Hendrick Motorsports’ history at Martinsville marked by dominance, tragedy and triumph

When Chase Elliott was growing up, it felt like anyone who’d climbed into a race car had aspirations of driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Rick Hendrick-owned NASCAR team struggled in its infancy, but its initial run of success began with its first win — at Martinsville on April 29, 1984, when Geoff Bodine delivered the first of 304 (and counting) wins for an unseasoned team struggling to stay afloat. Elliott, the 28-year-old who’s been voted the sport’s Most Popular Driver for six years in a row,...