginia, later adding a second to his collection in the same year after dominating both events.
Martinsville clock change for 2026
Although historically the clocks were made by Ridgeway, that will no longer be the case for this season and beyond.
Unfortunately, Howard Miller, who have owned the rights to the Ridgeway name since 2004, announced last year that they were ceasing production of the clocks at the end of 2025.
This left Martinsville Speedway with a dilemma. Either find a new supplier, or cease a NASCAR tradition which has been going for over six decades. In the end, they decided they could not let that happen, with a new manufacturer having been found.
Hermle North America, based in Amherst, Virginia, will now produce the famous clocks for Martinsville, with the company showing a touch of class by naming the trophies the H. Clay Earles Grandfather Clocks, honoring the man who began the tradition all of those years ago.
The new clocks remain faithful to its traditional counterparts, housed in a tall wooden case with a swinging pendulum and chiming movement, and will also feature a maker's plate acknowledging Hermle's role and Earles’ legacy.
What do NASCAR drivers think about Martinsville grandfather clocks?
Over the years, several drivers have spoken glowingly about the grandfather clocks on offer at Martinsville.
Four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon, for example, proud owner of nine grandfather clocks, once said, via NASCAR.com: “It’s certainly the most unique trophy and it has so much meaning behind it because it’s a tough one to capture.
“It’s a very difficult race track. You have to have a lot of things go your way to conquer that place, and then the trophy itself stands out. It has a lot of meaning.”
Current star William Byron, who has four grandfather clocks (three Cup wins, one Truck victory), is also a fan.
“When we won that race last year, and won the Truck race, it was the first thing I thought about, that the clock was going somewhere,” Byron was quoted in 2023.
“I think it is the coolest trophy in NASCAR. It definitely holds a lot of meaning. I was excited to get that delivered, and I’ve got both of them set up in my apartment."
Trackhouse Racing star Ross Chastain even revealed this week that he is desperate to get a victory at Martinsville so that he can own one.
"The grandfather clock is something that I want," he said. "I want it really bad, and I’ll work a really long time to try to take one home.”
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Which NASCAR driver has the most Martinsville grandfather clocks?
NASCAR legend Richard Petty is the all-time winningest NASCAR driver at Martinsville Speedway with 15 race victories.
However, with the clock not introduced until 1964, he did not receive a grandfather clock as his trophy for three of those victories. Still, Petty received 12 clocks in total, which still makes him the NASCAR driver with the most all-time.
Denny Hamlin is the active full-time driver with the most clocks to his name, winning six times at Martinsville over the years, the most recent of which came in March 2025.
How much are the Martinsville grandfather clocks worth?
Joe Gibbs Racing chief Dave Alpern once revealed that the team paid $2900 for their Martinsville grandfather clocks.
Surprisingly, Alpern revealed that this is on the lower end of what the team pays for its race-winning trophies.
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