(NEXSTAR) – NASCAR returns to Martinsville Speedway in Virginia this weekend for a series of short-track races culminating in the Cup Series Cook Out 400 on Sunday. The headline event will feature a 400-lap format for the fifth consecutive year, departing from the traditional 500-lap distance seen in the fall. Founded in 1947, Martinsville Speedway is the oldest track on the NASCAR circuit and is known by fans as "The Paperclip" or "The Wrigley Field of NASCAR." The weekend marks a shift in race strategy due to the shorter lap count and introduces a new Virginia-made grandfather clock trophy for the winners. Short-track racing veteran Lee Pulliam will make his debut in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series this weekend driving the No. 9 car for Junior Motorsports. Pulliam previously earned two wins at Martinsville in the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 late model stock car race and has won four NASCAR Local Racing Series national titles. "I'm super excited, you know, I couldn't be more grateful [for] the opportunity and just really, really just a true blessing to be able to do it with Earnhardt family and everybody at Junior motorsports," Pulliam said. Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott also returns to the track where he has earned one win in the Truck Series and one win in the Cup Series. Elliott has finished in the top four in each of the last four Martinsville races, and has three second-place finishes at the venue in the Cup Series. The winner of the weekend's races will receive a grandfather clock, continuing a tradition that began 62 years ago. Track founder H. Clay Earles awarded the first clock to driver Fred Lorenzen in 1964. This year, the trophy has a new manufacturer, Hermle North America, based in Amherst, Virginia. The trophy is now officially known as the Earles Grandfather Clock in honor of the track's founder. The clock is made entirely of cherry wood and features expert metal craftsmanship. Clay Campbell, the president of Martinsville Speedway, said he was excited for the new partnership, which brings the production of the trophy back to Virginia. "It's very special for numerous reasons," Campbell said. "I think the drivers are really gonna be excited about winning one of these clocks. You know we've had nice clocks in the past, but this one is off-the-charts nice." The racing schedule begins Friday night with the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour's "Virginia is for Racing Lovers" 200. On Saturday, the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series will hold the NFPA 250, which will be broadcast on the CW. The race weekend concludes Sunday with the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400. All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by Nexstar. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by Nexstar staff before being published